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Father Judge's Thaenrat perseveres

Yeedee Thaenrat overcomes elements and injuries to fuel victory over St. Anthony’s, from New York.

SATURDAY WAS a rough afternoon for Father Judge junior running back Yeedee Thaenrat. You try playing football after tweaking a muscle in your backside after your team's first play from scrimmage.

Add a persistent downpour with occasional, chilly wind gusts, and you have the makings of a loooong day. And it could have been longer after Thaenrat's fourth-quarter fumble gave hope to the surging St. Anthony's squad from New York.

"I was thinking to myself, 'I just lost the game for us,' " Thaenrat recalled. "Then again, we still had the rest of the quarter to play."

After nearly squandering a 20-point lead, Thaenrat and the Crusaders eventually outlasted the visiting Friars, 41-32, in a cuticle chewer at the Ben Johnston (Germantown) Supersite.

Almost as impressive as Thaenrat's stat line was the list of injuries he accumulated along the way.

The 5-10, 188-pounder who also plays safety, finished with 173 rushing yards on 21 carries. He had three touchdowns, including a career-best 88-yarder. Defensively, he forced three fumbles and finished with 10 tackles. And he missed several plays on both sides due to various injuries!

In addition to his posterior pain, he also rolled an ankle and then caught cramps, first in his left thigh, then later in his right.

"It felt like something was biting me the whole game, especially when I broke that long run," he said. "I couldn't really get into full stride because every time I tried to lift my knees up it would hurt."

However, Thaenrat wasn't the only one in pain. In fact, Crusaders trainer Anthony "A-Rod" Rodriguez logged plenty of on-field time tending mostly to cramps, but also other ailments.

During a fourth-quarter stretch, senior defensive end Jowell Agyedu (eight tackles and a sack) made his postgame intentions clear: "I'm going to soak my body in ice. No water, just ice!"

The Friars' fan section, which may have outnumbered the Philly fans, apparently wasn't buying it. They booed loudly after play bogged down several times, which slowed their up-tempo offense while injured players were tended to.

After the Crusaders' 27-7, third-quarter advantage dwindled, there wasn't much to joke about. Led by senior back Jordan Gowins (38 carries, 251 yards and three TDs), the Friars capitalized quickly on errors. Judge (2-1) fumbled eight times and lost three.

Thaenrat's mishandle in the fourth led to a Gowins touchdown, but the Friars failed on a two-point conversion that would have tied the game at 27 with 10:25 left.

"I hadn't played in the rain in a long time," Thaenrat said. "It was my first downpour, high school game so it was kind of nerve-wracking because every time I touched the ball I was thinking about not fumbling."

After hanging his head, Thaenrat watched as Zack Carroll hit Prince Smith Jr. for an 80-yard score and extended the lead. Carroll finished 8-for-15 for 211 yards and three scores - all to Smith Jr., who had three catches and 151 yards. Sophomore receiver and cornerback Raheem "Speedy" Blackshear helped with two interceptions.

Thaenrat forced a Gowins fumble on the Friars' next possession, but cramps sent him to the sideline yet again. He could hear his teammates prodding him to return as he stretched on the side.

"They kept asking me to give them my all because they were giving me their all," he said. "And I'd been in and out of the game throughout, but my determination was to win the game."

Later, he returned and iced the game with a 20-yard score after junior wideout Tom Penko blocked a 37-yard field goal that would have given St. Anthony's the lead.

The native of Liberia, who lives with an aunt on Summerdale Avenue and Benner Street, didn't need to be reminded of perseverance. Civil war caused his family to flee Africa when he was 5. Catholic charities assisted his family, which eventually moved to San Antonio, and then Philadelphia.

"I just look at what I've been through and it just motivates me," he said. "Coming to America gave me a better opportunity to be the first ever in my family to go to college. And that motivates me because it doesn't matter where you come from, it just matters what you make of it."