It might seem like a meaningless game between two teams struggling to get any victories in a disappointing football season. But for St. Monica and Salesian it will be far from meaningless this Friday night, November 14.
That’s when the bottom two teams in the Santa Fe League will meet at Salesian.
St. Monica is 0-8 and mired in a four-season losing streak that has reached 37 games. Salesian, which has a state-of-the-art stadium and a rabid following, has won just one game.
For St. Monica Coach Sean Ritter it’s much more than defeating one opponent.
“I’ve been with several of our players in one capacity or another during their four years here,” he said. “High school memories stay with you your entire life. Winning their last game would be a memory they’ll always cherish.
“Personally, I can recall plays in my high school games easier than plays from my college and professional days.”
Ritter’s season-long goal was for the Mariners to be competitive, and they have been. After absorbing one-sided losses regularly a year ago the team has been routed only twice this season. But this week the goal has changed.
“It’s very important that we win a game instead of letting the streak continue into next season,” he said. “We’ve talked about that.”
St. Monica appears to match up well with Salesian, but Ritter believes the Mariners will have to overcome a hostile environment on Salesian’s Senior Night.
St. Monica had a bye on the November 7-8 weekend.
