Trent Friedel
The Saint Mary’s Tigers took full advantage of their mid-season bye week after a road win at DeQuincy. A week of recovery with an opportunity to get some guys back to full health provided Coach Aaron York with a hungry Tiger team. The team’s theme this year has been G2G or Good to Great. They want to take last year’s good performance and transition to great.
They started district on the road at LaSalle with a great performance. Saint Mary’s scored early, scored often and scored almost at will, even with the young guys. The SMH Tigers kicked off to start the game and held LaSalle to a three and out. Saint Mary’s first possession was likewise a three and out but then Saint Mary’s took advantage of great field position on almost every possession of the first quarter and made the home Tiger’s pay. SMH was on the LaSalle 30-yardline twice to start drives. Or should I say start scores. The first score only took two plays, an 11-yard scramble to the endzone by Adam Parker. The second score took just one play, a 31-yard connection from Parker to Ben Bienvenu and the third score took three plays capped by a 1-yard run by Connor Jordan. Jordan scored again in the quarter on a 3-yard run. Saint Mary’s scored 28 unanswered point in the first. 
The visiting Tigers tacked on two more scores in the second frame as Joe Metoyer entered the game and went beast mode. He scored on a screen play that accounted for 24 yards to the endzone. He had a 15-yard TD run that followed that and a 50-yard run in the third quarter. Hudson Methvin added a fourth quarter two-yard running TD and the final tally was 56-8. But the man on a mission was #50 Logan Watson. Watson had two and a half sacks, an interception and a take-away interception that was nothing short of awe inspiring.
The starting defense refused to yield territory past the 50 for LaSalle. The large advantage resulted in a running clock as early as the second quarter. The only score for LaSalle came with backups in the game for Saint Mary’s late in the fourth. Every player dressed out saw action for the visiting Tigers.
Parker competed 7 of 8 passes for 148 yards and Metoyer led the rushing game with 75 yards. Payne Williams was perfect on PAT’s and put all but one kickoff in the end-zone for touchbacks. The Tigers are hitting their stride and returned home to face the Peabody Warhorses Friday night, the first time the two schools have met on the gridiron.