After Two Quick Wins, Holy Cross Suffers Three Straight Losses

Posted on October 3, 2018 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

The Holy Cross Crusaders, after two straight wins to start the season, are now 2-3 after three consecutive losses.

The most recent loss came at the hands of Old Forge, 47-7, Friday, September 21.

Old Forge’s Tyler Carey took the opening kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown.

The Crusaders (1-1 in the division) were only able to accumulate 21 yards total offense in the first half.

In contrast, Blue Devils back Kevin Pepsin scored on his first three touches. The diminutive back scored on runs of 15, 29 and 41 yards against the Crusaders.

Pepsin totaled 155 yards rushing on eight carries in the contest.

Holy Cross avoided a shutout when quarterback Jake Wiercinski broke away for a 31-yard touchdown burst on fourth-and-three on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Old Forge running back Jackson Lynwood scored on two rushing touchdowns in the second quarter.

JVfootball Anthony Rios, who had 83 rushing yards on just two carries, scored on a 64-yard punt return in the second quarter for Old Forge.

Wiercinski led the Holy Cross running game with 50 yards on seven carries.

Holy Cross finished with 91 rushing yards in the contest, but only 89 total yards.

The Blue Devils rushed for 320 yards on 28 carries, but had no passing yards against the Crusaders.

The Crusaders suffered a 48-6 loss to a tough Northwest Rangers team Friday, September 14, at Shickshinny.

Still, Holy Cross scored the first touchdown on Northwest football’s new football turf.

Crusaders quarterback Wiercinski’s first two passes went to Justin Walker. The first resulted on a 60-yard gain on the first play of the game. The second resulted in a 36-yard touchdown toss.

Jeremy Fick led the Holy Cross running game with 65 yards on 22 carries. Wiercinski added 30 yards on 15 carries.

The win was Northwest’s first of the season.

Holy Cross suffered its third consecutive defeat.

Northwest quarterback David Piestrak was a one-man wrecking crew against the Crusaders. He scored six touchdowns, including three on runs and two on passes. He scored a sixth touchdown on a punt return.

Piestrak completed 9-of-17 passes for 144 yards and ran five times for 61 yards.

The Rangers Connor Hazlet caught six passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. Ryan Wassel scored on a 15-yard pass play for Northwest.

The talented Wiercinski completed 4-of-9 passes for 101 yards and a touchdown for the Crusaders in the loss.

Holy Cross totaled 98 rushing yards.

UPDATE: The Crusaders were shut down 49-0 during their game against Riverside last Saturday. This makes them 204 for the season thus far, and 1-1 in their division. Holy Cross will travel on Saturday, Oct. 6, for a 1 p.m. game at Susquehanna.

Gatto Rebuilding Football Program in Second Year at Holy Cross

Posted on September 5, 2018 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

Dave Gatto is in his second season as football coach at Holy Cross High School and is already making an impact.

The Crusaders won their first game of this season, 14-12, over Holy Redeemer, Saturday, August 25.

It was the Crusaders first win since Oct. 10, 2015, and snapped a 25-game losing streak.

“It was a big win,” said coach Gatto. “We are drastically better this season. It is time for our program to start winning. We believe in ourselves.”

Gatto took over as football coach at Holy Cross in 2017. He was previously an assistant football coach at Holy Cross for four years under Josh Watters and Jeff Stevens.

The hard-working Gatto graduated from Dunmore High School in 1980. He played four years of football under the legendary Jack Henzes. He was a fullback and strong safety in his senior year.

Gatto also played four years of baseball and two years of basketball at Dunmore. He was a catcher in baseball and a guard in basketball.

holy cross He went on to earn a B.S. in Business Management from the University of Scranton in 1984 and worked as a supervisor in the transportation industry for 25 years.

Not only did Gatto learn plenty about football and life as a player under Jack Henzes for four years, but he continued to learn as an assistant coach under the Dunmore icon from 1983 through 1989.

“I learned a lot under Coach Henzes both during my time under him as a player and as an assistant coach. He is a great man and I wish him a speedy recovery from his present heart ailment. I am sure he wants to get back coaching and on the sidelines.

“But one of the things about Coach Henzes is that he teaches you even more about life than about football.”

Gatto is married to the former Lisa Monahan. The couple has three children: Alayna, 24, Eric, 22, and Jacob, 17. Jacob, a senior, plays football for his dad at Holy Cross.

Gatto said his team worked hard training and weight lifting in the off season.

“Our goal is to keep getting better and better as a team and to keep winning football games.”

JVfootball Gatto, who currently works in the maintenance department at Holy Cross, said he is looking forward to the challenges his team faces this season.

“The kids on this team have been working extremely hard and it is starting to pay off.”

Gatto was a star football player in his four years playing under Henzes.

“That’s where I learned a lot about hard work, life and winning.

“I’m proud to be from Dunmore and looking forward to helping build a solid football program at Holy Cross. We have a great coaching staff, many from Dunmore, and I am enjoying my time here at Holy Cross. We want to keep winning now.

“And we will keep working hard.”

