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11/5/07-Football
Eaglets trample Saints in district grid final
By MIKE ROSENBAUM of The West Bloomfield Eccentric
ORCHARD LAKE--Dominique White scored three first-half touchdowns, including two on fourth down, to lead Orchard Lake St. Mary's past visiting St. Clair Saturday, 38-7, in a Division 3 district final.
“He's an outstanding runner,” said Eaglets coach George Porritt. “He had that one broken run that I thought was a big play, that got us our third touchdown.”
The ‘broken run' began as an option play. On fourth-and-six from St. Clair's 31, White took quarterback Robert Bolden's pitch and started to his left. Seeing nothing but Saints in front of him, White pivoted, ran to the right and turned the corner for what could've been about a 10-yard gain. But the senior did a 360-degree spin, escaped and continued down the sideline for a 31-yard touchdown run.
“You better know that he might do that,” Porritt said of White's decision to reverse his field. “Not that we want him to, but sometimes you've got to let a runner be a runner.”
White's running, and a defense that stifled St. Clair's running attack, helped the Eaglets improve to 8-2 overall. St. Mary's will visit Melvindale (10-1) in regional play Friday, beginning at 7 p.m.
St. Clair finished the season 8-3.
The Eaglets took charge of Saturday's game quickly. Suave LaVallis returned a punt 42 yards to St. Clair's 14 early in the first quarter. Two plays later, White swept right for an 11-yard touchdown. Sean Graham added the first of three extra points for a 7-0 lead.
Later in the quarter, the Eaglets drove 77 yards on eight plays, overcoming a holding penalty along the way. Bolden opened the drive with a 32-yard completion to Dion Sims. White got into the act late in the possession, running for 11 yards on two carries after the holding call, leaving St. Mary's in a fourth-and-three situation. White then took a pitchout and swept right, racing 26 yards untouched for 13-0 lead after the extra point try was blocked.
After White performed his pirouette routine in the second quarter to make it 19-0, Sam Fioroni ran in a two-point conversion.
The Eaglets added a 27-yard Graham field goal in the third quarter, then defensive lineman Carl Goeckel scooped up a fumble and ran eight yards for a score early in the fourth. St. Clair got on the board on an 11-yard run by quarterback Kyle Mahaffy, then Fioroni closed the scoring with a 13-yard run.
White led St. Mary's 177-yard rushing effort, running 12 times for 98 yards. Bolden completed five of 11 passes for 76 yards, with four completions going to Sims, totaling 68 yards.
St. Clair was held to 76 yards rushing and 54 passing. Other than their late scoring drive, the Saints offense only crossed midfield once, reaching St. Mary's 42 early in the second quarter.
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