<strong>By Justin Jarrett</strong>

<strong>LowcoSports.com</strong>

With the weight of a 10-game losing streak over the past two seasons on its shoulders, it would have been easy for John Paul II to fold in crunch time Friday night. But the Golden Warriors stood tall in the big moments down the stretch and held on for a 6-0 road win over St. Andrew’s — the program’s first under second-year coach Chris Myers.

It wasn’t pretty — Jeremiah Young’s 1-yard touchdown run provided the only scoring — but the result was beautiful for a team that hadn’t won since the SCISA 2A semifinals in 2018.

“We had some penalties and a turnover on the 1 that in the past we would have hung our heads and gotten down on ourselves, but tonight the boys played four quarters of tough football,” Myers said. “Sometimes the first one is the most elusive, and I think everyone in the program and at the school is excited about this one.”

JPII had chances to break through earlier, but Young had a 50-yard touchdown scramble called back on a penalty, and the Golden Warriors fumbled on the 1-yard line after a long drive to open the second half. Young finished with 48 yards on 13 carries, including a long scamper that set up his TD plunge.

Austin McIntosh had a big night on both sides of the ball for JPII, rushing for 48 yards on 15 carries and collecting seven tackles (six solo) and three sacks, including one on the Lions’ final possession. Peter Carbone racked up 10 tackles (five solo), and Tripp Currier sealed the win with a sack on fourth down in the final seconds.

JPII (1-1, 0-1) travels to Bethesda Academy for a non-region matchup next Friday.