Grounding it out hasn’t been the choice de jour when it comes to the St. Thomas More Knights’ football team of late.
Yes, they have a history of being able to run with the best of them at times, but in 2016 the squad has opted to air it out most nights, throwing caution and the oval ball into the wind.
This past Friday, however, the Knights stuck to the running game and ran away with a 48-0 win over the Kelowna Owls in the Okanagan city.
It all started on the first series, when the Owls’ third play from scrimmage was intercepted by Anthony Prpic, who put the Knights in good field position and eventually the opening – and game-winning – touchdown.
Behind a 11-for-141 yards rushing performance from Grade 11 running back Nat Nacario, STM dominated the ground and piled up a huge 35-0 lead by halftime. Four of Nacario’s carries went into the end zone.
Picking up 11 carries for 91 yards was Prpic, including three for majors in a contest where the visitors amassed 350 yards on the ground.
“The last couple of weeks we’ve increased the amount of running we’ve been doing and it’s been successful,” noted head coach Bernie Kully. “We’re fortunate that (offensive coordinator) Denis Kelly has a willingness to add plays and change things up, and the players have responded very well to what he’s asked them to do.”
Quarterback Kolby Buljevic threw for 89 yards and scampered for another 27 yards, while Jonah Fridfinnson added 58 rushing yards.
On the defensive side, the Knights got six tackles and one QB sack from Sam Steele, while Mateo Moreira locked up five tackles and a sack.
“The shutout was a nice statistical note but there were things that we need to work on, that we could have done better,” said Kully.
It was STM’s second straight win, after starting the regular season 0-3. Spurred by a strong differential – they’ve outscored their competition 130-83 – the Knights have co-opted some momentum just as playoffs approach.
“We have been able to collect ourselves after a bit of adversity to start the season,” said Kully.
“The hope and goal is that we can collectively use that momentum and finish off the regular season on a positive note and carry it into the playoffs.”
The Knights host 2-3 Mount Boucherie on Friday, 6 p.m. at Burnaby Lakes.
In junior football, the STM jr. Knights maintained its perfect record after beating Mission 27-7 last week.
They sit undefeated at 5-0.
