No. 4 Charlotte Catholic rallies for a memorable win at No. 12 Independence

Sean Boyle lofted a 46-yard touchdown pass to Mikey Giroux, and Griffin Sovine ran in the two-point conversion with 43 seconds left Friday night, lifting Charlotte Catholic to a 36-35 come-from-behind victory over host Independence.

Boyle’s scoring pass came two plays after the Cougars’ Landon Herzberg picked off an Independence pass at the Charlotte Catholic 2 and returned it 40 yards to near midfield.

After the final touchdown, Cougars’ coach Mike Brodowicz decided to go for two points and the lead. Sovine bulled his way into the end zone for the winning points.

The Cougars (4-1, 2-0 Southwestern 4A), No. 4 in The Observer’s Sweet 16, trailed the No. 12 Patriots (4-1, 0-1) 35-21 midway through the fourth quarter.

Herzberg’s interception came on a gamble by Independence coach D.J. McFadden.

Up 35-28, the Patriots had the ball at the Catholic 33 with 1:20 to play. Instead of running the ball, McFadden called a long pass.

“I thought he might try to get a knockout punch on us there,” Cougars head coach Mike Brodowicz said. “He’s a good coach, he’s got that program on the rise, and going for the big play was something I thought he might do.”

Instead, Herzberg made his steal and saved a victory for the Cougars.

Charlotte Catholic is known for its ground game, but Boyle threw two touchdown passes Friday night and set up other scores with passes.

Patriots sophomore quarterback Justin Little threw three touchdown passes, including a 41-yarder in the second quarter to Brian Crowder.

“We came within a few plays of pulling it off,” McFadden said. “Winning close games like this is the next step we’ve got to take.”

The Cougars return home next week, facing conference foe Rocky River. Independence travels to Garinger.

Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle

This story was originally published September 23, 2022 at 10:12 PM.