The twist was that all three were into the wind.

"It was so windy, I didn't even know if I could pass with the wind," Barlage said after Gloucester Catholic beat Pope John XXIII, 37-14, yesterday on Gloucester High's field in the opening round of the Non-Public 3 state Football tournament.

Barlage, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior, completed 11 of 17 passes for 211 yards. Senior wide receiver Jacob Yates caught all three of Barlage's touchdown passes and finished with six grabs for 145 yards.

Senior running back Pat Schuhl gained 78 yards on 22 carries as the third-seeded Rams improved their record to 8-1 and advanced to face second-seeded Immaculata on Friday or Saturday.

Camden Catholic faces top-seeded St. Joseph's of Montvale in the other Non-Public 3 semifinal.

"That's a good team," said Pope John XXIII coach Victor Paternostro. "I was impressed. I'd never seen them before. I'd never been to Gloucester before. They made some big plays against us."

Gloucester Catholic scored 16 points in the final 6 minutes, 41 seconds, starting with a safety when Pope John XXIII snapped the Football out of the end zone in punt formation, and including an interception return for a touchdown by Mike Gartland.

Earlier in the second half, the Lions were trailing, 14-7, and drove 50 yards in 12 plays to the Gloucester Catholic 5-yard line. But a bad exchange resulted in a fumble that the Rams' Nick Maglio recovered.

"We had our hands full with that team," Gloucester Catholic coach Tony Garczynski said of Pope John XXIII, a Sussex County team that finished its season with an 8-2 record.

Barlage said the key for Gloucester Catholic was its balance on offense. In addition to strong running by Schuhl, the Rams got 71 yards on six carries from junior Alex Christ and a late touchdown on an 18-yard run from senior fullback Ryan Alcott.

"When we watched them on tape, we knew we would be able to throw and pass against them," Barlage said.

Yates made a great run after the catch for his first touchdown, a 58-yarder. The 6-0, 185-pound senior also made an adjustment on an underthrown pass for a 24-yard touchdown that broke a 7-7 tie with 12 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Yates caught a 27-yard touchdown pass to give the Rams a 21-7 lead in the third quarter.

"If I had to pick one game to score three TDs, it would definitely be today," Yates said.

Pope John XXIII 7 0 0 7 - 14

Gloucester Catholic 0 14 7 16 - 37

PJ: McGrath 64 run (Krueger kick)

GC: Yates 58 pass from Barlage (Zabel kick)

GC: Yates 24 pass from Barlage (Zabel kick)

GC: Yates 27 pass from Barlage (Zabel kick)

PJ: Bell 5 run (Krueger kick)

GC: Safety (punt snap out of end zone)

GC: Alcott 18 run (Krueger kick)

GC: Gartland 22 interception return (Zabel kick)

Contact staff writer Phil Anastasia at 856-779-3223

or panastasia@phillynews.com