[Stardust]

Holy Cross (9-3) lost at NewCath, 31-14, Oct. 22. Since then, the Indians have outscored opponents 154-0 over a three-game winning streak. A tough regular season scheduled prepared Holy Cross to take care of business in the opening rounds of the postseason.

The Indians crushed previously undefeated Owen County 45-0 at Owen County Nov. 11. Playing the top teams in Northern Kentucky readied the Indians for the rest of the state’s top Class 2A competition

“We play our schedule to be ready for those games,” said Indians head coach Bruce Kozerski. “To our credit, the three teams that beat us in the regular season (NewCath, Conner, and Beechwood) are still playing.”

Quarterback Kyle Fuller ran for four touchdowns, passed for two more, and kicked a field goal to lead the latest Indians’ win. The defense held Owen County to 119 total yards of offense. Now, the attention turns to winning a regional championship. The Indians took both negatives and positives from their regular season loss to the Thoroughbreds.

“We had a lot of mistakes that we felt could have turned the tide at certain points,” Kozerski said. “We felt we did some good things, too.”

The win-or-go-home nature of this rematch should bring out the best in both teams. Holy Cross is peaking at the right time and is hungry to keep the season going.

“I think you’ll see a whole bunch of guys on both sides playing 100 percent on every play,” said Kozerski.

The Indians play NewCath at 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 18, at Newport High School.

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