St. Paul's defeated UMS-Wright 14-7 at Cooper Stadium on Friday night, ending both a 17 game home win streak and a 19 game regular season win streak for the Bulldogs.
Region 1 Scores from 8/25
St. Paul's 14 - UMS-Wright 7
Gulf Shores 41 - St. Michael 20
Faith 43 - Jefferson Davis 24
Leflore 33 - Chickasaw 6
Vigor 26 - Blount 6
Citronelle 27 - Millry 26
Mary Montgomery 41 - Williamson 2
Bayside 33 - Elberta 7
Game Recap
St. Paul's scored on their opening drive to take a 7-0 lead early in the game. Another touchdown in the 2nd quarter put the Saints up 14-0 at halftime. Joe Lott's 73 yard run brought the Bulldogs within one score, and the Bulldogs had hope when a bad snap on a Saints punt attempt was recovered near midfield late in the game. St. Paul's was able to hold on and win the game 14-7.
1st Quarter
St. Paul's had a big return on the opening kickoff and started their first drive near midfield. Facing a 3rd & 13 at the UMS 47, the Saints threw an incomplete pass - but the Bulldogs were called for defensive holding to prolong the drive. After converting on 3rd & 3, the Saints later converted on 3rd & 1 before connecting on a 16 yard touchdown pass from Byrd to Jones.
The Bulldogs started their first drive at their own 32 and quickly faced a 4th & 1. Bo Wills took the carry and made a nice spin move to pick up a chunk of yards before getting the ball stripped. St. Paul's recovered the fumble and began at their own 47. The Bulldog defense forced a 3 & out to get the ball back to the offense.
End 1st Quarter
St. Paul's 7
UMS-W 0
2nd Quarter
The Bulldogs drive began at their own 17, and the offense would move the ball but stall out after two penalties set the offense back. The defense forced a second consecutive 3 & Out, but the Bulldogs could do no better and punted it back to the Saints. St. Paul's finished out the half with a 6-minute, 61 yard Touchdown drive to go up 14-0 at halftime. Anthony Frasier scored the touchdown for the Saints after they picked up a key 4th & 3 conversion in the red zone.
Halftime
St. Paul's 14
UMS-W 0
3rd Quarter
Neither team would score in the 3rd quarter, although both teams did find some success moving the ball. The Bulldogs started the half with the ball on their 17 and rattled off 3 first downs. A Saints penalty kept the drive moving and the Bulldogs had it at the St. Paul's 17 yard line when Joe Lott's carry on 4th & 5 came up inches short. St. Paul's picked up a couple of 1st downs on the ensuing drive, but Caplyn Reed came up with a TFL on 3rd & 10 to force the punt.
End 3rd Quarter
St. Paul's 14
UMS-W 0
4th Quarter
Joe Lott's 73 yard touchdown run electrified the crowd and gave the Bulldogs a big momentum boost early in the 4th quarter. The QB scramble up the left sideline showed Lott's elite speed as he separated from the Saints defenders to get into the end zone. St. Paul's picked up a single 1st down before punting it back to the Bulldogs. A quick 3 & out gave it right back to the Saints. With the clock winding down, St. Paul's took several minutes off the clock and converted a big 3rd & 3. But on 4th down and in punt formation, the snap went well over the punter's head and the Bulldogs had a chance at the Saints 49 yard line. Joe Lott had to leave the game when his helmet was dislodged, but Bo Wills picked up a big first down on the next play. With under a minute remaining, the Saints defense put the game away with a late interception.
Final
St. Paul's 14
UMS-W 7
Play of the Game
Joe Lott's 73 yard TD run early in the 4th quarter put the Bulldogs on the board and gave the team a shot of momentum.
Stat Leaders
Rushing
Lott: 17 Carries - 150 yds - TD
Wills: 18 Carries - 82 yds
William Taylor: 1 Carry - 1 yard
Passing
Lott: 2 for 8 - 16 yards
Receiving
Denton Elliott: 1 reception - 11 yards
Wills: 1 reception - 5 yards
Defense
Reed: 7 tackles - TFL
McNeil Mostellar: 6 tackles - TFL
Thomas Arendall: 6 tackles
Perry Hand & William Tanner: 4 tackles
CJ Stewart & Jeff Holston: 3 Tackles and TFL each
Special Teams
Kingston Phan: 1 for 1 PAT
From the Coaches
Coach Dean on the Offense:
Losing the opener is not how you want to start the season. We were able to run the football, but made too many mistakes that stalled or ended drives. We fumbled 4 times, lost it once, and had a tipped pass that resulted in an Interception in the red zone on our last offensive play of the game. We have to keep focusing on the small things, and work to get better each day this week.
Coach Koziol on the Defense:
Despite the game not going in our favor, I felt like there were several positives to build on. That was the first Friday night start for 7 of our defensive players. We will clean up our run fits, and we have to play with better technique and leverage.
The effort was really good and we handled our halftime adjustments very well. I thought CJ Stewart, Jeff Holston, Caplyn Reed and William Tanner all played very well.
We are looking forward to getting back on the practice field to make corrections and improvements.
Next Up:
The Bulldogs travel to Brewton to take on T. R. Miller on Friday, August 28th.
