Two teams with one win apiece entered Friday's Great Polar Red Conference game between Carlton and Onamia. When the final horn sounded, it was the Bulldogs taking a 35-0 victory over Onamia behind the three touchdown passes of Josh Ermatinger.
"They placed eight guys on the line of scrimmage and forced us to throw the ball," recalled Carlton coach Dave Battaglia. "Josh [Ermatinger] had a great game throwing and went 5-for-11 for 167 yards and three touchdowns."
The scoring started in the first quarter when Ermatinger hooked up with Jamie Godbout for a 42-yard touchdown strike and after Ermatinger booted the extra point, the Dogs were up 7-0.
Carlton struck again in the second quarter when Jake Rychlak scored on a 40-yard dash and then Ermatinger hooked up with Travis Gran for the two-point conversion to make the score 15-0. The Bulldogs added another score in the second when Ermatinger connected with Andrew Buller for a 48-yard touchdown pass to give Carlton a 21-0 lead at halftime.
"It was a good win for us," mentioned Battaglia. "Onamia has struggled, but they are a physical team."
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Carlton's Mike Saunders added a 62-yard touchdown catch from Ermatinger in the third quarter and then Rychlak bolted in for the final touchdown on a 4-yard touchdown run. Ermatinger kicked the extra point on both scores to make the final 35-0.
"A number of our players came up with big plays and that has been missing in our other games," explained Battaglia. "We're going to need players to make big plays if we want to advance in the playoffs."
Defensively, the Bulldogs had a solid game from start to finish against Onamia as they handled a team which featured a 270-pound running back and a 220-pound fullback.
Seeding for the section will be held later this week once games for MEA week have been completed.
