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Hurricanes debut felled by Katrina

Bishop McLaughlin cancels its first varsity game as bad weather looms.

By FRANK PASTOR
Published August 26, 2005

SHADY HILLS - The field was ready. The pep rally was set. Spirit days and daily countdowns had brought excitement to a fever pitch.

All that remained was for the field to be lined.

But 27 hours before Bishop McLaughlin's first varsity game, nature intervened.

With Hurricane Katrina expected to bring strong winds and heavy rain to the area and Trinity Christian facing a three-hour drive from Jacksonville, administrators from the two schools agreed about 1 p.m. Thursday to cancel the game scheduled for this afternoon.

"Unfortunately, it was the smart decision to make," said Bishop McLaughlin athletic director Mike Zelenka. "Obviously, we'd like to play and be able to get a game in, but it's just not the right decision right now, or at least the smart one."

The schools are considering rescheduling the game Oct. 7 if district contests don't need to be made up and injuries don't become a problem.

Players, stoked by running back Cal Kuenzel's inspirational speech two days earlier, were disappointed to hear about the cancellation at the end of the school day Thursday.

"We were really looking forward to knocking some heads off," junior lineman Jason Kern said. "Now, we're going to play a self-scrimmage (today). We're going to play our own team."

Sophomore lineman Paul Padilla said he had been looking forward to the game since the first day of practice.

"I was really frustrated," Padilla said. "I wanted to play. That was basically it. I wanted to get out there and play the game."

Zelenka said the schools might have delayed a decision had Trinity Christian not had so far to travel.

"I think we definitely would have waited longer," Zelenka said. "Obviously, we wouldn't have had to make it when we did. Part of the reason, with travel and how far it would be, we really didn't want them to travel three hours just to have to turn around and have to travel six hours in bad weather, and the same thing for us."

After playing a five-game junior varsity schedule last season, Bishop McLaughlin had been counting the days to its first varsity game. Without revealing its significance, Zelenka hung a No. 7 in the lobby on Aug. 19 and scattered No. 4s around the school on Monday, prompting students to wonder, "What's with all the 4s?" By the time the No. 1 appeared on Thursday, the meaning was clear: Only one day remained until the first varsity football game.

Now, Bishop McLaughlin will have to begin a new countdown for Friday's game at Admiral Farragut. The Hurricanes' home debut will be delayed until Sept. 17 against Lakeland Santa Fe Catholic.

"We had people to work concessions, people for admissions, EMTs, everything ready to go," Zelenka said. "It's just the weather did not cooperate."

[Last modified August 26, 2005, 01:36:21]