Jesuit defeats Curtis in tight Catholic League battle

Jesuit and John Curtis were two physical teams colliding Friday night in District 9-5A.

The Blue Jays sought their first victory against Curtis since 2015. Blue Jays quarterback Jack Larriviere made the key plays to make it happen.

Larriviere threw two touchdown passes including the game-winning 32-yarder to Chance Whitfield in a 17-13 victory at Hoss Memtsas Stadium.

It did not look like Jesuit would get over the hump in the very early stages. Curtis struck first when Buddy Taylor connected with Micheal Turner for a 40-yard touchdown.

Trailing 7-0, Jesuit had some missed opportunities. Aidan Corbello did not convert a 28-yard field goal and Larriviere was stuffed on 4th down and 1 at the Curtis 34-yard line.

The Patriots also missed out on points when Jayden Alfonzo missed a 29-yard field goal.

The Blue Jays finally got on the scoreboard via the big play. Larriviere hit Jace Larsen on an 82-yard touchdown, tying the game 7-7.

Corbello redeemed himself in the second half by making a 42-yard field goal to out Jesuit ahead, 10-7.

The Patriots matched the long passing score by the Blue Jays earlier in the game to retake the lead. Carl Wilson’s 72-yard touchdown catch followed by a miss point-after gave Curtis a 13-10 edge.

Larriviere had the final answer on the winning score, leading Jesuit with 10 of 16 passing for 196 yards and two touchdowns.

“I had great confidence in my offense including my offensive line. They helped me with the protection to sit in the pocket,” said Larriviere. “This is a great springboard to the last part of the season heading into the playoffs. The last few games should be confidence boosters for our team.”

Taylor paced John Curtis doing more damage through the air as Jesuit contained the Patriots’ veer ground game. He went 8 of 16 for 176 yards and two touchdowns.

Wilson had 4 receptions for 123 yards and a touchdown. Pat LeBranch ran for 61 yards on 15 carries.

“It was a great hard fought ball game and Jesuit played really well,” said Patriots head coach J.T. Curtis. “We got to clean up some mistakes we made. You can’t make mistakes in a big game like this and put yourself in a position to win.”

Jesuit head coach Ryan Manale was humbled and proud, noting the group effort needed to break the skid against Curtis.

“Curtis has a great coaching staff and great players. It was an all out war tonight,” said Manale. “The whole team executed the game plan tonight and found a way to beat a good football team. We have another big game next week and that’s the beauty of this league. I’m super proud of one the best institutions in the country in Jesuit High School.”

Jesuit has won three straight games, facing a district game on the road against Archbishop Shaw next week. Curtis will try to get back to their winning ways against Holy Cross.