St. Luke’s wins defensive battle with Portsmouth Abbey (RI)

NEW CANAAN — In a football game in which neither offense was able to reach the end zone, it was only fitting that a standout defensive play provided the key moment.

Austin Anderson intercepted a pass and returned it 21 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, helping St. Luke’s overcome Portsmouth Abbey (R.I.) 9-0 in the Storm’s homecoming game Saturday in New Canaan.

The defenses of both teams gave stellar performances, but it was the Storm coming away with the clean sheet and the victory.

“We’ve gotten better and better on defense,” Anderson, a co-captain, said. “Our D-line played amazing today — they were getting penetration all over the place, our linebackers made tons of tackles, and there was good coverage all around. We played as a tight-knit unit today and that’s been going on since the preseason.”

St Luke’s blocks a field goal attempt by Portsmouth Abbey, RI. #cthsfb pic.twitter.com/1zRWhRFsrZ

— Dave Stewart (@DStewartSports) October 13, 2019

The result put the Storm (4-1) back in the win column after a loss at Dexter Southfield (Mass.) last week. The Ravens (1-3) provided a bigger challenge than may have been anticipated, but St. Luke’s answered the bell.

“The defense played great; the offense didn’t play so well,” St. Luke’s coach Noel Thomas said. “It’s not what I thought was going to happen, but this game emulates life, so we’ll take the win, and make some adjustments moving forward.”

The Ravens’ performance was impressive, as their roster features just 25 players, including those who were out with injury. St. Luke’s was bigger in size and numbers, but Portsmouth was in it until the final minutes.

“I’m really proud with the way we played,” Portsmouth Abbey coach Elliott Moffie said. “We were clearly over-matched from a size perspective but I expect my kids to play hard every game and this was no different. They were really tough, but we had some chances. Overall, I’m really proud of my guys, as I have been all season.”

“My hat’s off to Portsmouth,” Thomas said. “This is the first time we’re playing them and those kids are iron men. That was a heckuva performance. I felt like we had an advantage but those kids were tough as nails.”

St. Luke’s had taken a 3-0 lead on Andrew Lau’s 32-yard field goal as time expired in the first half, but Anderson’s pick 6 gave the Storm some breathing room, even though the Ravens had blocked the extra point.

“The ball was kind of floating so I just went up and got it,” Anderson said. “I thought I might get tackled, but I broke the tackle over there and dove for the end zone. Sometimes when the offense can’t get it going, the defense has got to step up and that’s what we did today.”

“That was a shining spot in the game,” Thomas said. “Austin is an iron man in his own way — he goes both ways and he hardly comes off the field. He came up with a great play and we’re really happy about that.”

Anderson finished the game with 105 yards of offense, rushing for 85 and catching two passes from Lau for 20 yards.

St Luke’s stops Josh Plumb on 2nd and goal #cthsfb pic.twitter.com/dkJALZ8nks

— Dave Stewart (@DStewartSports) October 13, 2019

The Storm had a big day from many players on defense, including Tank Intieri, Jordan Robinson, Joey Alfson, Edward Boris and Dylan Johnson on the line, Koy Price and Michael Thompson at linebacker, and Anderson and corner Jeremy Reid in the secondary.

The Ravens’ defense, which featured strong play from safety Victor Otero and linebacker Steven Crabtree, along with solid performances on the line, did a good job slowing down the Storm’s attack.

“We just loaded the box up,” Moffie said. “We are a cover-3 team, which we did a lot of, but we put an extra safety in the box and I think that gave them some trouble. We were just preaching don’t give up the big play — make them earn every yard. They had some 11- or 12-yard chunks but we didn’t give up the big one and when you do that, it makes teams work for it.”

Portsmouth’s Josh Plumb was the workhorse of the offense, as he finished with 80 yards — 38 rushing and 42 receiving.

With the defenses playing so well, the punters got a lot of work. St. Luke’s Lau booted the ball away four times, gave it up on downs once, and turned it over three times. The Ravens punted five times, turned it over on downs four times, and turned it over once on Anderson’s interception.

The Ravens’ best first-half opportunity came in the second quarter after a turnover gave them the ball at St. Luke’s 31-yard line, but the Storm defense stopped them on four plays.

After St. Luke’s went up 9-0 in the third frame, Portsmouth moved the ball into field-goal range, but the attempt was blocked.

Finally, the Ravens had a first-and-goal at the Storm’s 3-yard line with less than two minutes remaining, St. Luke’s shut them down again, allowing just two yards on four rushes to end the game.

St Luke’s defense completes its shutout with a goal line stop on 4th down #cthsfb pic.twitter.com/IcSRDWp9Fg

— Dave Stewart (@DStewartSports) October 13, 2019

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Austin Anderson, St. Luke’s: The junior co-captain provided the game’s key moment when he intercepted a pass at the Ravens’ 16-yard line and returned it along the sideline for a touchdown in the third quarter. He also gave the Storm some offense with 80 yards rushing and a couple of receptions for 20 yards.

QUOTABLE

“We’re 4-1 and we’re really excited about that because we haven’t seen that in a while. But I want to do my best to make sure we don’t get satisfied or complacent. I love the Evergreen League. It’s a new journey almost every week and it’s fun. We’re having a blast and enjoying the ride.” — St. Luke’s coach Noel Thomas

ST. LUKE’S 9, PORTSMOUTH ABBEY (RI) 0

PORTSMOUTH 0 0 0 0 — 0

ST. LUKE’S 0 3 6 0 — 9

Second quarter

SL – Andrew Lau, 32-yard field goal, 0:00

Third quarter

SL – Austin Anderson, 21-yard interception return (kick blocked), 7:19

Records: Portsmouth Abbey (1-3); St. Luke’s (4-1)