St. Thomas More Nights vs Seaquam Seahawks

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We had a good old-fashioned shootout between the St. Thomas More Knights and the Seaquam Seahawks on Friday evening. In a battle of talented running backs who both sport number 33, the Knights managed to hold on for a 35-26 win.

Those talented backs wearing 33 for their respective squads are Kayden Chan of the Knights and Seaquam's Remy Grewal. Both players are true throwback power runners. Running over one defender at a time, both backs wore down their opposing team's defensive units and racked up yards in the process.  

The Knights really needed to lean on their star running back as the team was missing multiple players for a multitude of reasons.

"Between illness, injury, and player suspension, we were down multiple players and had to gut-check their adversity."  STM's head coach, Jared Power, said post-game.

The Knights started hot despite all the advesity. STM scored two quick touchdowns in the first quarter. first, Nico Pallares scored on a 5-yard run to cap off a long drive. On the team's next possession, Kayden Chan ran for his first of two scores on the day, and the Knights led 14-0.

Down two scores, Grewal and Seaquam's ground game went to work. Grewal ran over defenders and fell forward for extra yards as The Seahawks drove the field and crossed the goalline to cut the lead to 14-7. 

Both teams continued to lean on the ground game and exchanged majors in the second quarter to go into the half, with STM leading 21-14.

In the final two frames, every time The Seahawks would strike and attempt to claw back, the Knights would answer with a score of their own. Neither team's defense had much of an answer for their opposition's ground attack, but when it mattered most, the Knights got one more stop than the Seahawks and took home a 35-26 victory. 

Standouts for the Knights included Chan, who ran for over 100 yards, and quarterback Nico Pallares, who had 150 all-purpose yards on the day.

Defensively, Grade 10 safety Liam Golding had seven tackles, and Pallares continues to be a two-way stud for the Knights, adding six tackles of his own.

Power was proud of how his players responded but knows going forward, the team needs to play with intensity on every play.

"We got up and had a lull in intensity and it almost cost us. I'm happy with how we responded in the second half and kept fighting. We need a complete effort if we want success against Lord Tweedsmuir next week."

That game against Tweedsmuir kicks off at 1:30 next Saturday.