Shiner St. Paul's Austin Barton avoids the defense of Hallettsville Sacred Heart's Reagan Hicks. [ NOTE: click on photo to enlarge ]

all photos by Bonnie Arbittier for The Victoria Advocate

SHINER - Shiner St. Paul quarterback Austin Barton wanted to make a statement against rival Hallettsville Sacred Heart.

He did just that Friday night after leading his team with 226 rushing yards and two touchdowns in St. Paul's 42-21 win.

The win gave the Cardinals (6-3, 4-1) a tie for second place with the Indians in the TAPPS Division III, District 5 standings. First place Geneva School of Boerne (6-1, 3-0) will play San Marcos Academy at 1 p.m. Saturday.

"In this game, we showed a lot of heart," Barton said. "We knew coming in that it was going to be a tough game, and we knew that they (Sacred Heart) weren't going to give up. We had to come in and play our football and get the job done."

The Cardinals' defense came out strong, forcing two turnovers on downs in the first four minutes of play. With 8:16 left in the first quarter, junior running back Conor Kresta ran 67 yards for the first score of the game.

"It felt good to come out and score on a great defense," Kresta said. "We knew coming into this that it was going to be a tough one. To see Austin, succeed like he has and watching him work hard, it means a lot to the whole team."

Kresta and Barton combined for 346 yards rushing to lead the offense.

"Our team battled as a team," said St. Paul head coach Jake Wachsmuth. "We have 32 kids and it's a team effort. I'm very proud of the team."

Sacred Heart quarterback Braden Popp used a strong first half to help the Indians (5-4, 4-1) battle back, despite trailing 14-0 in the second quarter. With 4:36 left the first half, Popp connected with Brock Sitka for eight yards to put the Indians on the board.

Popp completed nine passes for 137 yards.

"I thought we showed a lot of character in the beginning," said Sacred Heart head coach Pat Henke. "I think Braden played his best game of the season. He made some great passes, and he's a competitor. Our offense did a great job trailing by those two touchdowns, but St. Paul is a good football team and we have to give credit to them."

Senior tight end Brett Rother had five catches for 75 yards. His third catch with 2:37 left in the third quarter help tie the game at 21 after Popp scored on a two-point conversion.

"At that point, I thought we were going to win the ballgame," Henke said. "Our kids came back, and our character showed. We took advantage of turnovers."

The Cardinals used a 21-point fourth quarter to pull away.

After Barton scored his second touchdown on a 75-yard run, the Cardinals assured their victory.

"We started off good," Wachsmuth said. "It was a fun atmosphere. Both schools are great with a lot of good people and we each wanted to win."

The Indians will host Geneva School of Boerne next Saturday. The Cardinals have a bye.

"We have to forget this one," Henke said. "If we beat Geneva, we have a chance to finish as tri- district champs. That's gong to be our mindset with next week being our last game of the regular season. We want to finish out the season with a good win."

"We have to keep focused," Barton added. "We have to keep getting better so we can get into the playoffs and keep rolling."