HOHENFELS, Germany – The Hohenfels Tigers rumbled, smashed and scorched through an overmatched Alconbury team on their way to a 43-0 victory Saturday.

The Tigers, just one week removed from being on the receiving end of a mercy rule loss to Bitburg, turned it around in spectacular fashion against the visiting Dragons.

New head coach Phil Rigdon, got to see the best and worst the team he inherited from coach Larry Daffin had to offer in back-to-back games. This week’s performance, he said, was a bit more promising.

“It makes me feel they believe … that as long as they’re a team, they can accomplish anything,” Rigdon said.

Tony Saintmelus lead the charge with an offense-defining two touchdowns and 170 yards on the ground. He was also instrumental on special teams, racking up more than 100 yards on returns, including a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown midway through the first quarter.

Trey Briscoe rushed for 44 yards and two touchdowns. One of Hohenfels’ newer weapons also came unsheathed during the game, as Jordan Kelly rumbled for a 65 yards and a touchdown that came off a blistering 60-yard run right down the middle.

The Tigers’ performance Saturday was much more reminiscent of the team that placed second last year in DODDS-Europe Division II and won the title the year before. Hohenfels’ defense was straight up oppressive, forcing two turnovers and keeping the Dragons from even sniffing the end zone.

“From last weekend, we came a long way,” Saintmelus said. “We worked hard in practice, conditioned well and just kept pushing. We just had faith.”

Alconbury left the field downtrodden, as would be expected from such a devastating loss. But the team had some bright spots to focus on as the Dragons prepare for defending champion Ansbach at home.

Adarius Gallon had 15 carries for 87 yards and Fritz Sherenco had three catches for 30 yards. Sherenco was also the Dragons’ spearhead on defense, racking up six tackles and a forced fumble.

With a little better blocking, the Dragons’ offense could be something scary with Gallon carrying the ball. He said the defeat stung, but his team is ready to start preparing for the next game.

“I know this happens every now and then,” he said. “At the end of the day, we can all get it back. Everyone has the work ethic, we got the skills, we got the core. It’s just a matter of we got to put it all together. We got to want it.”

That hunger was on the Tigers’ side Saturday. Part of that, the players said, was the need to prove to themselves and their new coach that last week’s loss was an aberration.

“It was a rude awakening,” Briscoe said. “So now we came out showing that we were ready and ready to go on to the next team and show them what we got.”

darnell.michael@stripes.com

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