By STUART GROSKREUTZ
October 13, 2011

With the always hectic homecoming week behind them, the Stillwater Ponies are gearing up for the busy stretch run while traveling to Roseville for Friday's Suburban East Conference football game. The Ponies (4-2 SEC, 4-2), who knocked off East Ridge 33-6 in Week 6, could play up to four games over the next 16 days if they advance to the section semifinals. The Raiders (2-4, 2-4) fell to Woodbury 37-24 on Friday and are hoping to snap a three-game losing streak. This series is tied 15-15-1 dating back to 1954, but the Ponies have won each of the last three, including a 34-7 win a year ago.

The high-powered Raiders rank second in the conference with more than 357 yards per game and no team has gained more first downs (101), but they have also committed a league-high 375 yards in penalties. On defense, Roseville is giving up an average of 315 yards per contest - including 6.4 yards per rushing attempt.

"Roseville is wide open and explosive on offense," Ponies coach Beau LaBore said. "Anytime you have an explosive offense you can find a way to win any game. It will be key for us to make them have to go 8, 10 or 12 plays for points by taking away the big plays."

Quarterback Jacques Perra leads the conference with 1,167 passing yards while completing 82 of 167 attempts (49.1 percent) for 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions. One of the top athletes in the conference, Emeche Wells leads the Raiders with 28 receptions for 446 yards (15.9 avg.) and seven touchdowns - most among all receivers in the SEC. Wells, who has also carried 45 times for 321 yards (7.1 avg.) and three touchdowns, leads the conference in scoring with 60 points and is also tied for the league lead with three interceptions on defense. Matthew Peckham has gained 304 yards on 63 carries (4.8 avg.) with one touchdown. Additional receiving threats for Roseville include Jordan Skinner with 15 catches for 225 yards (15.0 avg.) and one touchdown and Zach Moriarty with 12 receptions for 197 yards (16.4 avg.) and three touchdowns. The Raiders feature the conference's top punter as Jordan Burich is averaging 35.9 yards per kick.

"Wells is one of the top offensive players in the conference," LaBore said. "Roseville goes as he goes. It will be a good challenge for our players to limit his impact. He is going to get his hands on the ball in a number of different ways, but we just need to make sure we tackle and make them line up again."

The Ponies are averaging 301.7 yards per game, which ranks sixth among conference teams. The rushing attack has accounted for 1,234 of Stillwater's 1,810 total yards, led by do-everything junior Nate Ricci with 449 yards on 73 attempts (6.2 avg.) with four touchdowns. Ricci has also caught five passes for 102 yards and completed 27 of 52 throws for 364 yards and five touchdowns with two interceptions. When Ricci is not behind center, Aaron Romportl has thrown for 212 yards while completing 10 of 31 passes. Nick Anderson ranks third in the conference with 533 rushing yards on 120 carries (4.4 avg.) with five touchdowns. Charlie Register is another versatile performer for the Ponies and on offense leads the team with nine catches for 164 yards (18.2 avg.) and three touchdowns. Joshua Weess has eight catches for 127 yards (15.9 avg.).

"We just need to take another step this week," LaBore said. "If we block and tackle and take care of the football we can be successful."