vs
| 09/26/25 - Away | 78-35 W |
| 09/27/24 - Home | 68-70 L |
| 10/06/23 - Away | 6-64 L |
| 10/06/22 - Home | 30-36 L |
St. Mary extended their winning streak to five on Friday, bumping them up to 5-0. They really took it to the Ainsworth Bulldogs for the full four quarters, racking up a 78-35 win. Considering the Cardinals have won four contests by more than 37 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Gage Hedstrom continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, throwing for 319 yards and seven TDs while picking up 13.3 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 64 yards and one score on only eight carries. Those seven passing touchdowns gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Ben Barlow, who picked up 126 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
St. Mary's didn't let much get past them through the air: they limited Ainsworth to a completion percentage of just 47.1%. The team can thank Hedstrom for the heroic effort on defense: he. St. Mary's hasn't an opponent to post a completion percentage of 0.6 or higher in four consecutive matchups.
St. Mary's defensive line didn't let the opposing QB, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for three sacks. Dalton Herley refused to say out of the backfield, picking up 1.5 sacks all by himself. Hedstrom got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
As for Ainsworth, they are on a six-game losing streak (dating back to last season) that has dropped them down to 0-5. While losing is never fun, they can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska football rankings (they are ranked 110th, while St. Mary's is ranked third).
When it comes to explaining why Ainsworth lost, don't look at Chris Fernandez. Despite the final result, he rushed for 112 yards and one TD on only 15 carries, and also threw for 35 yards and one touchdown.
Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. St. Mary's will host Elgin/Pope John at 2:30 p.m. on Friday. The Cardinals will need to watch out since the Wolfpack have now posted at least 31 points in their last three games. As for Ainsworth, they will welcome North Central at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The Bulldogs will be up against the Knights' rather soft defense (which has allowed 59.6 points per contest), so fans could be in store for a big offensive performance.
