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St. Henry's Nick Bertke (50), Adam Franck (52) and Tate Lefeld (53) close in to bring down St. Marys' Jacob Kessler in the Wally Post Athletic Complex on Friday.
ST. HENRY - Trivia buffs will have to comb through the records to find the last time a St. Marys football team was held below 80 yards rushing.
Let's just say, it doesn't happen very often.
St. Henry took advantage of a couple scoring opportunities in the first half and then played keep-away in the second half, blanking the Roughriders 17-0 Friday night at the Wally Post Athletic Complex in the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
St. Marys (0-1) netted out 71 yards on 31 carries, with their longest run from scrimmage being seven yards.
"I thought the defensive staff put a great game plan together this week in terms of getting our guys lined up to be sound and in the right spots," said assistant coach A.J. Kremer, who was filling in for Brad Luthman after Luthman was suspended for the game for a violation of school policy.
St. Marys coach Bo Frye didn't mince words.
"We got our butts kicked," he said. "Up front, we didn't finish anything. We did last week, and we did in all our scrimmages, but we get to Week 1 and we didn't finish anything. Testament to St. Henry, they played harder than us."
The game's first five possessions resulted in five punts before St. Henry was able to put together a scoring drive early in the second quarter.
After converting one fourth down near midfield, the Redskins took advantage of a St. Marys pass interference penalty on fourth-and-12 to keep the drive alive. Two plays later, sophomore quarterback Charlie Werling scored on a six-yard run with 9:32 left in the first half.
St. Henry quarterback Charlie Werling looks to throw to receiver Hayden Boeckman.
St. Marys followed with what proved its longest drive of the game, picking up three first downs and driving to the St. Henry 25. But a 15-yard chop block penalty and a dropped pass resulted in another Roughrider punt.
The Riders were poised to get the ball back late in the first half as St. Henry faced a third-and-10 from its own 8. However, a Werling scramble and a late hit penalty on St. Marys got the Skins out of the hole, and five plays later Werling connected with Carter Laguire for a 34-yard completion to the St. Marys 1.
From there Werling scored on a keeper, Michael Gonzalez added his second PAT kick and the Redskins broke for intermission with a 14-0 lead.
St. Henry dominated time of possession in the second half, converting a third-and-12 and a third-and-17 on the opening drive of the third quarter. After using almost half of the third quarter clock, Gonzalez connected on a 27-yard field goal for a 17-0 lead.
After a St. Marys three-and-out, the Redskins put together another long drive that resulted in a blocked field goal with 22 seconds left in the quarter. St. Henry had the ball for more than 10 minutes of the third.
"I thought we were ready to go in that second half, it was just every time we had them in third-and-15, something went over our head," Frye said. "Sometimes that's how the game goes. That sounds like an excuse, but it comes down to us not executing and not finishing things."
St. Marys' Kevin Perry runs downfield as St. Henry defensive back Michael Gonzalez sets up for a tackle at the Wally Post Athletic Complex on Friday.
The inability to establish a ground game and trailing by three scores put the Riders in a difficult situation the rest of the way.
"Throwing the ball is something they don't like to do, or they don't do it very often," Kremer said. "And when we can stop their running game and get them to where they have to throw a little more, that's definitely big for our defense."
Combined, the Riders were 4-of-22 passing for 60 yards, 53 of which came in the final two minutes of the game.
"When you get too far behind, you're picking at straws and trying to do stuff you're really not that good at," Frye said. "That's on us as coaches. That's on us as players. We're a 'we' program, and we have to execute and play harder."
Werling had a big game for the Skins, rushing for 129 yards and throwing for 124 yards.
"He played phenomenal," Kremer said. "It was his first varsity game, and I thought he had a heckuva game. He made some great throws and some great runs, and I'm really proud of him."
St. Henry travels to Archbold next Friday while the Roughrider will venture back to Mercer County to take on cross-lake rival Celina.
