Wheaton Academy goes to the air to beat St. Edward

The Wheaton Academy aerial attack was the difference maker in the Warriors 38-6 home victory over St. Edward on Friday night.

Wheaton Academy quarterback Ben Thorson found receiver Noah Jones for a pair of first-quarter touchdowns to put his team ahead early and the Warriors would never look back.

"On film we saw that they had some wide safeties. So we knew we wanted to attack the middle of the field," Thorson said.

Thorson found Jones open when the Warriors called for him to run inside posts routes to the middle third of the field.

"They came out, we saw it, and ran the play," Thorson said. "Noah ran a great route, the O-line held their blocks, and it was right there."

Thorson ended the night 8-for-11 passing, with 132-yards and 4 touchdowns through the air. He also added 11 yards and a score on the ground.

The game was interrupted midway through the second quarter by a weather delay the lasted over an hour and forced the teams back inside their locker rooms.

Despite that break Noah Jones thought the Warriors did a good job of keeping their focus while they waited and said that his teammates, "listened to music and took the pads off" during the break.

That approach seemed to pay off for Jones. He ended the night with 4 catches, 58-yards, and his pair of scores.

Warriors running back Cristian Carstens supported the Wheaton Academy offense with 116 yards on 14 carries.

"(Carstens) opens up so much for the passing game," Thorson said. "Because if we do any play action, every defense is gonna see him run and they're gonna be scared he will break one."

With the win the Warriors avenged their 28-27 loss to St. Edward from last season and climbed to a 2-0 record to begin this one.

They stay home next week when they face off against IC Catholic Prep in a game that is sure to have Metro Suburban Conference implications.

"We're ready to beat IC," Thorson said.

Kickoff for that game will be at 7:15 p.m.