PASCAGOULA – Sacred Heart needed something good to go in its direction heading into Region 8-1A play this week, and it got that Friday in a 21-14 win over St. Patrick.
The Crusaders snapped a two-game losing skid to get back in the win column, which gives them a little positive momentum before playing Resurrection (1-4) Friday night.
“It’s nice to have a little momentum going into district, because now the games count,” Sacred Heart coach Lonny Schraeder said. “That was a big deal, and it’s always nice to win.”
The Crusaders have put together a 3-2 season so far behind senior Campbell Klein’s 602 rushing yards and eight touchdowns and 872 passing yards and nine touchdowns from Zach Weatherell to his various receivers.
Weatherell has posted some impressive games, like Week 2’s 317-yard performance, but he was also held to 79 yards against Sumrall and 117 yards against St. Patrick. While he has a 46 passing percentage, he’ll make throws on the dime like his 72-yard passing score last week against the Fighting Irish. Senior Paul Rowell was running over the middle from the left side, and Weatherell hit him between two defenders.
“Zach is a young quarterback, and he’s really not had a whole lot of experience yet,” Schraeder said. “He’s getting better and better. We thought he did some good things. That touchdown pass was right where it needed to be and he got the ball to Paul. I’m pleased with what he’s doing, and he works really hard in practice.
“The game is still kind of fast for him, and it’s hard to simulate it in practice. He’s not where he wants to be, but he’s getting there.”
Despite its record, this week’s opponent is still a force to be reckoned with. Resurrection has played two 5-0 teams, a 4-0 team and a squad that’s posted a 4-1 record. Altogether, the Eagles’ opponents have a combined 19-3 record.
The Eagles began the season with four straight losses to Perry Central, two Alabama teams and Forrest County AHS before beating Northlake Christian (Covington, La.).
“Don’t let their record fool you at all,” Schraeder said. “They’ve played some really good teams, and just like they always are, they’re well coached. Everybody knows their job, everybody does their job well and they get after it. They’re a good group of kids, and it’ll be a tough chore.”
Resurrection has become more of passing team compared to previous Eagles’ teams, averaging nearly 20 passes a game and 22 rushes. That could be, however, due to the fact the Eagles have been trialing in most of their games and needing to pass their way back into the contest.
Schraeder is still impressed with the Resurrection quarterback, though. Senior Blake Porter is completing 51 percent of his passes for 557 yards, seven touchdowns, and more importantly, no interceptions.
“They have a good little quarterback and they’ll throw it a little bit more than they have in the past, but they’ll still run it,” Schrader said. “That just adds another dimension to them that we have to stop.”
Defensively, Resurrection has only allowed a significant amount of points to the two Alabama-based teams (42 and 36 points). Saying that, Resurrection is just allowing 23 points per game.
