STL Teams Testing Themselves Against Nation's Best
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Cardinal Ritter heads to New Orleans, joining trend of area teams playing many miles away
"This is something the players have had marked on their schedule," Lions coach Brennan Spain said. "It's a true test."
The Cardinal Ritter Lions faced St. Augustine High of New Orleans in a showdown at 7 p.m. Friday at venerable Tad Gormley Stadium, winning 36-20 in a historic 26,000-seat stadium, can set the tone for a third consecutive title run. “That’s why we do this,” Coach Brendan Spain said. “In the end, we feel like no matter what happens, it will help us in the long run.”
Lutheran North traveled to Alabama the first week of the season to face Central High of Phenix City. Central won 30-12, but Crusaders coach Kyle Wagner said the loss against a super tough opponent will bode well for the future.
CBC, a five-time Missouri state champion, last season played four non-league contests against teams from outside the region with trips to Carmel, Indiana; Bryant, Arkansas; Lipscomb, Tennessee; and Warren Central, Indiana.
From 2021-23, Lutheran St. Charles played against Parker Lutheran from the Colorado Springs area, including a trip to the Mountain Time Zone in 2022.
Nowadays, teams like to travel to showcase their players all over the country. Schools find other top-notch teams to play essentially through word of mouth and reputation.
East St. Louis played host to Baltimore St. Frances last season after the teams faced off in 2022 in Ohio. Later this season, East St. Louis will get a visit from national power IMG Academy.
“It’s the only thing that gets you better,” East St. Louis coach Darren Sunkett said. “You want to play great teams. It gives kids something to talk about when they get older.”
Cardinal Ritter left Wednesday for New Orleans and will return on Saturday.
The Lions have won 31 consecutive games, including a victory two weeks ago against Class 4A Illinois power Rochester. On Oct. 11, they’ll play host to Bishop Miege, which has won seven state titles in Kansas since 2014. “This is something the players have had marked on their schedule,” Spain said. “It’s a true test.”
Sunkett said last week’s visit to Philadelphia was a relatively smooth excursion for East St. Louis, which won 28-21 against Newton, Ga., at home Sept. 7.
Lutheran North’s trip to Alabama in late August had some serious bumps in the road. The Crusaders bussed their way to Phenix City. First, they had to change busses three times before even leaving the area for various reasons. They got into town 12 hours behind schedule.
“Our guys went out and battled,” Wagner said. “When it comes to national rankings, these are the kind of games you want to play.”
The difficult trip might still pay off in the end.
Wagner said his team learned a lot during the time-consuming affair. “Things don’t always go your way and sometimes you just have to overcome and move on,” Wagner said.
