Every Cathedral Prep Rambler looks forward to this week more then any other in Erie because it is McDowell week. This Thursday the Ramblers (5-4) will be looking to get revenge against McDowell (7-1) at 7:30 p.m. on the Trojans home turf. Last year the Ramblers were dominated by the talented Trojans in all three match-ups. This year Prep is better than ever and will look to show Erie why Prep is still number one. Some might say McDowell will win because they have a better record, but they have not had any challenging games besides the one they lost.
The Prep team that will be taking the field Thursday night has great experience because seven of the eleven played last year. On McDowell’s side of the pitch they only have two returning starters who will both be threats on the ball. The key for the Ramblers on offense is to get Teddy Martin the ball and to distribute to the young players, including Antonio Simora and Nick Paglia. Defensively, Prep needs Gage Bamberger to win headers and stop everything. Finally, the only way the Ramblers win is if Justin Hilbrich is playing in top form that night because if he plays slow, the team plays slow.
For the Trojans their game plan will have to be deciphering the Prep defense by creating long strands of passing combinations. The Trojans captain Ryan Huffman will be the biggest threat on the field because he is the most well-rounded player and knows how to create plays.
At the end of the eightieth minute, I think the Ramblers will take the match and be celebrating for the rest of the night and on to the weekend due to their experience and talent this year.