The Paul VI Panthers will head out to take on the St. Albans Bulldogs at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
It was a proper cat-fight when Paul VI challenged Collegiate on Friday. The Panthers came out on top against the Cougars by a score of 29-21. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Panthers.
The critical scores for Paul VI came from Hudson Akin, Aiden Gallagher, Keyon Johnson, and Cooper Colcombe.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Paul VI proved: they limited Collegiate to a paltry 1.4 yards per carry. The team can thank Miles Sanderson for the heroic effort on defense: he. Paul VI didn't have any issues in that department, having averaged 5.9.
Miles Sanderson
| 09/26/25 vs Collegiate | 13 |
| 09/19/25 @ Saint John Paul the Great Catholic | 5 |
| 09/12/25 vs St. Michael the Archangel | 10 |
| 09/05/25 vs Saint James | 9 |
| 11/22/24 @ St. Mary's Ryken | 23 |
| 11/15/24 vs Archbishop Carroll | 20 |
Paul VI's defense didn't let Sam Settar, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for four sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Sanderson and Gallagher, who racked up all four sacks between them. Sanderson has been hot, having also posted five or more total tackles the last six times he's played.
Meanwhile, St. Albans faced McKinley Tech in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Bulldogs blew past the Trainers, posting a 42-0 win. Considering the Bulldogs have won three matchups by more than 41 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Paul VI better focus on containing Brett Paukstis and Will Martin as the pair were huge in St. Albans' win. Paukstis threw for 201 yards and three touchdowns while completing 77.8% of his passes, while Martin rushed for 67 yards and a pair of scores on only seven carries.
St. Albans didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Trey Sheridan and Edward Samuel, Iii.
Paul VI's record now sits at 3-1. As for St. Albans, their record is now 4-0.
Saturday's contest might be decided on the ground. Paul VI has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 268 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like St. Albans struggles in that department as they've been averaging 152.8 rushing yards. There's a good chance Saturday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Paul VI was able to grind out a solid victory over St. Albans in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, winning 21-14. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Panthers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