Holy Cross Crusaders Hope to Build on Opening Day Win

Posted on September 5, 2018 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

Holy Cross Crusaders second year football coach Dave Gatto is looking to build a winning attitude with his team.

And Holy Cross got off on the right foot with an opening day win, 14-12, Saturday, August 25, over Holy Redeemer.

It was the Crusaders first win since Oct. 10, 2015, snapping a 25-game losing streak.

A 43-yard field goal attempt in the closing seconds of the contest sailed right for Holy Redeemer and the Crusaders were able to celebrate.

“This is great for the football program,” said Gatto. “The kids worked so hard in the weight room in the winter and summer. They deserve it. Our seniors were not going to let us lose this game.”

Holy Redeemer had a 12-0 lead at the half.

However, the Crusaders changed the momentum of the game in the third quarter when Nick Brooks recovered a fumble at the Holy Redeemer 40.

Ten plays later, Jeremy Fick scored a touchdown on a seven-yard run to put the Crusaders on the board. A pass attempt failed on the two-point conversion attempt.

The combined Senior Football and Cheer team members are Holy Cross High School include, first row from left: Kaitlyn Mc Connell, Jennifer Robinson, Olivia Osborne and Victoria Tanana. Second row, same order: Alex Hammer, Jeremy Fick, Nick Klein, Joe Liuzzo, Jake Gatto and Jonathan Kowalski. Third row: Jake Wiercinski, Anthony Scartelli, Matt Herne, Anthony Fletcher, Josh Walker and Justin Walker.

The Crusaders, led by a strong running attack, drove down the field leading to Fick’s four-yard touchdown run. Holy Cross quarterback Jake Wiercinski scored on a two-point conversion run to put the Crusaders ahead, 14-12, with 11:10 left in the game.

With 3:24 left in the game, Holy Redeemer drove to the Holy Cross 26. Facing a fourth down and seven, the Royals went for the field goal in the closing seconds and the kick missed to the right.

“Our goal is to keep on getting better and better with each game,” Gatto said. “It is time for our program to start winning.”

Gatto’s assistant coaches at Holy Cross are: Vince Coviello, defensive coordinator, Joe Giurgio, offensive coordinator, Chris Coviello, line coach, Corey Coviello, defensive back and quarterback coach, and T.J. McDonnell, offensive and defensive line coach.

Son of the late Joe and Rita Gatto, coach Gatto played football for Jack Henzes at Dunmore where he graduated in 1980. All members of his staff, with the exception of McDonnell, are products of the Dunmore football program. Gatto also coached under Henzes from 1983 through 1989 at Dunmore. McDonnell is a product of the Carbondale Area football program.

Key members of this year’s Holy Cross football team include senior quarterback Jake Wiercinski, senior wide receiver-defensive back Nick Klein, senior guard-defensive tackle Anthony Scartelli, senior running back-nose guard Jon Kawalosky, senior outside linebacker-wide receiver Alex Hammer, senior wide receiver-defensive back Jake Gatto, senior guard-defensive end Matt Hearne, senior running back-wide receiver-defensive back Jeremy Fick, junior linebacker-fullback Nick Brooks, junior offensive tackle-defensive lineman Jack Murphy, sophomore offensive lineman-defensive tackle Robert Kane, sophomore linebacker-fullback Brandon Ludovici and sophomore tight end-defensive back Mason Kucharwa. Wiercinski is the kicker for extra points and field goals. Klein kicks off.

Wiercinski passed for 500 yards in part time action last season. “This is his second year as a quarterback for us,” said Gatto. “He is very good. He is 6-3 and 200 pounds. Jake has the potential and capabilities to be as good or better than any quarterback in this league.”

Coach Gatto is also very happy with the team’s running game. Fick ran for 91 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries in the win over Holy Redeemer. Wiercinski ran for 46 yards on 14 carries. Brooks added 21 yards on six carries.

holy cross “Our running game is good. Jeremy Fick had a great day against Holy Redeemer. We ran the ball very well. We think our running game will be a strength for us.”

Coach Gatto is also impressed with the receiving corps. “They look very good. A couple kids came out and really bolstered it. Our receivers can do a lot with the football after they catch it.”

Coach Gatto sees improvement in the team defense. “Our defense is quicker, no doubt. We have more speed on defense than this team had in a long time. Our defensive speed is making up for lack of size.”

Gatto could not say enough about his team following the opening day win. “The whole team was ecstatic. The players worked so hard with running and weight lifting. Our boys bought into what the coaches were teaching. This confirms that we are doing things right here.”

Gatto was an assistant coach for four years at Holy Cross under Josh Watters and Jeff Stevens. He took over as head football coach at Holy Cross in 2017.

Editor’s Update: Holy Cross won its second game of season Friday, 13-6, over Montrose. It is their first 2-0 start since their inaugural season as Holy Cross in 2007-08.

Quarterback Jake Wiercinski scored on a 3-yard run and running back Jeremy Fick scored on a 13-yard run to put the Crusaders ahead with 5:01 left in the game. Fick rushed for 118 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.