Raiders blanked by Saints
charlie roth/Staff Photo Lourdes Regional's Zach Chesney hurdles a Mount Zion Baptist player while returning a kickoff during Friday night's non-league game at Leo A. Mulhall Stadium.
COAL TOWNSHIP - Corey Houser's debut as the head football coach at Lourdes could have gone better.
That's an understatement.
Baltimore's Mount Zion Baptist, like Lourdes, brought only an 18-man roster to the Raiders' Leo A. Mulhall Stadium for Saturday night's season opener. The similarities, however, ended there.
With speed to burn, and plenty of size, the Saints were simply too much for the undermanned Red Raiders.
They rode the strong arm, seemingly motorized legs and uncanny escapability of junior quarterback Quincy Lewis for a 38-0 victory in the non-league encounter.
Lewis - in the first half alone - completed three of four passes, all for touchdowns, and
rushed nine times for 100 yards. His scoring strikes covered 52 and 12 yards, both to Maurice Liscomb, and 53 yards to the appropriatly named Malcolm Gas.
"Really, I can sum it up in three words," Houser said. "Bigger. Faster. Stronger.
"And that's what happened tonight."
The Red Raiders had their moments.
They forced some fumbles, and, at least in the first half, made some quality defensive stops.
But the speed, unlike anything they're likely to see the remainder of the season, was too much to overcome. And, as Lourdes injuries began to mount, it became even more difficult.
The three passing touchdowns staked the Saints to an 18-0 lead.
In the second half, Gas added another score on an 89-yard sprint, and Liscomb and Rod Green returned fumbles 8 and 91 yards, respectively, for two more touchdowns.
"You can't teach speed," Houser said.
Mount Zion finished the night with 457 yards of total offense, while limiting the Red Raiders to only 27.
Lourdes was hampered by injuries as well, losing several starters during the game, including veteran senior lineman Marty Williams and junior quarterback Zach Chesney.
Houser said both, as well as several others who were nicked up, will likely be able to return for next Friday's game against Sayre.
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