Coming off its biggest victory of the season, St. Mary’s was primed for an upset Saturday afternoon at Archbishop Curley. The Saints did not have a letdown and their pursuit of perfection remains intact.

No. 8 St. Mary’s spoiled the Friars’ Homecoming with a 22-3 MIAA B Conference decision in Baltimore City. Pat Cary rushed for 118 yards and a touchdown for St. Mary’s, and senior quarterback Carson Petitbon threw for a score and passed for another.

The Saints found their bearings after a slow start, improving to 8-0 overall and 5-0 in MIAA B play. St. Mary’s gained sole possession of first and the inside track to No. 1 seed for the upcoming playoffs with a 21-14 victory over defending league champ Concordia Prep at Pascal Field in Annapolis last Friday.

“We were really concerned…we tried this week to keep the kids focused as much as possible,” said Saints coach Jason Budroni. “The seniors on this team want to win, the boys believe they’re going to win.”

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“Our team refuses to lose,” said Cary. “We’ve been down at halftime in three separate games and came back and won.”

The Saints trailed 3-0 before scoring 16 second quarter points to gain control. Petitbon got into the end zone from a yard, capping a 12-play, 56-yard drive.

Junior free safety Israel Crockett put the drive in motion, stripping the ball from Curley running back Caron Madison and falling on it. It was the first of three turnovers by the Saints’ defense Saturday.

“We’re not the biggest, strongest or fastest, what separates us from other defenses is hard work,” said Crockett, whose unit shutdown a potent Concordia Prep offense over the final 24 minutes last week.

After turning Curley over on downs, St. Mary’s advanced the lead to 13-3 as Cary broke free for a 41-yard touchdown off a counter play to the right. Palmer Austin recovered a Friar fumble on the next play from scrimmage, and Andrew Marshall converted a 26-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter.

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Crockett had a 13-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, following Cole Meushaw’s recovery off of Teddy Androus’ sack and forced fumble. Dylan Carl and John Ferrer recorded sacks for the Saints.

Budroni said Curley’s Veer offense was a big challenge.

“We don’t see it every week…it takes a little while to catch on,” said Budroni. “I don’t think we made any real adjustments, we just settled down and reacted to the ball.”

Curley (4-3, 3-2 MIAA B) rushed for 182 yards as Madison finished with 100 yards on 19 carries. The Friars covered 43 yards in their first possession, resulting in Chris Pond’s 43-yard field goal.

Curley advanced the ball from its six-yard line to midfield on its next drive, but Madison was stripped by Crockett. In the second quarter, the Friars punted after missing an open receiver on third down.

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Two plays later, Cary sprinted to the end zone for a touchdown. The Friars mishandled the exchange on their next play from scrimmage and St. Mary’s recovered, and converted the turnover into a field goal.

Curley again moved the ball to open the second half, but Pond’s 41-yard field goal attempt sailed left.

“For us to get over the hump we got to play a clean football game and be disciplined,” said Friars coach Brendan Ireton. “They’ve (St. Mary’s) won some pretty good games because they stayed together and didn’t make mistakes…I thought we moved the ball well and had a good game plan, it was just mistakes.”

Israel Crockett (left), Nick Golini and Pat Cary each big days for St. Mary's, which clinched the No. 1 seed for the MIAA B playoffs with Saturday's road win.

Budroni lamented his team’s penalties (eight for 62 yards) Saturday. It’s been a major blemish for the Saints, who are enjoying their best start in more than two decades.

“When bad things happen, we do a good job of keeping our head up and moving on to the next play, that’s what has been keeping us going,” said Budroni. “We’ll see how long that lasts.”

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NO. 7 ST. MARY’S 22, ARCHBISHOP CURLEY 3

St. Mary’s 0 16 0 6 - 22

Curley 3 0 0 0 - 3

First quarter

Curley - Chris Pond 43 field goal

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Second quarter

St. Mary’s - Carson Petitbon 1 run (Andrew Marshall kick)

St. Mary’s - Patrick Cary 41 run (kick failed)

St. Mary’s - Marshall 26 field goal

Fourth quarter

St. Mary’s - Israel Crockett 13 pass from Petitbon (kick blocked)