WILMINGTON – St. Elizabeth fell behind Conrad, 14-8, in the middle of the second quarter of their football game on Oct. 18, but the Vikings regrouped and used a stout ground game to score the final 22 points of the afternoon to take a 30-14 win in Class 1A action. With the win, St. Elizabeth remains a top contender for the district title and the state tournament berth that comes with it.
Conrad tied the game at 8-8 late in the first after a bad snap on a Vikings punt resulted in a safety. The Red Wolves’ defense helped set up the next score, forcing a St. E’s punt three minutes into the second. Conrad, taking over at its own 49-yard line, needed seven plays, all on the ground, to take the lead. Lucca Smit set the tone with an 18-yard run on the first play. Matthew Davis-Spencer kept the drive alive with a 17-yard run on fourth and six, getting the Red Wolves to the St. Elizabeth 6. After a loss of four yards on first down, quarterback Tommy McGrory of the Red Wolves went 10 yards to the end zone. The extra point was blocked, and the lead was 14-8 for Conrad.
But that would be it for the Red Wolves’ scoring. In the meantime, the Vikings turned to their ground-and-pount attack to take control. After the Conrad touchdown, St. Elizabeth started at midfield and ran Isaiah Coleman six straight plays, moving to the Conrad 9. Alex Soto took a turn, getting to the 2 before Coleman closed out the drive. The two-point conversion put the Vikings on top, 16-14, with 1:26 left in the half.
St. Elizabeth forced two Red Wolves punts in the third as the Vikings’ defense stiffened. They had two tackles for loss on the second Conrad drive of the quarter, forcing a punt with five minutes remaining in the stanza.
After a Conrad punt, the Vikings took over at their own 20 with 4:55 to go in the third. Again, they stayed on the ground, throwing the ball just once during a drive that lasted more than six minutes. Emmanuel Matagaro caught the pass, picking up 13 yards. Mi’Cah Hamilton ran twice for 19 yards, and Matagaro and Coleman also carried the ball. Quarterback Cole Andrews (Sacred Heart Parish, Oxford, Pa.) wrapped it up with a 14-yard keeper with 10:39 remaining.
The Vikings’ defense forced another three-and-out, and St. Elizabeth turned once again to the rushing attack. Andrews began the drive with a long run, and he finished it by going a yard for a touchdown with 4:16 to go. Another two-point conversion made it a 30-14 game.
Soto ended a Conrad rally with an interception in the end zone in the closing minute.
The Vikings (5-2) travel to Concord on Oct. 25 at 10:30 a.m. Conrad (3-4) visits Newark on Oct. 25 at 11 a.m.
Photos by Mike Lang.
