When a team allows as many points, zero, as it commits penalties, and also zero, that’s probably a pretty positive indicator.

Four touchdown drives in the first half and three touchdown drives in the second half, plus a score on special teams was plenty of offense to get the running clock going as the host St. Vincent Indians varsity football team coasted to a 53-0 shutout over St. Genevieve.

“We wanted to see a complete game,” St. Vincent head coach Tim Schumer said. “That was a complete game. We challenged to do that, and it was a fun feeling,”

Schumer had a short message to his squad after the home win.

“That’s what four quarters of Indians’ football looks like,” Schumer said.

St. Vincent piled up 215 yards of offense in the opening half - 171 passing and 44 rushing - on their way to a 25-0 advantage after two quarters. St. Genevieve collected just 109 yards in the first half - 76 yards through the air and 33 yards on the ground.

Indians’ senior quarterback Nick Buchheit finished the contest with 215 passing yards, completing 10-of-14 pass attempts. The majority of the passing yards, 171 of them, occurred in the first half.

The only positive for the Dragons offense much of the evening not having any turnovers in the form of fumbles or interceptions. The visitors had turnovers on downs and punted seven times. The only mishap on special teams for the Dragons was getting a late punt blocked deep in their own zone. St. Vincent freshman Jack Emmendorfer recovered the ball in the end zone for the Indians’ final score, with 3:33 remaining in the contest.

Early success on the ground provided opportunities to complete passes downfield, Schumer noted.

“We were able to stay ahead of the stick and keep it rolling,” Schumer said. “We were able to do some things on the ground game that really opened some things up for us in the passing game.”

Despite the 25-0 edge at halftime, Schumer still wanted to see his squad focused on playing to the end.

“I was never comfortable,” he said. “St. Gen’s a very storied program. I knew they weren’t just going to lay down, so I challenged the guys, “Don’t get complacent, we’ve got to come up and finish what we started.’”

After an initial three-and-out on its opening possession, the host Indians put together touchdown drives on its next four possessions.

Junior Wyatt Winkler began the scoring with an 8-yard touchdown run with 6:23 left in the first quarter. Winkler added the extra point for a 7-0 lead. Following a 12-play, 33-yard drive by Ste. Genevieve stalled on a quarterback sack from Winkler, the Indians started on their own 46 and needed nine plays to get back into the end zone again. This time it was a 1-yard scoring run from senior Cruz Reitzel on first-and-go after an 11-yard scamper from sophomore Quinton Doza put St. Vincent inside the Dragons’ 1. That drive was kept alive by a 17-yard catch by senior Jacob Seabaugh on third-and-2 on the final play of the first quarter. Another three-and-out from Ste. Genevieve and a 30-yard punt gave St. Vincent field position on its own 43. Buchheit connected with Max Wheeler for a 32-yard reception to begin the drive, then following a couple of carries from Winkler, faked a handoff and took it himself for a 9-yard TD. The extra point was wide left that time, leaving St. Vincent ahead 19-0 with 7:55 to go in the half.

St. Genevieve couldn’t move the ball on its next possession, eventually putting on fourth-and-11 on its own 19. The Indians responded with a 60-yard, seven-play touchdown drive. Buchheit found senior Jacob Seabaugh for a 17-yard scoring strike on a second-and-10 play. The point-after was unsuccessful, as a bad snap prompted Buchheit to scramble. He ran toward the left sideline but got tackled before he could attempt a pass.

The Dragons possessed the ball for nine plays, gaining 34 yards before turning it over on downs in the final minute of the first half. St. Vincent was content to just get it to halftime, gaining two on a rushing attempt and letting the clock run out after an offside calling on the Dragons, who committed eight penalties for 65 yards in the first half.

Following an early punt by the Dragons in the third quarter, the Indians began on their own 35. That possession ended up as a turnover on downs, but a quarterback sack from Jack Seabaugh quickly forced another St. Genevieve punt. This time, the Indians took advantage, getting a 42-yard touchdown reception from Wheeler. A successful PAT made it 32-0. Later, a 10-yard rushing TD from Reitzel capped a four-play, 58-yard drive and made it 39-0. Reitzel provided a 36-yard rush to set up first-and-goal. He scored two plays later.

Junior Derek Garza’s 54-yard TD on the fourth play of the Indians’ next possession pushed the lead to 46-0.

Overall, Ste. Genevieve committed 11 penalties for 83 yards. A couple of defensive pass interference calls provided the Indians with improved field position deep inside Dragon territory, leading to TDs.