Browns Defense Dominant in Victory over Lords

www.krammag.com
Jonas Emilsson

The 2009 season is only two games old, but it’s evident once again that the St. Francis Browns’ senior boys football team is yet again set on making a run at another city title.

We’ll spare the perennial contented write-up that’s seems to be rehashed every season when the topic of conversation swings in the direction of what teams are frontrunners to reach the city final in early Novembers. We’ve been there and done that.

If they aren’t considered contenders then that will be considered news. But for now, things are pretty much status quo.

Which leads us to this weeks’ Kram Game of the Week that featured the Browns taking on the Lord Beaverbrook Lords at the Grey Cup-ready McMahon Stadium on Wednesday evening.

Trying to avoid having their record dip to 0-2, the Lords brought plenty of spark and passion for the first quarter and a half, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

Unfortunately for the Lords, the Browns’ defense was game as well, leaving the two teams to slug it our for field position until somebody eventually managed a way to break the stalemate.

That break came at the 4:14 mark of the second quarter, when Browns’ quarterback Jamie Baldauf made a brilliant play while under pressure on a third-down gamble.

From the Lords’ 40-yard line, Baldauf broke free from some pressure and found Ricci Lau open ten yards down field. Lau made a few slick moves before exploding down the sideline and into the end zone for the game’s first major.

The sudden score could have deflated the Lords’ defense, but instead they kept on scrapping, and when Andrew Bennie picked off a pass with less then a minute left in the half to give his team a decent shot at scoring a much-needed TD, it appeared as if the game was heading for a sew-saw battle all the way to the finish.

But the Browns’ defense came up with two massive stops in the redone, and the defensive stance was capped off by a missed field goal to preserve an 10-0 halftime lead.

“We have that kind of team this year where we’re just going to have to get basic and try to run the ball, and out kids picked it up in the second half,” said Browns’ head coach Darren Dudar. “Our defense played well and that’s going to be key for us this year.”

The back-and-forth play continued as the clock ticked down on the third quarter, but for those watching the game closely it became apparent that the Browns’ offense was starting to find its groove.

Late in the quarter the Browns found themselves in a first and goal situation, which lead to touchdown by tail back Daniel Hickaway.

But the play was wiped out due to an offside penalty which brought the Browns back to the eight-yard line. That play was followed up by another penalty that pushed the Browns back to the 13-yard line.

The Browns, however, made good on their next play, when Baldauf finally scored on a determined quarterback sneak that saw him barely squeeze into the corner of the end zone.

That lead was more than enough points that the Browns needed. Hickaway added some bonus points late in the fourth quarter on a short run and kicker Stew Maier converted on his second field goal of the game to wrap up the Browns’ 27-0 victory.

“It was a tough game at the start and our offense was struggling with penalties but in the end we picked it up and played our game and got the points that we needed,” said Hickaway after the game.

Next week the Browns take on the Henry Wise Wood Warriors in a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which was won by Wise Wood on their way to capturing the city championship. The Lords will take on the St. Mary’s Saints.

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