The Cats are back

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Bok and Ben Franklin had identical 7-0 records. Bok’s offense was averaging more than 30 points a contest, while surrendering less than a touchdown a game on defense.

Friday, the Wildcats traveled to 29th Street and Chalmers Avenue in North Philly expecting their toughest test of the season. Besides being an away game, the Electrons had the city’s top running back in Maurice Dantzler. The latter entered the contest with 1,260 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.

After four quarters, the Wildcats had 14 points, while Dantzler and the Electrons had zero.

This means next week the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association District 12 AAA champion Wildcats will make a return trip to the state tournament.

"We really had two weeks to prepare for Ben Franklin," coach Tom DeFelice said. "I credit all the preparation to coach [Frank] Natale and coach Vince Trombetta and their tireless effort of watching films and scouting."

On defense, DeFelice implemented some wrinkles to help his team keep Dantzler in check.

"He is by far one of the best runners in the city," DeFelice said of the athlete.

Sure enough, after giving up an early 9-yard run, Bok defense limited Dantzler to 62 yards on 15 carries, well below his season average of 180 yards a game.

"The players were tremendous," DeFelice said. "It was a total team effort."

Bok scored its first touchdown in the second quarter when quarterback James Jones connected with Luke Lassiter on a 40-yard pass. Jones added the second touchdown with a 7-yard run in the third quarter, followed by a successful two-point conversion.

BOK, WHO PLAYS South Philly High in a non-league contest today at 2:30 p.m., is awaiting word on its next opponent. It will be placed in a four-team subregional bracket with District 1 squads from Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties. Teams are ranked using a formula of number of points earned divided by games played. Based on that system, Bok is ranked second with a 133.8-point average. Phoenixville was slightly ahead, averaging 136.3. The final standings will be set following this week’s games.

If Bok finishes first or second in the standings it will earn the right to host a play-in game next Friday or Saturday. The race is extremely tight with an 8.8-point differential between first-place Phoenixville and fourth-place Chichester with 127.5.

The Wildcats made their PIAA debut last November with a 35-0 loss to Great Valley. Friday, the school’s coaching staff will scout potential opponents in preparation for next week’s game.

"We like having the opportunity to see someone physically play and pick up their little idiosyncrasies," DeFelice said.

This afternoon, the Wildcats will focus on beating neighborhood rival South Philly High. Thanks to the Public League realignment, which was implemented earlier this season, the game no longer has any impact on Public League standings. Prior to this season, the neighborhood squads played in the same division.

The Rams are struggling this year with a 1-7 record and averaging less than six points per game, but Bok still expects its opponent to put up a fight. With the state tournament fast approaching, the Wildcats could easily look at this contest as meaningless, but DeFelice said this is not the case.

"The one thing we have going for us is that it’s a neighborhood rivalry and I know we will be ready to come out and play," he said.