The Helias Crusaders figured they would have to play close to a perfect game to win Saturday night.
"We were nowhere near that," Helias coach Chris Hentges said after the Crusaders dropped a 48-14 decision to the Cardinal Ritter Lions in a Homecoming contest at Ray Hentges Stadium.
"When you play a football team with that much athleticism, the margin for error is very small. And when there's a lot of errors, you get a blowout like this."
Helias finished with eight turnovers in the game.
"You won't beat the Little Sisters of the Poor when you turn it over eight times," Hentges said.
The Crusaders threw five interceptions and lost three fumbles.
"We moved the ball, we had some successful drives," Hentges said. "We just couldn't score because we were making bad decisions with the football and we have to get better there.
"That's on us as coaches. We have to make sure we take better care of the ball, not throw it into bad places."
Helias took the lead midway through the first quarter. An interception by Griffin Buschjost, one of two he had in the game, halted Cardinal Ritter's first drive and gave Helias the ball at midfield.
Six plays later, Helias quarterback Jacob Weaver connected with Jake Warren for a 31-yard touchdown. Vito Calvaruso added the PAT and the Crusaders led the Lions 7-0.
Cardinal Ritter tied it on the next possession on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Mekhi Hagens to Luther Burden III. Burden booted the PAT and the game was knotted at 7 with 5:02 left in the first quarter.
The game turned in the final five minutes of the first half. Three of Helias' interceptions came on in a span of five plays late in the second quarter that played a big role in the final outcome.
After a 43-yard punt by Calvaruso, Cardinal Ritter took over at its own 30. Five plays later, the Lions were in the end zone on a 15-yard run by Artrell Miller. The PAT kick failed and it was 13-7 with 4:54 remaining before halftime.
Helias threw an interception on its next play and Cardinal Ritter took over at the Crusader 24. Two plays later, Hagens scored on a 5-yard run, then threw a 2-point conversion pass to make it 21-7 with 4:18 on the clock.
The Crusaders then ran it for two plays before throwing another interception that Nyjahl Vaughn returned 20 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-7 as the Lions scored 21 points in just :47 of game time.
After two running plays, Helias threw the third interception as Cardinal Ritter took over near midfield. Four plays later, Hagens hooked up with TJ Atkins for a 20-yard touchdown and the PAT made it 35-7 with 1:33 left in the half.
Helias fumbled the ball on its next play from scrimmage and Cardinal Ritter recovered. Two plays later, Hagens found Burden for a 43-yard touchdown with :58.4 remaining before halftime. The PAT kick failed and it was 41-7.
The Lions totaled 34 points in the final 4:54 of the half.
"There's nothing you can do other than come out and try to play a better second half," Hentges said. "The effort was there, that I'm proud of.
"The execution wasn't there, it wasn't all night."
Cardinal Ritter brought the mercy clock into play midway through the third quarter when Amaryrious Edwards recovered a Hagens fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. Burden's PAT made it 48-7.
Helias got its other touchdown with 8:55 left in the game on a 17-yard run by Ryan Klahr.
"I like what Ryan did, he showed a little explosiveness," Hentges said.
Klahr finished with seven carries for 39 yards after starting running back/cornerback Alex Clement left with a shoulder injury just prior to Cardinal Ritter's scoring barrage in the second quarter. Clement had his arm in a sling in the second half.
"You can see how that impacted the team, that's not an excuse, but it was a turning point in the game," Hentges said.
Helias also lost starting linebacker and leading tackler Garrett Schnieders to a leg injury in the second quarter. He did not return to the game.
"It hurts our depth, we just don't have a lot right now," Hentges said.
Cardinal Ritter, ranked No. 1 in Class 2 and No. 4 by MaxPreps among small schools in the country, is now 4-0.
Helias (3-1), ranked No. 10 in Class 4, will play Friday at Borgia in Washington.