How many points did Saginaw Boswell score in big win against Mansfield Lake Ridge?

MANSFIELD – Saginaw Boswell turned to its running game to bulldoze over Mansfield Lake Ridge.

After being up three points at halftime, the Pioneers ran for three touchdowns in the third quarter and pulled away for a 66-41 win on Thursday night at Vernon Newsom Stadium.

Boswell quarterback Tye Renfro put an exclamation point on third-quarter, scoring with a 19-yard touchdown run on fourth down that ended with him lowering his shoulder and knocking a Lake Ridge defender to his back to pave the way.

Renfro had four total touchdowns in the win. While that didn’t quite match his Week 1 showing with six combined scores in a 55-30 win against Saginaw, it was good enough to put up a road win.

“The offense is clicking and it is running really, really smooth,” Renfro said. “The game is won in the trenches and our offensive line came out firing and their d-line wasn’t ready for it. A great running game is the key to an offense. We knew we could gash them up the middle; we had to wear them down with short throws and spread the defense out.”

The effort for the Pioneers (2-0) was one the program hasn’t seen in a while. The victory marked the first time Boswell had scored 50 or more in back-to-back games since doing so in Week seven and eight in 2017. That team — which won its first 9 — scored 70 vs. Justin Northwest and 55 vs. Saginaw.

A strong finish

Boswell led 31-28 at halftime and got the ball to open the second half. The Pioneers immediately drove down the field behind back-to-back 17-yard runs by Colin Dixon, and he capped the drive with a 26-yard score.

After the Pioneer defense forced a turnover on downs near midfield, Dixon took the first play around the left side of the line for a 55-yard score. Dixon ran for 170 yards on 18 carries for Boswell.

Momentum stayed in Boswell’s favor when Jaedon Langley blocked a 30-yard field attempt and the Pioneers regained possession. That was followed by Renfro’s second rushing score — which also drew a 15-yard penalty for taunting on the signal caller.

As a sophomore, Renfro broke a bone in his neck that ended his season. He said that injury crossed his mind for a second as he was deciding to either run out of bounds or go for the score.

“In the moment everything goes blank and you just want to run through them,” he said. “I was looking out of bounds and in my head, I thought it is mano a mano, I thought put my shoulder down and go get that touchdown.”

The 6-foot senior had the Pioneers’ first touchdown in the first quarter on a 3-yard keeper that gave the team a 9-7 lead. That drive was set up when Boswell got two points on a safety when a Lake Ridge punt attempt went awry, and the snap sailed out of the end zone.

Renfro was 15-for-23 passing for 275 yards while adding another 40 on the ground. He threw most of his completions to Kairel Robertson, who hauled in 8 catches for 200 yards — including a 93-yard score on a bubble screen midway through the first quarter. That was part of a 16-0 surge by the Pioneers that helped them overcome an early 7-0 deficit and they never trailed again.

Robertson caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Renfro and then the wide receiver took a lateral and threw for a 57-yard touchdown to Ty Dauer with 1:48 left in the second quarter.

The Pioneers were also opportunistic in the win by taking advantage of Lake Ridge’s miscues. The safety was followed by a touchdown. An interception by J.J. Grant was followed by the 93-yard touchdown pass.

A fumble turned into Robertson’s touchdown pass and late in the game. Renfro’s second rushing touchdown came after the block field goal and Christian Lassister recovered a fumble in the end zone after a fumbled punt return in the fourth quarter.

“Through two weeks, we have done a good job of taking advantage of turnovers,” Boswell coach Wes Weaver said. “The defense is playing at a high level. They are seeing a lot of possession and they are seeing a lot of plays and they are getting their share of turnovers. We will fix the things that need to be fixed. I’m proud of the offense. I’m proud of the offense. I’m proud of the special teams.”

Lake Ridge (0-2) stayed in the game thanks to big plays from quarterback Kennen Miller and wide receiver Reign Broadway.

Miller ran for a pair of touchdowns in the first half and threw for a 6-yard score to Taj Walker with 11 seconds left in the second quarter. Broadway returned a kickoff 82 yards for a score with 46 seconds left in the first quarter and caught a 21-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Miller ran for 165 and threw for 190 for the Eagles.