Spencer running back Alex Rosado gets pushed in the back by Emmetsburg's Langston Jones while trying to haul in a Craig Cunningham pass Friday, Aug. 29, 2008, at Dale Norton Field. The E-Hawks pushed the Tigers around offensively and defensively en route to a 36-0 blowout win. (Photos by Michael Fischer)

Sports Editor

There was no victory bell ringing in Spencer Friday. In fact, there wasn't a whole lot of noise coming from the Tiger sideline at all.

Emmetsburg scored four touchdowns in the first half, quickly turning on the cruise control, and Spencer stayed in neutral for 48 minutes as the E-Hawks rolled up 363 yards of total offense and snapped a two-game losing streak to the Tigers with a 36-0 drubbing at Dale Norton Field.

"We just have to flush this one. We played poorly in every aspect," said Spencer head coach Jim Tighe.

"I know we're a much better team than this, but for whatever reason, we played very, very poorly. That falls back on me," Tighe added. "I did not have these guys ready to play. We were not ready to play on special teams, on offense or on defense."

Emmetsburg running back Langston Jones turned the first-half into a personal highlight reel, rolling up 154 yards and three touchdowns on 12 carries in the first 24 minutes.

"We just did not tackle well. It did seem a lot like Heelan from a year ago," Tighe said, referring to Spencer's 2007 home loss to Sioux City Heelan when Crusaders' running back Brandon Wegher rushed for 271 yards on 24 carries.

Jones put the E-Hawks up 7-0 with 2:33 left in the first quarter on a 45-yard run -- his second longest rushing touchdown of the night.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound junior broke off a 50-yard touchdown less than two minutes into the second quarter, weaving in-and-out of the Tiger defense and breaking through arm tackle after arm tackle.

Spencer's Jake Baxter (No. 14), Tyler Kacmarynski (No. 72) and Taylor Allen bring down Emmetsburg's Bobby Mortensen Friday, Aug. 29, 2008, at Dale Norton Field in Spencer.

The score capped off a 2-play drive, putting the E-Hawks up 21-0. Sandwiched in between Jones' two scoring runs, Trevor Dettman returned a punt 65 yards for Emmetsburg's second touchdown of the night.

"They're a very good team, so I give them a lot of credit. They beat us physically on both sides of the line. They out-hit us and played faster," Tighe commented.

Jones capped off his first half with 1:43 left, scoring from 10 yards out and giving Emmetsburg a 27-0 halftime lead. The scoring drive covered 51 yards in six plays and chewed up 2:40.

The E-Hawks set up the score on a 51-yard pass from Tyler Kliegl to Dettman on third-and-20 from their own 39.

Spencer went on to hold Emmetsburg to 100 fewer yards in the first half, but the Tigers managed just six rushing yards over the final two quarters.

"It wasn't even a case where we were getting the car started. We were getting hit in the backfield," Tighe said. "We had leaks coming from the backside and the play side."

The E-Hawks scored their fifth and final touchdown with 5:07 left in the third quarter when fullback Taylor Morris rumbled 16 yards to pay dirt. Following the 6-play, 51-yard drive and a Kliegl extra point, the E-Hawks led 34-0.

The Tigers added insult to injury to their night with just over six minutes left in the fourth quarter, fumbling an option into the end zone for a safety. The two points gave Emmetsburg a 36-0 lead and kept the clock moving for the remainder of opening week.

"We'll bounce back. They're a very good team ... we'll get better," Tighe stated. "I've got to take a look at the film to know for sure, but we had a lot of leaks in the line."

Emmetsburg totaled 292 yards rushing and 71 through the air. Jones rolled up 162 yards on 14 carries; Morris added 60 yards on 11 carries and Tommy Kuecker gained 37 yards on six carries. Kliegl was 2-for-3 passing.

Spencer managed just 97 yards of total offense, 40 coming on the ground. Skylaur Konrady carried 12 times for 31 yards, Sam Brockshus had 16 yards on four carries. Craig Cunningham was 2-for-7 passing for 57 yards in his first start at quarterback. Kyle Fitch caught both passes.

Sean Elliott led Spencer with 7.5 tackles, Brad Murphy made 5.5 stops, 2.5 for loss. Jake Baxter added 4.5 tackles, Tyler Kacmarynski had four; Tyler Kramer and Jordan Rasmussen each had 3.5.

Emmetsburg had three turnovers the Tigers had none. Brockshus, Kacmarynski and Murphy each recovered a fumble.

Spencer (0-1) will look to even its district record next Friday in a road contest against Cherokee while Emmetsburg (1-0) hosts Northwood-Kensett.