There was no way a broken thumb, or a lack of experience, was going to keep Benilde-St. Margaret’s senior Cole Jacob from postseason success.

“We came all this way,” said Jacob, who was motivated by his bond with the seven other seniors on the Red Knights' roster. “We’ve got to stick together and we’ve got to fight for each other.”

Jacob did his part Tuesday night as No. 3 seed Benilde-St. Margaret's defeated No. 2 seed Holy Angels 42-21. He caught three passes for 96 yards and touchdown, ran for a 20-yard TD and notched an interception. 

The offensive outburst was a bit of a redemption for Jacob, who totaled just one touchdown during the regular season thanks to a broken thumb that hampered his playing time. 

“He had a couple of weeks where he couldn’t play too much on offense,” Red Knights co-head coach Pat Krieger said. 

That time out was tough to swallow, Jacob said. 

“I was just dying to produce more,” he added. 

Jacob wasn’t the Red Knights' only productive player Tuesday night, as sophomore receiver Ikenna Ujuagu ran for two touchdowns and junior running back Ricky Floyd rushed for 193 yards and two fourth-quarter TDs. 

Floyd’s first touchdown may have been the most important score of the game as it stole momentum back from the Stars, who broke out in an impassioned celebration after Tommy Kraus returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown and cut Benilde-St. Margaret's lead to 28-21.

Stars senior Danny Hoffman finished with 100 receiving yards and a touchdown, helping keep the game close until Floyd’s highlight-reel touchdown. 

“Ricky’s a game-changer,” Krieger said. “He gets a little crack (in the line of scrimmage) and he’s a threat to break it.”

Jacob said Floyd’s first touchdown was instrumental in winning the game. 

“My man Ricky Floyd saved us on the first play on offense with the touchdown,” Jacob said with a smile. 

Floyd’s performance increases his season rushing total to 1,576 yards, which is the second-best single-season rushing total in a Red Knights' history. Floyd just surpassed Nate Barry's record of 1,562 yards set in 2014 and trails Shane Fox, who finished with 1,643 yards in 2003.

Junior running back Ricky Floyd ran for 186 yards and two touchdowns as No. 3-seeded Benilde-St. Margaret’s defeated No. 2 seed Holy Angels 42-21 the Class 4A, Section 5 semifinals on Tuesday night at the Academy of Holy Angels.

Senior wide receiver Cole Jacob ran for a TD and caught another while sophomore wide receiver Ikenna Ujuagu finished with two rushing touchdowns for the Red Knights (4-5), who host Richfield in the section championship game on Oct. 24.

Floyd ran for touchdowns of 50 and 31 yards. His first score came just after Stars senior quarterback Tommy Kraus returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown that trimmed the Benilde-St. Margaret's lead to 28-21 in the fourth quarter. 

Sophomore halfback Jack Anderson ran for a touchdown and senior receiver Danny Hoffman caught a TD for the Stars (6-3). 

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