OAKLAND COUNTY, MI – Allen Park St. Francis Cabrini and Royal Oak Shrine faced off in a bitter battle until the final seconds of a Catholic League rivalry game Friday night.
The undefeated Cabrini Monarchs took on the Shrine Knights in front of packed stands in Royal Oak. Monarch senior Lander Emerick had a standout knight, hauling in three touchdowns, including the one that gave his team the lead.
Kicker Madisyn Smith – the first girl placekicker in Cabrini school history – kicked the PAT that ended up deciding the 27-26 victory.
Shrine answered with a drive that saw heroics from senior Caydin Barbato and the second of two clutch touchdowns by Junior running back Jaycee Foster, but a host of Monarchs stopped Foster short of the two-point conversion that would have given Shrine the lead.
The Knights then recovered an onside kick. With a little over a minute on the clock, Royal Oak Shrine put it all on the line in a win-or-go-home drive, but the Monarchs managed to put a stop to the comeback, punching the ball out on fourth down to seal the deal.
Allen Park St. Francis Cabrini improves to 5-0 and will travel to face Madison Heights Bishop Foley next Friday, Oct. 3.
MLive was there to document the action, both on and off of the field. Check out photos from the game in the gallery above. Click here for a direct link to the gallery.
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