It's a happy Homecoming weekend at St. Joseph High School.

The Knights rolled to a 42-0 Los Padres League victory over the Santa Maria Saints at Friday night's homecoming game at Al Maguire Field at Jay Will Stadium in Orcutt.

On a chilly night in the Santa Maria Valley - 55 degrees at kickoff, dropping down to 47 by the final horn - it took St. Joseph the entire first quarter to get its offense warmed up. Once the Knights shook of the cold, they burned up the field for 443 yards of total offense.

The Knights defense was nothing short of dominating - holding the Saints to just 104 yards of total offense, posting its second shutout of the year.

“Our defense played fantastically,” said St. Joseph head coach Mike Hartman. “Our defensive linemen, linebackers, defensive backs - the defense really is the story of this game.”

St. Joseph's offense was led by tailback Ryan Anglin with 84 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries, K.J. Cusack with 57 yards on 7 carries, John Sua and Michael McNulty who both had 14 yards on two carries, Anthony Ibarra with 59 yards on 12 carries and quarterback Gavin Kelly with 29 yards and one touchdown on eight carries.

Kelly was also 11-for-18 passing - good for 181 yards and three touchdowns.

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Santa Maria relied on tailback Josh Marzett who gained 13 yards on six carries and quarterback Ryan Duran who gained 18 yards on seven carries.

Duran completed 10 of 21 passes for 73 yards with two interceptions.

Santa Maria's defense came out on fire - shutting down the high-powered Knights offense in the first quarter.

“I don't think the cold weather had anything to do with it. Santa Maria came out physical and they played hard,” said Hartman. “We figured out how to attack them in the second quarter and started to play the way we are capable of.”

The Knights began to hit high gear as the first quarter wound down.

After getting excellent field position at the Saints' 30 yard line, the Knights needed just six plays to cross the goal line.

St. Joseph running back Russell Perkins had only two carries on the night, for a total of five yards, but his first was good for a two-yard touchdown on the opening play of the second quarter.

Anthony Gallegos kicked the extra point - he was a perfect 6-for-6 on the night - and the Knights were beginning to roll, up 7-0 just :03 seconds into the quarter.

Anglin upped the lead to 14-0 on the Knights' next drive. His 20-yard run capped a seven-play, 64-yard march.

Kelly hit the first of his three touchdown passes on St. Joe's next possession. His six-yard strike to Jason Buchanan capped an 18-play drive that covered 63-yards while draining over six minutes off the game clock - giving St. Joseph a 21-0 heading into the half.

“During practice, we talk a lot about opportunity. When you get your opportunity, you've got to make the most of it. Our guys did that tonight - as individuals and as a team,” said Hartman. “Our seniors have come through all season. They are doing a great job of leading this team.”

St. Joseph was back at it in the third quarter - scoring touchdowns on its first three possessions.

First Kelly weaved his way through traffic for a 23-yard touchdown run to open the third quarter, ending a five-play, 51-yard drive. Kelly hit Travis Biegl with a 13-yard scoring pass to cap a 77-yard drive the next time they had the ball. Kelly hit Biegl again - this time with a 43-yard bomb -as the third quarter wound down to seal the victory.

“Coach Mike Pope is doing an excellent job with the Saints,” said Hartman. “He's in his first year as the head coach but he's got the kids playing the right way. Under coach Pope, I see Santa Maria will keep getting better and better and better.”

The victory keeps St. Joseph atop the Los Padres League with a 3-0 record (4-1 overall). Santa Maria falls to 0-2 in the LPL and 0-4 overall.

Santa Maria heads to Templeton (0-2 LPL, 1-4 overall) next week while St. Joseph visits Nipomo (0-2 LPL, 1-4 overall) as the LPL season continues. Both games are set to kick off at 7:30 p.m.

q Sports Editor Elliott Stern can be reached at 739-2235 or by e-mail to elliottstern@santamariatimes.com.

Oct. 11, 2008