Football Friday: Ponies Go for Third Straight Win Over Cretin

It is hard to imagine how dominant the Cretin-Derham Hall football team has been since it joined the Suburban East Conference (SEC) in 2005.

In the regular season the Raiders currently hold a 43-3 record in SEC play, and add in the postseason, they are 45-4 against conference opponents since joining.

Two years ago, something happened that had not occurred in 30 SEC games for Cretin.

The Raiders lost.

The team they lost to was Stillwater, which prevailed in an epic 12-7 win at Pony Stadium in 2009.

“I wasn’t here for it, but I know that this team has the confidence to play well against this team,” Ponies Head Coach Beau LaBore said. “Two years in a row shows you that.”

Cretin was able to bounce back and win the rest of their games that season to take the Class 5A title against No. 1 Eden Prairie as its starting quarterback Mark Alt was back in the lineup after missing an extended period of time with a shoulder injury he suffered in a hockey game prior to the game against the Ponies.

Stillwater ended a four-year run of dominance for Cretin in the SEC.

On Oct. 7, 2005, Cretin lost its first SEC game to White Bear Lake 14-6. The next conference loss came on Oct. 9, 2009 to the Ponies.

“They have played really well since they joined this conference,” LaBore said. “One thing Stillwater can say is they have given them half of their losses.”

Last year, this time at the Raiders home field at University of St. Thomas, Stillwater did it again, knocking off the defending state champions for the second straight time in the regular season.

“They are definitely going to come in with a chip on their shoulder,” LaBore said.

Quarterback Adam Paulson was efficient through the air going for 163 yards on 15-22 passing. He had no touchdowns, but more importantly, he protected the ball well, not turning the ball over once.

His favorite target in that game, was a sophomore wide receiver name Nate Ricci.

Sound familiar?

It should, because he is the starting quarterback for the Ponies this season.

Ricci caught six passes for 80 yards a year ago and will more than likely have to be as effective as Paulson was a year ago and not give the conference’s best defense a chance to make game-changing plays.

“I know four of their touchdowns have come from blocked punt, punt return and turnovers,” LaBore said. “There offense might not be there, but they have cashed in on the short field and when you have to deal with a team that is as talented as Cretin is, you can’t give them that field position.”

If Ponies fans are wondering about a wide receiver shifting to the quarterback position, look no further than the 2009 season, when Miles Heller was the signal caller.

A year prior Heller was one of the best receivers, much like Ricci was last season.

In the eight games Heller played, he completed 60-percent of his passes, had nine touchdowns through the air, two on the ground and went for 1,465 yards passing.

In the game against Cretin, Heller went 7-13 with one touchdown pass and 127 yards.

To note, he broke his thumb late in the game, but still played.

Now Ricci, just a junior, is in what LaBore calls a leadership role for the first time in his football career.

He has proven he can tuck the ball and run, but he might have to be careful about the hits he does take.

Last week, Ricci rolled to his right and decided to run. He was tracked down, dragged down and did not get up as quickly as many expected.

Along with that, running back Nick Anderson has been hampered with a leg injury and did not play in the first half of last week’s game at White Bear Lake.

“Right now we are a little nicked up, but nothing major,” LaBore said. “All of our regular starters are ready to go.”

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Pony Stadium, the place where Stillwater ended a dominating streak by the Raiders.

With both teams being the only undefeated teams left in the SEC, only one will remain on top after Friday night’s affair.

“We had a great week of practice and our team is ready to play,” LaBore said. “We are going up against one of the best teams in the state and we need to be sharp from the start.”