×

St. Marys holds on to trump Marietta Tigers

St. Marys quarterback Will Billiter looks to pass during a high school football game against Marietta Friday at Don Drumm Stadium.

MARIETTA ­– St. Marys scored 23 first-quarter points and led 30-8 at halftime en route to downing host Marietta 51-36 Friday night at Don Drumm Stadium.

A furious rally attempt in the second half had the Tigers within seven, 37-30, early in the fourth quarter. Marietta had a chance to get the ball back and potentially tie the game, but Braden Barnhart converted a key 4th-and-2 with a 2-yard run to keep the drive alive. Six plays later, Jaiden Smith scored a 20-yard touchdown to all but ice the game. The Tigers got a quick 74-yard TD pass from Trent Dawson to Isaac Danford to make it 44-36. Again, though, Smith responded with a touchdown of his own, this time from 53 yards out, to seal the deal for St. Marys.

“Just very proud of these kids,” said St. Marys head coach Jodi Mote. “Felt like the kids came in and did what we worked on.

“Been around a lot of football at St. Marys and this was one of the most memorable ones in awhile in my opinion.”

The Blue Devils finished with 390 rushing yards on 50 carries as a team. Smith led the way with 185 yards and three touchdowns on 18 rushes.

Teammate Ryan Miller added 109 yards on 12 totes. Quarterback Will Billeter added 78 yards through the air on 7 for 9 passing.

Marietta got down big early and relied on its passing attack to get back in the contest. Dawson finished with 24 completions on 40 attempts for 378 yards. He threw four TD passes and had one interception. Danford and Travis Moore were once again the main targets. Danford finished with a game-high 192 yards on nine catches while Moore added 11 receptions for 152 yards. Standout running back Dominic Vanfossen was limited to 37 yards on eight carries.

St. Marys left the Tigers stunned early as rushing touchdowns by Miller (24 yards), Smith (43 yards) and Barnhart (3 yards) made it 23-0 at the 3:52 mark in the first quarter. Barnhart and Elijah Eades scored two-point conversions during the sequence.

The Tigers finally got on the board on the first play in the second quarter. On 4th-and-2 from the St. Marys 31, Dawson hooked up with Moore in the end zone and then hit Danford on the two-point try to make it 23-8.

St. Marys answered right back, using an 11-play, 77-yard drive, capped by another 3-yard rushing score by Barnhart, to chew 6:37 off the clock and make the score 30-8. That concluded the first half scoring.

The Blue Devils picked up right where they left off to open the second half. After forcing a Marietta 3-and-out, St. Marys got the ball at the Tigers’ 46 and needed just four plays to score. Samuel Kincaid caught a 16-yard pass and then Smith’s 24-yard run set up Billeter’s 1-yard TD run. Georg Krogh’s kick made it 37-8.

Marietta then scored 22 unanswered points. Dawson hit Danford for an 11-yard TD hookup at the 6:28 mark in the third. Then, at the 3:56 mark, Dawson ran it in himself from 19 yards out. Finally, after St. Marys lost a fumble, Dawson found Danford again from 27 yards out to pull the Tigers within 37-30, after trailing by 29 at one point.

From there, though, the Devils’ ground attack wore down the Tigers and put the game away.

“This was the first test that we’ve had,” Mote said. “Thankfully we passed it. If we stay healthy and keep working I think they have potential to have a good year.”

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today