St. Catherine's football advances thanks to offensive barrage, shutout

It was yet another big play for the junior receiver-defensive back for the St. Catherine's High School football team on Friday night. The Angels (11-0) moved to within two victories of a trip to Camp Randall Stadium after they defeated Delevan-Darien 54-0 in a WIAA Division 4 second-round game at Horlick Field.

Next up for St. Catherine's is a rematch against Lake Mills (10-1), which eliminated St. Catherine's 13-12 last season in a first-round game at Horlick Field. Lake Mills advanced with a 49-12 victory over Evansville.

This much is certain: If Hamilton approaches his performance Friday night, St. Catherine's is going to give Lake Mills all it can handle. In the most productive night of his career, Hamilton caught five passes for 158 yards and four touchdowns.

Hooking up with quarterback Eddie Vinson Jr., Hamilton caught scoring passes of 6 yards in the first quarter and 29, 49 and 61 in the second. Hamilton has been invited by Minnesota to attend its game against Penn State on Nov. 23 and his performance on Friday night was another validation of why he has earned that attention.

"I've been playing with Lamont since I was young and he has always been able to make those plays," said St. Catherine's center Xzavier Grabher, an Army recruit. "It's in his blood. It's in his character to be able to make those plays.

"You don't see that a lot. That's why he's getting recruited at the highest level."

As impressive as Hamilton was on offense, it was his blitz that most caught the attention of St. Catherine's coach Dan Miller. He forced a fumble by Arizola, setting up Vinson's 29-yard touchdown pass to Antoine Ozier that extended St. Catherine's lead to 48-0 in the third quarter.

"He was looking right at the receiver and made it look like he was playing 'man,' " Miller said. "The way he was just slick and sly and got off the line of scrimmage that quick and that fast, he understands the game.

"I think everyone sees after today just what a great football player he is."

For Hamilton, who now has 25 receptions for 585 yards and 12 touchdowns, it was a night to remember.

"Everybody played hard and we played for our brothers," he said. "We're trying to get a gold ball, so every day, we just cherish it and try to get better."

Hamilton singled out Vinson, who completed nine of 11 passes for 218 yards and five touchdowns.

"That's my boy," he said. "We've known each other since we were little when we played on the same basketball team. We just carried it onto the field."

Also leading the Angels' high-powered offense was Imarion Holder, who overcame an injury earlier this season to rush for 134 yards and a touchdown on eight carries on Friday night.

Meanwhile, St. Catherine's defense was daunting against a Delavan-Darien team that improved from 2-7 to 7-3 under first-year coach Mark Kibler this season.  The Angels held the Comets to 19 rushing yards on 23 attempts, intercepted two passes (by Ja'Nyus Lockridge and Jayden Phillips) and recovered all four fumbles it forced.

St. Catherine's has allowed just 45 points and shut out four opponents this season.

Time will tell if St. Catherine's can match the WIAA Division 4 championship it won under Miller in 2018. But things are surely looking promising.

"We know they're a tough team," St. Catherine's left offensive tackle Mason Swencki said of Lake Mills. "They're in a tough conference (the Capitol Conference). Last year, we got sent home by them, but some of our guys were hurt, including me.

"We're coming back this year."