The Saint Louis varsity football team traveled to Nevada in late August to challenge Liberty and Desert Pines football teams to showcase their skills.

In their first game, they faced off against Liberty who gave them one of their biggest challenges thus far in the season. “It’s important to get in as [many] games as possible, no matter what,” said Director of Athletics Gerald Welch, “so our kids can [have] good opportunities and experience.”  Saint Louis played Liberty hoping to gain some experience against more challenging competitors. “Liberty has always been…one of the top teams in Vegas the last several years.”

The heat took a big toll on the Crusader players and the coaches, impacting the team’s performance in the game.

However, the heat was not the only challenge that they faced. Liberty posed a huge challenge for the Crusaders. “With Liberty,  they had a big physical offensive line, a quarterback that could run [and] a running back that could run,” explained Welch.  “That one wide receiver #7, that kid made the big plays”.The Crusaders came up short in their first game against Liberty, with a score of 34-30. 

In the second game, the Crusaders came back with a vengeance, earning a win against Desert Pines with a score of 35-30 over the Jaguars.

“I thought as a team, we made progress in the belief that they can win”,” notes Welch.” “They” bounced back,  they played better on offense, a little better on defense….they made a lot of progress as a group”.”

The Crusaders returned home with a record of 1-1, and hungrier for more action on the field. They look forward to continuing their season and possibly entering the state championship once again. 

The experience provided an opportunity for the team to fine-tune before the start of the season.  Senior Crusader running back Avery Morano believes a rematch would have had a different outcome. Said that, “I would (rematch) cause I feel like we could’ve beat them…. We just kept on making stupid mistakes on both sides of the ball.”