St. Pius Edges Out St. Vincent In Nail-Biter On J98

(Perryville) The St. Pius Lancers edged out the St. Vincent Indians in a back-and-forth battle on J-98. St. Vincent received the opening kickoff but couldn’t move the ball and were forced to punt after three plays.

St. Pius took advantage of that field position.

A failed two-point conversion left the Lancers with a six-point lead. St. Vincent responded on their next drive with a 60-yard run by junior Mason Light that setup a scoring chance.

St. Pius countered on the following drive with the legs of senior quarterback Collin Smith.

Smith connected with junior Austin McGuckin on the two-point conversion to go up seven. The next two drives resulted in punts for both teams, but St. Vincent would tie things up before the half.

A defensive holding penalty was called on that touchdown that Lancers head coach Dan Oliver was not happy about. The frustration continued into St. Pius’ next drive and, after a difference of opinion, Oliver was thrown out of the game before halftime. St. Pius received the second half kickoff and deliberately drove down the field.

Another two-point conversion attempt was no good for St. Pius. The Lancers took care of their six-point lead until late in the fourth quarter when Collin Smith fumbled a handoff that was recovered by St. Vincent. That’s when things got interesting.

A goal-line stand by St. Pius led the Indians to a fourth-and-goal from the five yard line with two minutes left in the game.

St. Pius would run out the clock and capture at least a share of the I-55 Conference title. Collin Smith was named our Applebee’s of Farmington Player of the Game after rushing for over 100 yards and a touchdown.

Here’s what Oliver had to say about that second-quarter exchange with the officials.

St. Pius improves to 6-1 and will face Bayless next Friday. St. Vincent drops to 4-3 and will matchup with Grandview next week.

Interview with St. Pius Head Coach Dan Oliver:

St. Pius Senior Quarterback Collin Smith:

St. Vincent Head Coach Tim Schumer:

Full Game Audio:

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