Cedar Grove's 34-0 win over Columbia on Sept. 23 at Avondale Stadium was a lesson in efficiency.

The Saints needed only seven plays and a total of 2:32 to score their first three touchdowns on the way to a 26-0 halftime lead. Quarterback Jonathan McCrary also made the most of a handful of pass attempts. In the first half McCrary completed 5 of 7 passes for 221 yards and three touchdowns. He finished the night completing 8 of 10 attempts for 302 yards. He also ran for a score.

McCrary passed to Xavier Cooper for touchdowns of 65 and 83 yards. He also threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Bryson Allen-Williams. McCrary closed out the scoring on a quarterback sneak on the Saints' first possession of the third quarter.

The Saints showed they are not a one-dimensional team as Marlon Corley rushed for 104 yards, including a 57-yard touchdown, in the first half. The Saints finished with 176 yards rushing.  

Operating for most of the game out of a spread offense, Cedar Grove utilized the wishbone on its final drive of the first half--a 97-yard masterpiece that took 4:16 and 11 plays. McMcary completed the only two pass attempts on the drive, including the 20-yarder to Allen-Williams for a score.

The lopsided win further establishes the Saints as the front-runers in Region 5-AAA, Division B. Cedar Grove, 3-2, 2-0 in 5-AAA) also beat Stone Mountain last week. Columbia drops to 2-3 and 1-1.

Columbia, did have several chances to get on the scoreboard but failed to convert. The Eagles turned the ball over on downs twice inside the Saints' 25-yard-line in the first half and fumbled the ball away at the 3. They also turned the ball over on downs inside the 30 in the third quarter.

Kenno Loyal, last year's leading rusher in the county, tried to keep the Eagles in the game in the first half with 93 yards. But the senior was held to 37 yards in the second half.