St. Thomas Aquinas runs over Blue Valley Northwest
From the opening kickoff to halftime, St. Thomas Aquinas methodically dismantled Blue Valley Northwest on both sides of the ball Thursday evening at Blue Valley Northwest.
The Saints forced a three-and-out on Blue Valley Northwest’s first drive of the game. Aquinas got the ball near midfield and needed seven plays to get into the end zone for the first score.
This pattern played out the rest of the first half. Aquinas scored three touchdowns in the first quarter, another in the second quarter and never looked back in its 42-13 victory over BV Northwest.
Aquinas improved to 2-1 with the win.
“It was pretty flawless,” said Aquinas head coach Randy Dreiling of the first half. “We didn’t give up any first downs and we scored on every possession except for the last one.
“We talked about week three, no more mistakes. I thought our kids responded. You can’t play error-free football, but you can play pretty close at this time of the year.”
BV Northwest had one highlight play late in the third quarter when quarterback Jack Knutson connected with Cooper Trusdale for an 82-yard touchdown pass play.
The Huskies, however, were in trouble from the start, managing just a few yards in their first drive. The punt into the wind gave Aquinas favorable field position at its 47.
On the second play in the Saints’ initial drive, they had their biggest pass play in the half when quarterback Karter Odermann hit James Cosentino for a 30-yard completion.
“I don’t think they expected us to come out and pass it,” Ordermann said. “It really helped James. It was his first game back. It helped him get going.
“We are still building on stuff. We came out hot. The O-line blocked really well, and the running backs ran hard. Everyone did their job.”
Five plays after the completion, Aquinas was in the end zone on a 3-yard run by Cosentino. The extra point by Blake Zuniga gave the Saints a 7-0 lead with 7 minutes, 30 seconds left in the first quarter.
The Saints quickly repeated the opening sequence. Aquinas stopped the Huskies in three plays and got the ball back on its 48. The big play in this drive was a 43-yard touchdown run by Sam Ramaekers. The extra point made it 14-0 with 4:12 left in the opening quarter.
“It felt really good because I was injured last year,” said Ramaekers, who finished with 119 yards in 11 carries. “I was able to show everybody what I am able to do. I have been working real hard in the weight room all season. It goes to show how versatile our backfield is.”
BV Northwest didn’t give up any more long plays the rest of the half. But the Huskies struggled moving the ball.
Aquinas again got great field position for its third series, starting at the Huskies’ 43. It took the Saints five plays to get into the end zone just before the first quarter ended.
In the second quarter, BV Northwest had the wind at its back and that only helped to push Aquinas back after a punt. Starting at its 25, Aquinas went 75 yards in 13 plays and scored on a 2-yard run by Sam Budetti with 6:40 remaining in the second quarter.
Budetti was the fourth different Aquinas player to score a rushing touchdown in the first half.
The only positive for BV Northwest in the first half was a defensive stand late in the second quarter. The Saints moved to BV Northwest’s 16, but the drive was stopped on downs with 30 seconds left before halftime.
It was more of the same at the start of the third quarter. Aquinas drove 68 yards in its first drive and scored on a 12-yard run by Duron Lowe only 2 minutes into the second half.
“We do have a lot of weapons, and our quarterback does a good job,” Dreiling said. “His goal every week is to get the ball to the right guy.”
This story was originally published September 17, 2015 at 9:24 PM with the headline "St. Thomas Aquinas runs over Blue Valley Northwest."