On Friday night the Ste. Genevieve Dragons improved to 3-0 on the season with a lopsided 42-17 victory on the road at Orchard Farm, but it didn’t come easily at first. Although the final score looked like a blowout for Ste. Genevieve, the first three quarters showcased a surprisingly close game for the Dragons.
The game kicked off in a fortuitous manner for the Dragons with Aiden Boyer keeping it himself and ripping off a ridiculous 69-yard run to put Ste. Gen up 7-0 in the first quarter. That was the only scoring in the frame, but the defense held strong and were certainly more than pleased to hold the lead after the first 12 minutes.
In the second, the Dragons struck first once again with another rushing score from Ayden Butcher, this time to double the lead and make it 14-0. Orchard Farm would get on the board shortly after with a field goal to trim the lead a bit, but the Dragon defense wasn’t done putting their mark on the game. They got in tight when it counted and sacked the QB in the end zone to force a safety and tack on an extra two points to make the score 16-3.
The first half wasn’t over though, as Orchard Farm drove down the field and punched in their first TD of the game with a 12-yard run to make the score 16-10. That felt a little too close for comfort for Head Coach Jay Pope’s squad heading into the halftime break, so be assured, some motivational words were spoken in the locker room.
It appears those words fell on listening ears, because in the third quarter, the Dragons’ defense held the Eagles scoreless the entire frame. On the other side of the scoreboard, Boyer padded that once too-close-for-comfort lead with a four-yard rushing touchdown to give Ste. Genevieve a 22-10 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
And then the offensive fireworks went off. The Dragons opened up the scoring in the final 15 minutes of play, starting with Butcher pounding in a two-yard rushing touchdown that made the score 29-10 after a successful Bryant Schwent extra point.
Jacob Johns would then get into the scoring column with a 22-yard run that found the end zone to give Ste. Genevieve a commanding 36-10 lead with six minutes remaining in the game.
After an Orchard Farm touchdown, the Dragons found the end zone again for their final score of the game as Devin Flye intercepted a pass from Eagles quarterback Jackson Carruthers and took it to the house from 45 yards out to give Ste. Genevieve a 42-17 lead. That would cap the scoring on the night and leave the Dragons with a huge win and a 3-0 start to the season.
As a team, the Dragons rushed for 419 yards, as Boyer finished the game with 216 on the ground and scored two touchdowns. Butcher ran 22 times for 167 yards and two scores, Jack Farlow ran five times for 25 yards and Johns ran one time for a 22-yard score.
Boyer only attempted 11 passes for 64 yards though the air in this one, but his presence was certainly felt in the ground game. When he was gunslinging, he looked to tight end Tucker Reed, hooking up with him twice for 42 yards.
The running game for Pope’s squad gets better and better after every game, so look for the game plan to pound the football on the ground to continue for the Dragons against Week 4 opponent Fredericktown.
Ste. Genevieve will host the Blackcats (1-2) at 7 p.m. on Friday at Ste. Genevieve High School.
