By Stephen D. Riley
AFRO Staff Writer
The DeMatha Stags beat the St. Johns Cadets with a 37-7 win on Saturday. (Courtesy Photo)
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(October 18, 2009) - With a power running game and stout defense, the top-ranked DeMatha Stags are built for poor weather conditions, proving that fact with 37-7 win over the fourth-ranked St. John’s Cadets on Oct. 17.
DeMatha rolled to the easy road win without star tailback Marcus Coker, who limped to the sidelines in the second quarter with a pulled groin. With DeMatha up 20-0 at the half in rainy and sloppy conditions, Coker would sit out the rest of the game as his DeMatha teammates held St. John’s to one touchdown, scored with 10 seconds left.
Senior running backs Michael Meriwether and Patrick Harbeson picked up the slack in Coker’s absence. Harbeson rushed for 83 yards while Meriwether added 51 yards, and the two backups would combine for three touchdowns. Harbeson’s 28-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was the longest offensive play of the day for DeMatha, who improved their record to 7-0.
While Harbeson produced the longest offensive play, it was a DeMatha defender who would post the biggest play of the game. Kyrrel Latimer, who has committed to play at the University of Virginia, exploded for a 65-yard punt return late in the second quarter to give his team a commanding lead before halftime. It was Latimer’s first touchdown of the season.
Coker’s injury put an end to his consecutive touchdown streak. Coker had scored at least one touchdown in each of DeMatha’s first six games going into Saturday’s contest and currently leads D.C. schools with 17 touchdowns, as well as in yards from scrimmage and points scored.
The District’s scoring leader is expected to be available for DeMatha’s Oct. 24 game against O’Connell.
The St. John’s faithful couldn’t have been too shocked with the game’s outcome. DeMatha has now outscored St. John’s 224-50 over the past six seasons, an average score per game of 37-8. Saturday’s game was the fifth consecutive meeting in which St. John’s has scored seven points or less against the Stags.
St. John’s dropped to 4-2 on the season and will take on the eighth-ranked Good Counsel Falcons Oct. 24 in Olney, Md. The Falcons narrowly lost to DeMatha, 24-21, on October 9th.