By ANGIE DIERINGER
The Evening Leader

LIMA -- The St. Marys Roughriders went into Friday's game with Shawnee looing to gain some confidence and get back on track. They did that and more as they pounded the Indians, 49-0, and pulled even at 1-1 in the Western Buckeye League. The Riders now stand at 2-1 overall while Shawnee is 0-3, 0-2 in the loop.

"Our kids really improved this week and we wanted to get that bad taste out of our mouths from last week's ball game," said Rider coach Doug Frye. "I think we did that tonight. I was real proud of our kids, the way they bounced back in practice and the way they came out to play tonight. I think that is a tribute to the character of ur kids and I think that is a tribute to our assistant coaches. They did an excellent job with them."

Both teams exchanged possessions to begin the game, but on the Riders' second possession, they took charge and never looked back.

Starting on their own 40-yard-line, St. Marys used a 22-yard gainer by Josh Lamb and a 30-yard gainer by Brandon Meyer to set up meyer's two-yard TD strike. Kurt Kill added the point after and the Riders led 7-0 with 7:06 left in the first.

It looked as if the Indians were going to drive to tie the game when they picked off a John Meinerding pass at the St. Marys 32 but strong defense forced a Shawnee fumble on fourth-and-five from the 27. Rider defensive standout Brian Christopher scooped up the ball and rambled 66 yards for the score to give St. Marys a two touchdown advantage before the end of the first quarter.

But the Riders did the most damage in the second quarter, posting 28 points to take a 42-0 lead at the half.

With 11:37 left in the first half, Bob Huttis scored on a 22-yard run but the point after was no good, giving St. Marys a 20-0 lead.

The Rider defense came up big on the next Shawnee possession as Christopher tackled Shawnee QB Nate Sodders for a 14-yard loss and Joe Bills recovered an Indians' fumble to give St. Marys the ball at the Shawnee 13.

Four plays later, Lamb did the honors, scoring from four yards out. Meinerding hooked up with Huttis on the two-point conversion pass to give St. Marys a 28-0 lead.

Terry Halko's interception of a Sodder pass set up the Riders' fifth score of the night. halko picked off the errant pass at the Shawnee 26 and ran it back to the 13. Four plays later, Lamb scored his second TD of the second quarter to give the Riders a 35-0 advantage.

St. Marys put the cap on the first half with 59 seconds to go as Meinerding nailed Jason Homan with a 19-yard touchdown pass.

Frye got his starters some much needed game experience in the third quarter before making mass substitutions in the fourth. Aaron Seewer had a big fumble recovery and sack for the Riders in the third while Luke Turpin added a big sack. The Riders ended the third quarter by stopping the Indians at their own 34 and took over on downs.

Meyer added the Riders' final score of the night, a three-yard run, with 8:02 left in the game. Kill added his fifth extra point of the night to account for the 49-0 final.

"We had to play those kids a little bit in the third quarter," Frye said of the starters. "We need to build some mental discipline right now among our kids and we need game experience. We just aren't real experienced right now and the more seasoned we become, the better we're going to be. That's a big factor. We need to learn to discipline ourselves and come out of the lockerroom and play."

The Rider defense held the Indians to just four first downs and 36 yards of total offense. They forced three fumbles and recovered all three. They also picked off one Sodder pass.

"I thought our defense really played with intensity tonight," said Frye. "Those kids had a point to prove. The credit goes to those kids. They played hard and they played with intensity.

"We put a lot of pressure on them and challenged them this week," he added. "Those kids really responded. I don't want to take a thing awa from Dick West. Dick has done an excellent job with this Shawnee program. He's got young kids and he's struggling a little bit right now. But Dick's an excellent football coach and I'm sure it will come around for him."

St. marys tallied 347 yards of offense on the night with 307 coming on the ground.

Meyer was the team's leading rusher with 14 carries for 97 yards. Stewart Lengerich carried the ball nine times for 61 yards while Lamb was 10 for 58. Huttis had 45 yards on eight carries while Ken Williams tallied 20 yards in six carries. Andy Slone gained 19 yards on two carries while Joey Ball and Mark Howe each picked up four yards.

"It's nice to get the kids in and get them some playing time," said Frye. "They work hard in practice and that was gratifying to be able to get those kids in."

The Riders will be back home on Friday when they host the Kenton Wildcats in the annual Homecoming contest. Kenton clobbered Wapakoneta Friday, 46-7.

Thanks, Angie, for many years' of great coverage of many memorable Roughrider games. Good Luck to you in all things, from all your friends and fans.