Monomoy Football Can’t Stay With Case In Non-playoff Loss

HARWICH – After a hand injury prevented him from playing quarterback for five games, Monomoy senior Chase Yarletts finally returned behind center at the start of the second quarter in Thursday’s non-playoff tilt against Joseph Case. 

 Yarletts gave Monomoy a boost with a pair of touchdown passes, but the Sharks weren’t able to match the Cardinals’ relentless rushing attack before suffering a 35-20 loss. 

 “We’ve been working [Yarletts] in for the past two weeks,” Monomoy coach Rob Sliney said. “We weren’t sure if we would want to keep him at slot receiver, running back or quarterback, but he made his way back to the quarterback role and did really well for us.”

 Yarletts provided Monomoy (3-6) with an instant spark when he replaced freshman quarterback Drew Chapman behind center at the start of the second frame. 

The senior signal-caller helped the Sharks march right down the field on his first drive before connecting with freshman Karson Gilley for a 14-yard touchdown pass with 6:38 remaining in the second quarter. 

Gilley’s score cut the visitors’ lead to 7-6 after Case blocked Monomoy’s extra point attempt.

“It was great to feel that energy,” Yarletts said of his first drive. “We’re all really good friends, and I feel like the team is really behind me and everyone on offense.”

Yarletts added another touchdown pass in the second half — a 42-yard strike to senior Dillon Chapman — but the Sharks struggled to keep pace with Case and its sensational sophomore tailback Aedan Borges, who rushed for touchdowns of 2, 43, 11 and 60 yards in addition to going 5-for-5 on extra points.

Chapman’s impact was felt in every phase of the game. In addition to his receiving score, the senior also returned a punt 48 yards for a touchdown and blocked a 29-yard field goal attempt by the Cardinals on special teams. 

“He is a phenomenal athlete and he has been for years,” Sliney said of the elder Chapman. “Since eighth grade, he’s been here. This is his big senior year, which has been big for us.”

Yarletts returned to the lineup as a receiver/running back and safety in the team’s 16-14 loss at St. John Paul II on Oct. 26 after sustaining a hand injury in a 20-0 loss at Cape Cod Tech on Sept. 13. 

He had the cast removed from his hand prior to the Case game, allowing him to return to quarterback where he could lead the Sharks’ huddle and be a focal point for the offense.

“He’s really valuable,” Sliney said of Yarletts. “He reads the field well and his experience is the big thing. He’s had a lot of game time. Him coming out and doing what he did for us gave us a spark and the guys really do rally around that.”

The Sharks will look to return to their winning ways when they travel to Atlantis Charter at 6 p.m. Friday. They will be off next weekend before closing out the season against JP II at 10 a.m. Thanksgiving morning in Harwich. 

“You always want to end with a win, so we’re definitely looking forward to Thanksgiving,” said Yarletts, a Harwich resident. “But we still have next week, and getting two wins to end my senior season would really cap it off. I’m hoping for that.”