John Marshall-Weir Searching for First Win
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By CODY TOMER
Sports Writer
MOUNDSVILLE -- Both John Marshall and Weir have young squads coming into the 2021 season and are searching for their first wins.
For one, that first victory will come Friday night as the Monarchs host the Red Riders.
"That is definitely going to be the case, it's going to be two teams hungry for a win," Sisinni said.
JM coach Justin Kropka can already see the improvement from Sisinni's team from last year by simply watching the tape from last week.
"I saw Weir play last year and you can see the improvement that is coming," Kropka said. "Coach (Sisinni) did a good job of building them from the ground floor, like we are now. I think there are some talented kids on the team. They spread you out and get you in space with their athletes. I like what (Sisinni) has done and he has kept them together. That is the mark of a good coach and the kids are buying in."
John Marshall is coming off a 55-0 setback to University in Week 1, while Weir fell to Oak Glen 35-20.
"The best thing I saw was we kept playing hard," Kropka said. "There was no finger pointing in the locker room but our focus on football has to matter. We have to make sure it matters enough to get better and that's what I'm hoping we figure out. Are we OK with a 50-0 loss or do we want to get better?"
After watching the Weir-Oak Glen game, Kropka believes Weir was just a few plays away from defeating Oak Glen.
"They made a couple of mistakes against Oak Glen but they were probably a play here or there from winning that game," Kropka said. "I like where they are heading."
Weir sophomore QB Malachi Stromile threw for 166 yards, going 8-for-26 and rushing for 75 yards in the loss.
"We have to work on finishing drives," Sisinni said. "We had some opportunities in the second half that we didn't finish."
In the season-opening loss to University, John Marshall only racked up 102 yards and came away with a handful of injuries.
"We've been so beat up," Kropka said. "We not only lost the game but we lost some guys, too. So hopefully we can get some guys back this week. Our focus is on licking our wounds and just getting better every week."
Sisinni knows how talented University is and expects JM to bounce back after the season-opening setback.
"They went down to University and played a very good AAA team," Sisinni said. "Coach (John) Kelley has a really good team down there and coach Kropka went down there with a plan to win, but (University) was firing on all cylinders.
"We actually got to go down there and scout that game."