Gies leads Judge past Ryan
About the only thing Justin Gies didn't hang on to on Friday was his receiver's glove as he trotted off Charles Martin Memorial Field.
About the only thing Justin Gies didn't hang on to on Friday was his receiver's glove as he trotted off Charles Martin Memorial Field.
The Father Judge junior had already helped the Crusaders to a 20-14 conquest of Archbishop Ryan, thanks to his 60-yard touchdown catch and two interceptions.
He had to double back, however, when his white glove with Columbia-blue trim fell on the track.
But have no fear - his little brother, Daniel, was there to make the retrieval.
And judging by the way his family churns out Crusaders, Daniel might be wearing those colors one day.
"My whole family went there," Gies said, smiling. "My dad, four uncles and my two older brothers all went to Judge."
Later, he added: "It's awesome. I had to carry on the tradition."
His older brother, Matt, was a second-team all-Catholic selection by league coaches in 2009 as a wide receiver.
That's the position Justin first made his presence felt for Judge (1-0) on Saturday.
On third and 18 with Judge trailing, 7-6, in the second quarter, junior quarterback Rob King (5 of 14, 105 yards) scrambled right and found Gies down the sideline for a 60-yard touchdown.
The play was even more significant because Yeedee Thaenrat, Judge's star running back, was injured on the game's third play from scrimmage and never returned.
But Gies would tally again, intercepting Ryan's Matt Romano (9 of 19, 73 yards) in the third quarter and taking the ball 44 yards to glory.
"This feels awesome, because it's a rivalry in the neighborhood," the Mayfair resident said. "You know all those kids and you want to go out there, play your best and beat them. Thank God we got the win today."
The Judge defense, which tallied six sacks, including back-to-back takedowns by junior linebacker Mark Kellam on Ryan's final drive, was another key to victory.
"That was awesome," Gies said. "The first one gets your blood flowing a little bit and the second one, you're just feeling chills. I was getting chills from everyone in the stands. It was awesome."
Jaye McNeil and Jason Wagher scored the only touchdowns for Ryan (0-1).
For Judge, junior lineman Earl Volz added two sacks, and fellow junior lineman Savion Perez was disruptive throughout.
Senior Tom Penko also added an interception in the Judge end zone, which ended a fourth-quarter opportunity.
While we're talking defense, we can't forget about Sean Coyle, the junior backup linebacker who saw emergency duty as a punter.
Judge entered the game minus its usual punter, Joe Gallagher, who was out with an injured leg.
Second in command was sophomore Mike Baumgarten, who didn't return after a hard hit, which followed a snap over his head and subsequent scramble.
Despite no experience, Coyle knocked several punts of at least 30 yards (his longest was 32).
"He hadn't practiced a punt since I saw him on the freshman team," joked Judge coach Mike McKay.
Perhaps 8-year-old Daniel Gies could be a future Judge punter someday.
Archbishop Ryan 7 0 7 0 - 14
Father Judge 6 8 6 0 - 00
FJ: Justin Williams 13 run (kick blocked)
AR: Jason Wagher 2 run (Stock kick)
FJ: Justin Gies 60 pass from Rob King (Noah Rainbow-Douglas pass from King)
FJ: Justin Gies 44 interception return (pass failed)
AR: Jaye McNeil 4 run (Stock kick)
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