The Saint Patrick Shamrocks finished their 2007 season with an exciting 7-0 victory over the IHSA Playoff bound Spartans of Marian Catholic.  The game marked the final game in the careers of 44 Shamrock seniors.  Many of those seniors made big contributions to the victory.

Marian had some success moving the ball in the first quarter, driving to the Shamrock 15 before turning the ball over on downs and driving to the Shamrock 26 before losing the ball on a fumble, but they were unable to score.  The Shamrocks drove to the Marian 38 on the first drive of the second quarter, and pinned the Spartans at their own 11 with a punt.  Marian advanced the ball to their own 41, where they were forced to punt.  The game turned on that punt as two Shamrock seniors combined on an incredible special teams play.  Dan Donovan broke through the middle of the line to block the punt, and Jon Persangi picked the ball up, running to the Marian 11 before getting tackled.  On the Shamrocks’ first play from scrimmage, Eddie Ortiz took the ball around right end on a reverse for the only score of the game.

The Shamrock defense made those seven points stand up, Marian didn’t get another first down until the fourth quarter, and they didn’t get the ball into Shamrock territory until their final drive of the game, when they drove 68 yards in 12 plays before turning the ball over on downs at the Shamrock 12 yard line with 48 seconds remaining in the game.

Senior quarterback Mike Fabrizio was injured in the first quarter, but fought his way through the pain to lead the Shamrocks to victory.  Fabrizio finished the game 7 of 17 for 75 yards passing, and his backup Dan DiCanio completed his only attempt for 31 yards, while Fabrizio was on the sidelines.  Luis Sanchez rushed 23 times for 60 yards.  Sanchez’s numbers weren’t that impressive, but he allowed the Shamrocks to control the clock in the second half.  Jeff Dicks caught four passes for 59 yards, including a huge catch and run to convert a third and 11 in the fourth quarter.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Shamrock linebackers and defensive backs made a ton of plays.  Middle linebacker George Vitzileos recorded a team-high 10 tackles, while David Giese, Nick Casey, and Matt Labek had eight tackles apiece.  Labek also tallied four tackles for loss.  Safeties Conor Joyce and Matt Hansen each made five tackles.  Hansen also broke up a potential Marian touchdown pass in the end zone in the final minute of the game.

Saint Patrick finished the season 3-6, with a mark of 2-5 in the East Suburban Catholic Conference.