Quantcast
skip navigation

Offense subdued but SMB and stingy defense powers past Mound Westonka

By MATT STEICHEN, Special to the Star Tribune, 10/11/19, 9:45PM CDT

Share

Second-half touchdowns by Jalen Suggs and Sanjay Redd carried the Wolfpack, which had been averaging more than 40 points per game, to a 20-3 victory.

SMB sophomore running back Sanjay Redd (17) ran past Mound Westonka defender Noah Lietzau (28) for a fourth-quarter gain in the Wolfpack's 20-3 victory. Redd ran for two touchdowns in the game. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

SMB sophomore running back Sanjay Redd (17) ran past Mound Westonka defender Noah Lietzau (28) for a fourth-quarter gain in the Wolfpack's 20-3 victory. Redd ran for two touchdowns in the game. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

SMB coach Chris Goodwin pointed through the falling snow at the home scoreboard as he addressed his team Friday.

“That’s the kind of score we wanted to play to tonight,” he said.

The score was 20-3, another victory for the Class 4A top-ranked and unbeaten Wolfpack over visiting Mound Westonka at The Blake School in Hopkins.

Playing with the lead, and in worsening weather conditions, the high-scoring defending 4A champs were happy to play conservatively and rely on their defense while finishing off their 20th straight victory.

“We had to grind it out. [Former college] coach [Glen] Mason always used to say you never win a game in the elements, you only lose a game in the elements,” Goodwin said. “The team with the least amount of mistakes is going to win, so we had to take our stars out of [the game plan] a little bit, but our running backs came through for us.”

Sophomore running back Sanjay Redd opened the scoring for SMB, a co-op program of students from St. Paul Academy, Minnehaha Academy and Blake, with an 8-yard touchdown run on the final play of the first quarter. He added a 3-yard score in the fourth.

Senior Jalen Suggs intercepted two passes and added a 1-yard touchdown run, his 19th of the season, that put the Wolfpack up 13-3 in the third quarter.

The SMB defense took care of the rest. The unit has allowed just six touchdowns in seven games.


Tommy Stolpestad

“We fed off the elements — the adversity and the cold. We rallied around that stuff and played with everything we had,” SMB senior linebacker Tommy Stolpestad said.

 

SMB quarterback Jalen Suggs put a stiff-arm on Mound Westonka linebacker Dillon Somnis (52) and turned the corner for a first-half gain. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

SMB quarterback Jalen Suggs put a stiff-arm on Mound Westonka linebacker Dillon Somnis (52) and turned the corner for a first-half gain. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

SMB linebacker Tommy Stolpestad (10) celebrated a tackle for a loss after dropping Mound Westonka receiver Logan Leonard in the second quarter. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

SMB linebacker Tommy Stolpestad (10) celebrated a tackle for a loss after dropping Mound Westonka receiver Logan Leonard in the second quarter. Photo by Mark Hvidsten, SportsEngine

First report

SMB’s explosive offense never needed to fully ignite Friday against Mound Westonka.

The Wolfpack, which had averaged over 41 points per game before Friday, relied on their defense in a 20-3 victory at The Blake School in Hopkins. The defending 4A champs have allowed just six touchdowns during their 7-0 start.   

Football Hub Headlines