Four musicians, (from left) Wade McKenzie-50, Lee Kelso-79, Stephen Massaway-58, and James Sayles-70, are both a big part of the Saints football team and members of the Marching Band.

St. Ignace continues to play hard, but couldn't hold off the fourth quarter rally as Newberry upended the Saints 17-10 during a Straits Area Conference (SAC) contest Friday, September 30.

LaSalle High School celebrated homecoming. During halftime seniors Kate Springsteen and Michael Green were crowned queen and king for 2005-06.

Zach Pierson and Tyler Huskey (two interceptions and one fumble recovery) led the Black and Gold defense with 15 tackles. Billy Matson added 12 and one sack, Nick Montie and James Sayles chipped in 10, Garrett Becker, Derrick Clark, and Wade McKenzie notched eight, Jake Smith tallied seven, Alex Winkel charted five, Sam Fitzpatrick counted four, and Paul Davis, Stephen Massaway, and Ben Matelski recorded two.

The Saints offense was led by Kyle Spencer with three of 19, passing for 59, and the sophomore quarterback caught one pass for 10 yards. Huskey rushed for 27 yards and added three receptions for 59 yards. Pierson gained 11 yards and completed one pass for 10 yards. Davis chipped in four yards, and Kyle Smock notched three yards.

Jake Pann gained 174 yards on 27 carries. Cody Kilgore added 51 yards, Drew Schultz completed six of 11 passing for 97 yards, and Zac Sorelle led the receivers with three receptions for 64 yards.

"The team continues to play hard and has never quit," said Saints Coach Marty Spencer. "The last two games we have played well enough to win."

The teams battled to a scoreless tie after the first 12 minutes. Early in the second quarter Clark, who punted seven times for an average of 35 yards, hit a 42-yard boot to Newberry’s 37-yard line.

Kilgore gained 18 yards to the Saints’ 45 yard line, but Huskey stole the ball and dashed to the end zone for the touchdown. Clark kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead at the 9:33 mark of the second quarter.

The lead was short lived, as 35 seconds later Pann rambled 56 yards at 8:58 and Stephan Mahaffy added the extra point to notch the score at 7-7.

The Saints, 1-5 overall and 0-3 in the SAC, took possession at the Newberry 45-yard line and marched inside the 20-yard line on eight plays that included two Huskey pass receptions from Spencer for 33 yards, before Clark kicked a 38-yard field goal with 2:36 left in the half for a 10-7 lead.

Huskey intercepted his second pass in the closing minute of play to end a potential scoring threat by the Indians.

Both teams battled for field position in the third quarter. At one point with the Saints facing a punting situation inside their own 5-yard line, Coach Spencer had Clark walk out the back of the end zone to give the Indians a two-point safety and slice the Saints’ lead to 10-9 with 4:05 remaining in the game. The idea was to force a free kick and back Newberry up further. The Indians’ Michael Houghton, however, returned the kick from the 20-yard line, 68 yards for the touchdown.

The Indians were flagged for blocking in the back that nullified the score and gave Newberry possession at the Saints’ 17-yard line, but then they scored on their third play of the drive. On a third-and-10 situation, Schultz hooked up with Sorelle on a 17-yard scoring pass and Pann added the two-point conversion with 2:24 on the clock for a 17-10 advantage.

St. Ignace took possession with 2:19 on the clock and 67 yards away from the end zone, but four incomplete passes ended any chance for the winning touchdown.

St. Ignace will travel to Sault High and face the Blue Devils in a SAC game Friday, October 7, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.

Saints, Indians Battle

to 6-6 Tie in JV Football

St. Ignace and Newberry battled to a 6-6 tie during junior varsity football Thursday, September 29. The Michigan High School Athletic Association doesn't allow junior varsity teams to play sudden death.

After a scoreless first quarter, Newberry scored first for a 6-0 lead at the 10:27 mark of the second period.

A James Halberg fumble recovery set up the tying touchdown at the Indians’ 26-yard line and two plays later Jesse Becker scampered 22 yards to send the game into halftime tied at 6-6.

Defense dominated the second half, as both teams played outstandingly to keep their opponents out of the end zone.

Shane McDonald and Andy Tamlyn led the defense with 12 tackles. Derek Marshall added 10 stops, James Halberg chipped in eight with one big fumble recovery, Brandon Garries notched eight, Alec Fitzgerald, Stephen Bielat, and Cody Canell tallied six, Jesse Becker and Shawn Cowell charted four, Nate Thompson, Lance DeKeyser, and Stefan Saffian marked three, and Rob Robinson, Joe Schlehuber, Tyler Oja, Nate Tamlyn, Shane Spring, Frank Beaudoin, and Eric Hinsman recorded two each.

The Saints entertain Sault High Thursday, October 6, at Saints Field.