CARROLL – The Carroll Tigers played their final regular season home game on Friday night, a night in which they celebrated the seniors and all that they have brought to the program over the past four years. They celebrated accordingly, beating the Perry Bluejays by a score of 48-7 to improve to an impressive 7-1 on the season.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Tigers got the ball back at their own 25-yard-line. Lincoln Burke started the drive off by taking a handoff for a 21-yard gain. Malik did his best to match Burke’s run, as two plays later he rushed for his own gain of 21 yards, getting Carroll across midfield and into Bluejays’ territory. It was then the Tiger passing attack’s turn to heat up, as Camden King connected with Schable for a completion of 20 yards and then a completion of 15 yards, getting the Tigers to the one-yard-line. Then, offensive lineman Brody Daniel lined up as a fullback, where he received a handoff and punched in a one-yard touchdown.

The Tiger defense once again forced a three-and-out on the ensuing drive, with Cayden Lueders putting the exclamation point on the stand with a third-and-eight sack. The offense regained possession with another chance to do damage, and they did just that. After Schable drew a 15-yard pass interference penalty, Burke and Malik followed with back-to-back 10-yard rushes, with Malik finding the end zone to extend Carroll’s first-quarter lead to 21-0. The Tiger defense had just enough time to get another stop before the quarter ended, and this time it was Burke with a third-down sack to end the Bluejays’ possession. That wasn’t all Burke had in store, however, as he started the second quarter off by returning the punt 46 yards, putting Carroll right back in scoring position. They took advantage of the opportunity, as King connected with Brekken Moore for an 11-yard touchdown reception.

Yet another turnover-on-downs was forced by the Carroll defense, and Malik ended the half with fireworks, as he juked multiple defenders and broke multiple tackles on his way to a 67-yard rushing touchdown. The touchdown was Malik’s third of the half and gave Carroll a dominant 42-0 lead heading into halftime.

Freshman running back Brock Landon scored the Tigers’ lone second-half touchdown on a 13-yard rush. The Bluejays got on the board late in the third quarter when Michael Bahtagic took a screen pass for a 70-yard touchdown, but that would be the extent of the game’s scoring, as the Tigers would cruise to a 48-7 victory—their sixth in a row.

“We had a focused week. Our guys are focused on the mission at hand, which coming into tonight was to win two more games and be district champions. We did our job tonight, and now we have a chance next week down in Atlantic to complete the mission. I’m proud of the team, especially our seniors with it being senior night. They stepped up to take care of business and led the way,” Coach Craig Rowedder said about the Tigers’ performance.

Carroll will conclude their regular season on Friday at Atlantic, taking on the No. 9 Trojans. Kickoff is at 7:00 p.m.