JEFFERSON, Ga. — It wasn't pretty, but Jefferson will take it.
The Dragons (2-1) committed nine penalties for 94 yards and fumbled three snaps but still managed to shut out St. Pius X, 23-0, Friday night at Jefferson's Memorial Stadium.
Jefferson had a shot to jump up 10-0 in the first quarter when senior quarterback Max Aldridge found Sammy Brown lurking down the home sideline on a 32-yard strike to the 10-yard line of St. Pius X (1-2). But on the next play; the Dragons were tagged with a chop block, which pushed them back to the 25-yard line on a first and goal situation. The Dragons eventually turned the ball over on downs.
It wasn't all bad, though.
The Dragons' defense held the Golden Lions' triple-option offense to just 34 total yards. St. Pius X attempted seven passes, completing one. Bowman Horn gave the Dragons a spark in the second half when he returned an interception for 50-plus yards. The pick set up the Dragons' second touchdown of the game late in the third quarter.
Speaking of offense, the Dragons finished the night with 187 total yards of offense and overcame the penalties and mistakes. Junior running back Sammy Brown was a big part of that, rushing 19 times for 108 yards and a touchdown.
Aldridge also made some big plays, including a 54-yard run to convert a third down to the St. Pius X 22-yard line. The run set up the Dragons' first touchdown of the night late in the second quarter, with Aldridge again working his magic on a beautiful 22-yard pass to the back corner of the endzone to Elijah Dewitt with 30 seconds left in the half and a 10-0 lead.
Aldridge was 4-for-10 with 79 yards and a touchdown.
Jefferson didn't score again until the aforementioned Horn interception that gave Aldridge and the offense great field position at the Golden Lions' 17-yard line. After that, Aldridge let Brown rush in for his lone score on a counter trap rush to the right side for the 9-yard touchdown run and a 16-0 lead with 10:29 to go in the fourth quarter.
Later in the quarter, Demarion Davis, who had runs of 33 and five before rumbling 20 yards for the Dragons' final score of the game with 2:33 to go.
The Dragons will travel to Oconee County next week looking for their third win in a row.
