Serra Catholic eases to victory past Shady Side Academy

By: Jeremy Tepper
Friday, October 2, 2020 | 11:49 PM

Before the game started, Jayvon Holt knew he and his Serra Catholic teammates had a distinct, important advantage Friday.

“We’re gonna be faster than any team we play,” Holt said.

Certainly, that played out on the field against Shady Side Academy. Serra Catholic (3-0, 1-0) physically dominated the Indians (0-2, 0-1) and out-executed them, too, in a 54-14 win. The Eagles showed their dominance in outgaining Shady Side Academy, 553-158.

“We just did an outstanding job today and did what we wanted to do,” Eagles coach Jose Regus said. “We accomplished a lot of things, and our defense really sets the tone for the game.”

Through Regus’ tenure, it often has been the defense that led the way. This season the offense has caught up and maybe even surpassed that unit. Serra Catholic has started with three straight games of 50-plus points.

A number of players can make big plays for the Eagles, and that was evident Friday. Machai Brooks ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns. Holt caught three passes for 122 yards and a touchdown and also had an interception return for a touchdown. Terrell Booth had a 63-yard touchdown catch. Max Rocco completed just six passes but threw for 269 yards. All night, Serra Catholic gashed the Indians for big gains.

“We have a lot of guys that are able to score,” Regus said “They’re all dangerous with the ball in their hands. We have a few more athletes than we usually have.”

Serra Catholic first got on the board midway through the first quarter, when Holt jumped a route, intercepted it and took it 37 yards to the end zone. Three minutes later, in a drive aided by penalties, Shady Side Academy tied the score as Joey Bellinotti caught a screen pass and ran it 14 yards for a touchdown.

That was the last touchdown the Indians scored until garbage time as Serra Catholic ran off 47 unanswered points. First Holt toasted a defender for a 74-yard touchdown catch, giving the Eagles a 13-7 lead after a quarter. Then Brooks ran it in twice, from 3 and 20 yards, and Paul Pearson scored from 20 yards in a 21-0 second quarter. Touchdowns by Booth and Zack Weber enacted the mercy rule late in the third quarter.

“We feel like we have more athletes, and we’re able to work around what we got,” Holt said. “It’s hard to game plan against us.”

Much like the offense, the Eagles’ defense played excellently, forcing three turnovers and registering three sacks. Regus said the focus was on limiting Indians quarterback Josh Castro, and they effectively did that. Castro completed 6 of 20 passes for 25 yards and gained 38 yards on 14 runs.

“Defensively, we wanted to shut Castro down. That was one of our main focuses,” Regus said. “We just executed on what we practiced, and it showed.”

Having outscored opponents by 122 points thus far, Regus said his team’s confidence is at an all-time high. Past Eagles teams have been solid but not nearly this dominant. It’s a product of building a foundation over the past couple years, Regus said, and now it finally is showing.

“Ever since the quarantine, we’ve been working through that, and we knew this was gonna happen,” Holt said. “We’ve just got to be humble and continue to work.”

Listen to an archived broadcast of this game on Trib HSSN.

Tags: Serra Catholic, Shady Side Academy