Bishops survive Woodland, post 13-12 victory

Sometimes, high school football can be a matter of survival. Just ask Bishop England coach John Cantey.

Cantey watched his team struggle for a good portion of Friday night’s road trip to Woodland High School in St. George. But he also saw his squad display mettle as the Bishops willed their way to win, posting a 13-12 victory over the Wolverines.

It was far from perfect, but the Bishops are just that record-wise. They are 5-0 for the first time since the 1982 season heading into this weekend’s clash against Academic Magnet. The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Ravenel Stadium.

After back-to-back wins by a combined 49 points, Cantey & Crew survived a close encounter against a team that has a history of producing top-shelf talent. It was the Bishops’ third victory of the season where the margin of victory was seven points or less.

“We came out pretty flat against Woodland,” Cantey said. “We made a couple mistakes, but we found a way... We were a little emotionally spent after the last two games. We got humbled a little bit but it was good to see that resiliency.”

The Bishops trailed with five minutes left in the game, and the Bishops’ No. 8 ranking was in jeopardy. But quarterback Leo Albano scored on a 5-yard touchdown run to keep the Bishops out of the loss column. Albano has now accounted for 16 of the Bishops’ 21 touchdowns on offense this season. He has run for 11 scores and passed for five TDs.

It was the Bishops’ only touchdown on offense the entire night, as they managed only 237 yards in total offense against a defense that sold its soul to stop the Bishops’ running attack. But the Bishops also were able to count on their defense and special teams to sweat it out against Woodland.

The defense provided a touchdown as Jacob Shiver intercepted a pass and returned it 40 yards for six points as he weaved his way through traffic. Adam Mikulski provided the all-important PAT, splitting the uprights to give the Bishops a 7-0 lead. It turned to be the only successful PAT of the evening. It also turned out to be the difference.

Woodland quarterback Jamique Johnson, who threw the Pick-6, atoned for his mistake, scoring touchdowns on runs of 22 and 1 yards. His 22-yarder came on the final play of the first half. But both PAT attempts were no good as the Wolverines led 12-7 entering the final quarter.

Johnson won the statistical battle over Albano. He rushed for a game-high 150 yards and passed for 22 yards. Albano churned for 96 yards and passed for 28. Woodland running back Troy Elmore was also effective with 133 yards rushing. Woodland outgained the Bishops 302-209 on the ground.

The Bishops lost two turnovers, including one at the Woodland 5-yardline. But the Bishops came on top as they continued a season that has the faithful hoping for a season that concludes with a state championship. If that happens, BE would have three state crowns this decade. The Bishops won back-to-back state titles in 2011 and ’12 when they competed at the Class AA level.

The Bishops are 11-0 all-time against this week’s opponent, Academic Magnet. The Bishops posted a 41-13 victory over the Raptors last fall. The Bishops have an open date on Sept. 30 and then begin Region 8-AAA play the following week with a home game against Lake Marion.

Daniel Island Publishing

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Unit 108
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