Jamari Smith's four touchdowns lead Fletcher over Sandalwood

Fletcher running back Jamari Smith wasn't tired when he was stopped for a 1-yard loss midway through the fourth quarter Friday, even though it was his 24th carry against a Sandalwood defense clearly keying on him.

He was just getting warmed up.

Smith then scored three touchdowns in a span of less than five minutes on runs of 72, 36 and 24 yards to blow the game open as the Senators won 42-14 in the District 1-8A opener for both teams at Jack Taylor Stadium.

Box score: Fletcher 42, Sandalwood 14

Smith had already put in a workhorse effort for Fletcher (3-1), which led Sandalwood (3-1) by 14 and had the ball with seven minutes remaining.

After losing that 1 yard, Smith swept left and outraced the Sandalwood defense for what appeared to be the clinching touchdown in one of the area's most contentious rivalries. But the Saints still had some life as quarterback Parker Boehme - who transferred from Fletcher before last season - passed and ran for a combined 57 yards on a drive that ended with Tyrell Washington's 6-yard TD with 4:40 left.

Photo Gallery: Fletcher vs. Sandalwood: Were you spotted?

Two plays after an unsuccessful onside kick, Smith swept left again for a touchdown. Fletcher's Tevin McCray intercepted Boehme on the next drive and two plays later it was Smith again, racing to the end zone with 1:43 remaining and a packed Fletcher half of the stands in delirium.

Smith's final tally was 29 carries, 250 yards, four touchdowns for the slender, but speedy junior.

The Fletcher defense did its part by forcing five turnovers.

"We never thought the game would get out of hand like that," Smith said. "They're our rivals and it's usually close. All I can say is that my line opened the holes for me and the plays were there."

"You always go into a game like this expecting it to be close," said Fletcher coach Josh Corey. "And it was, for the most part."

Fletcher broke Sandalwood's two-game winning streak in the rivalry.

"We shot ourselves in the foot too many times," Sandalwood coach Adam Geis said. "Our defense played well for most of the game but the fumbles, dropped passes, penalties, not converting fourth-downs ... it snowballed on us."

Corey said he wasn't taking anything for granted.

"That game was a lot closer than the final score," he said. "The difference was the pressure our defense put on Parker and our offensive line. They were firing out in the last few minutes like we were losing by 14 points instead of the other way around. They took everything on their shoulders."

Garry Smits: (904) 359-4362