Shelton coach Jeff Roy couldn't exactly pinpoint why his team's been rather inconsistent this season. Still, the Gaels are 4-1 heading into Friday's key SCC Division I West showdown with No. 1 Xavier (5-0). Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Shelton's Finn Stadium.

"We've been kind of up and down this year," Roy said. "I've been unhappy in a few of the games the way we've played. We've been making a lot of mistakes. When we don't make mistakes, and play the way we're supposed to play, we're a pretty good football team. Hopefully we'll fix most of those mistakes this week in practice and not make them against Xavier."

Shelton earned two straight victories to open the year, against Wilbur Cross (27-18) on Sept. 17 and against Sheehan (24-17) on Sept. 23, before being shutout against Notre Dame-West Haven, 28-0, on Sept. 30. The Gaels have since defeated Hamden and Guilford.

Despite winning four of five games, Shelton's struggled with finding a consistent rhythm offensively.

"No one's consistently stopped us," Roy said. "We've stopped ourselves at times. We'll drive the ball down the field and then get a holding penalty or turn the ball over. It seems like we're making mistakes at bad times. But the positive is, we've overcome those mistakes and we're 4-1. You're going to make mistakes, they're high school kids, but we've been able to overcome them and win some games."

Senior Frank Camerino and junior Ed Groth have split time at quarterback since the Hamden game. Camerino lines up at tailback when Groth is under center. Roy also praised the play of his veteran offensive line. Seniors Connor O'Brien (running back) and Scott Zebendon (tight end/defensive end) have also contributed after not playing last season.

Read more about Shelton in Friday's print edition and on-line.