St. Thomas More Knights vs Holy Cross Crusaders

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Ah, homecoming. No one ever forgets the packed crowd, the pregame festivities, or, in St. Thomas More Collegiate Knights' case, their 21-12 victory over The Holy Cross Crusaders. 

In what is starting to be a rebirth of an old Catholic School rivalry from the eighties and nineties, the two teams played in front of a packed crowd of over a thousand people on STM's campus. 

The Knights' Triple option attack scored first on just their second offensive play of the game. Steven Nicklin burst through the middle of the defense on a dive for a 44 yard touchdown run.

Early in the second quarter, Grade ten pivot Patricio Leon kept the ball on a Triple Option run and broke a 50-yard scamper for the score. Only in grade ten, Leon is doing a masterful job running the Knight's option attack.

The triple option requires quarterbacks to make fast, decisive decisions at full speed. For a grade ten to be running the scheme at the varsity level and excelling in it is a big deal. 

The Knights have a luxury: they have two capable quarterbacks. Not only do they have Leon, but quarterback Nico Pallares can also make big plays for the team. 


He showed that playmaking ability on the opening drive of the 2nd half, throwing an absolute dime down the right sideline for a 46-yard score to wideout Kareem Mohammed. 

Holy Cross would adjust and score the next two majors with tight end Paulo Emata and QB Xander McCrone finding the endzone. Unfortunately, the Crusaders ran out of time, and the Knights were able to hold on for a 21-12 homecoming victory.

Knights head coach Jared Power was happy not only with his team's effort but homecoming as a whole.

"Today was a great event. The community was out in full force. We had a Volleyball game earlier, the Pep Band was going all day and our boys put on a good show for their community. I liked the way our Offensive Line controlled the line of scrimmage and loved the mentality of our guys constantly looking to build each other up throughout the game. We have lots to clean up as a team, but today was definitely a step in the right direction."

Standouts for the Knights included Steven Nicklin with 83 yards rushing and a touchdown on Offense, as well as 7 tackles and one sack on defense.

Nico Pallares was dangerous all day running and passing as a quarterback and had 5 tackles and one interception on defense. 

Alex Jaspar was a force at center and Defensive line, making 4 tackles (3 for a loss).

The Knights hope to take the momentum of this win to their matchup next Friday against the Kelowna Owls.

For the Crusaders, head coach Conrad Deugau was happy with his team's effort but knew they needed to get going earlier in the game.

"It was a tale of 2 halves. They beat us in the first half and we were the better team in the second half. Unfortunately, that first half was the big difference-maker. STM is a well-coached team, and they had a good game plan. We fought hard, and I'm proud of my kids."

The Crusaders will look to earn their first victory of the year next week against the Sullivan Heights Stars.