Cathedral’s defense shut out Class 6A second-ranked Center Grove for the first three quarters Friday night on the way to a 21-15 high school football victory in Greenwood. The Irish recorded eight sacks and forced three fumbles, recovering one in the end zone for a touchdown, as they improved to 5-2 with a fourth consecutive win. It was the first loss of the season for the Trojans who are now 6-1. Following a scoreless first period, Cam Koers completed a pass to Ollie Lewis at midfield. Lewis then ran away from two Trojan defenders for an 80-yard touchdown with 5:07 to play in the first half. Landon Hughes tossed a two-point conversion pass to Jackson White to make the score 8-0. On Center Grove’s first possession of the second half, Parker Scott sacked Trojans quarterback Oscar Sloan and forced a fumble that Houston Dinwiddie recovered at the Trojans’ 19-yard line. Four plays later, Van Krisiloff kicked a 38-yard field goal to increase the lead to 11-0. Kyle Harden sacked Sloan late in the third quarter for a 14-yard loss and forced a fumble into the end zone that Jack Watko recovered for a score. Brodie Tilton’s 43-yard TD run early in the fourth quarter and Sloan’s two-point conversion pass to Dominick Barry pulled Center Grove to within ten points at 18-8. Krisiloff added a 34-yard field goal with less than three minutes to play, but Sloan threw a 33-yard scoring pass to Roman Youngs with 1:36 remaining to close the margin to 21-15. The Irish recovered the ensuing onside kick and were able to run out the clock with the help of a Trojan offside penalty that resulted in a first down. Entering the game, Center Grove was averaging 41 points and 265 rushing yards per game. Cathedral held the Trojans to just 101 yards on the ground and blocked two Trojan field goal attempts. Koers completed 11 of 20 passes for 189 yards. Jimmy Pappas gained 102 yards on 34 rushing attempts. Class 5A third-rated Cathedral travels to Covington Catholic, a Class 4A school in Kentucky, this Friday. The Colonels are 4-3 after a 31-28 loss last Friday to Highlands, which scored the game-winning touchdown with just three seconds to play. It will be the first meeting between the two schools. *Photos from IndyStar