Take away their star rusher, and the St. Thomas More Knights still can’t be stopped.
With running back Tyler Eckert sidelined with an illness, the undefeated Knights accumulated a
season-high 58 points against the visiting W.J. Mouat Hawks for a league-best fourth shutout, pushing the senior AAA football team to an imposing 6-0 league record.
STM closes the regular season on the road Saturday against the 2-4 Mission Roadrunners.
In Friday’s win, the home team didn’t waste any time in gathering the momentum as Michael Simone pulled down the W.J. Mouat quarterback’s first pass and ran it into the end zone. Daniel Auld added another defensive major, turning a fumble into a 20-yard major.
On offence, quarterback Dario Ciccone continued to show pinpoint accuracy in completing seven of 10 pass attempts for 236 yards. Among the throws, he hit David Osho with TD passes of 26 and 75 yards, while Osho added a 45-yard run for another six points.
Rounding out the club’s six offensive play majors was Josh Wilson with two, one a converted short pass from Ciccone for a 60-yard sprinting TD, and a seven-yard dash.
Ciccone, who has thrown seven touchdown passes and no interceptions over six regular season games, has completed 48 of 74 attempts on the year.
Piling up eight tackles was Jonah Fridfinnson, while Sam Steele added two more to his league-leading QB sack tally of 13. He also collected five tackles, putting him third in the league with 51 over six games.
The Knights have already clinched the Eastern Conference division title and a bye into the first round of the playoffs, which begin Nov. 10.
