Above: Fairmont running back Elijah Johnson leaps over a St. Peter defender during a South District-Central Red District football game Friday at Mahoney Field.
FAIRMONT – The Fairmont Cardinals defeated St. Peter 28-7 on Friday night in a South Section-Central Red Section football game at Mahoney Field.
A consistent run game combined with Joe Long’s ability to find receivers in space made them untouchable for the St. Peter’s defense.
The Cardinals’ homecoming game got off to a slow start, with each team getting a feel for what the other was going to throw at them. The Cardinals tried to launch a running attack, but St. Peter’s was ready and able to limit the damage while launching a running attack of their own. This was problematic for the Cardinals, who had only allowed a combined 20 points in their three games leading up to homecoming.
“We were in the right place all night.” “We’re thrilled to be part of this team,” Fairmont football head coach Matt Mahoney said. “In the first half, we just didn’t finish off some plays. … I thought we were in the right position, but we had some missed tackles.”
Mahoney said the team adjusted its defense to contain St. Peter’s run game and close gaps to prevent the Saints from scoring again.
The Cardinals offense got going right away with a Joe Long pass to Nolan Schultz for a 36-yard gain. They continued to march down the field, using up the clock to set up a quarterback draw, before Long ran the final nine yards for his first touchdown of the night and a 7-0 lead with seven minutes left in the first quarter.
Fairmont’s defense kept St. Peter at bay and forced a punt, but despite getting the ball back, Fairmont fumbled and the ball ended up right back in St. Peter’s hands.
But the Cardinals defense held firm and forced a turnover when a Hunter Johnson pass was batted down.
The Cardinals’ offense stalled early in the second quarter, giving the ball back to St. Peter. St. Peter got the ball from their own 12-yard line and drove 88 yards, tying the game at 7-7 with 4:08 left in the game. The Cardinals’ offense again stalled and turned the ball over. With 2:16 left in the quarter, Oliver Tordsen recovered a St. Peter’s fumble, giving the Cardinals great field position. Elijah Johnson finally found an opening in the defense, turned downfield and ran 20 yards. Long then made a strong pass over the middle to Brett Williams, who caught the ball over the defender’s head and reached the end zone for a 33-yard touchdown to put the Cardinals ahead 14-7 with 1:10 left in the first half.
St. Peter had the ball at their own 31-yard line to start the third quarter, and confused the Cardinals defense with an option run, but Hank Ertz deflected the pass away, forcing a punt. St. Peter didn’t hold onto the ball for long, as Long deflected a pass for a St. Peters interception, but Hayden Toomer quickly intercepted it. Elijah Johnson again found space, leading the Cardinals to the 32-yard line, where Long connected with Ertz for another 15 yards. The Cardinals continued to advance down the field, scoring on a 14-yard run that put Elijah Johnson in the end zone for the second time of the night, extending the lead to 21–7. Long left the game with an injury late in the third quarter and did not return.
But Long’s ejection prevented Fairmont from adding another touchdown, and Elijah Johnson ran 18 yards to reach the end zone again with 10:27 left in the fourth quarter for the final score. The Cardinals shut down St. Peter’s offense, running the ball and keeping the clock from running, effectively ending the game.
Now 4-0, the Cardinals will travel to New Ulm next Friday to try and keep their winning streak going.
