Two dominant signal callers in Gage Hedstrom and Cooper Arehart are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The St. Mary's Cardinals will be playing at home against the Neligh-Oakdale Warriors at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. One thing working in St. Mary's favor is that they have posted at least 31 points in their last six games.
On Friday, St. Mary's took their contest with ease, bagging a 74-8 victory over North Central. The result was nothing new for the Cardinals, who have now won six matchups by 38 points or more so far this season.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead St. Mary's to victory, but perhaps none more so than Ben Barlow, who picked up 164 receiving yards and four scores. Barlow showed off some serious burst, cutting upfield on a catch for 62 yards. Another rusher making a difference was Keigan Couch, who gained 90 total yards and two touchdowns.
St. Mary's was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 201 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 153 rushing yards in five consecutive games.
Another reason for the win was St. Mary's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for four sacks. John Mlnarik refused to say out of the backfield, picking up 1.5 sacks all by himself.
Meanwhile, Neligh-Oakdale came up short against Elgin/Pope John on Friday and fell 38-26. The contest marked the Warriors' lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.
St. Mary's will have to contain Corbin Hoefer as he made an impact in Neligh-Oakdale's last game. He picked up 175 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns, and also punched in one rushing score. Andrew Henery also helped out with an impressive 96 receiving yards.
St. Mary's pushed their record up to 7-0 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.5 points over those games. As for Neligh-Oakdale, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 6-1.
Everything came up roses for St. Mary's against Neligh-Oakdale in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, as the squad secured a 70-14 win. In that game, the Cardinals amassed a halftime lead of 50-0, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Thursday.
