REMSEN — Had you told St. Edmond head football coach Matt Dillon that this was how Friday evening’s road game at Remsen St. Mary’s would end, he would have never believed you.

Leading 36-0 at the half against the defending eight-player state champions on their home field, the contest was called due to safety concerns for the players still competing for the Hawks against the Gaels (2-1 overall, 2-0 in the district).

Remsen St. Mary’s (0-3, 0-1) entered the night with just 13 healthy players. Three were sent to the sidelines before the first half ended, leaving head coach Tim Ostermann to make a safety decision for the four-time state champs.

“Never in my coaching career have I experienced something like this,” Dillon said. “I have the utmost respect for Coach Ostermann and consider him a friend. I feel for what he is going through and dealing with, but he had to do what was right for his team.

“We were going to play our junior varsity in the second half, but when (Ostermann) went back to tell his kids, a couple said they couldn’t go (due to injuries). I would have loved to have given our kids time out there to compete.”

Aaron Hindt recorded three total touchdowns and had 88 yards of offense on four touches for the Gaels. Ethan Swisher was 7-for-9 passing for 201 yards and three TDs, hitting Hindt twice and Jakob Koopman for another score.

Swisher added 40 yards rushing and the first touchdown of the game.

Koopman, who tore his knee ligaments here as a freshman, caught five passes for 139 yards and the score.

“Our offense did what they needed to do,” Dillon said. “We wanted to work on our passing ahead of next week and I thought we gained a lof of confidence.”

The Gael defense allowed just 77 yards of total offense. Hindt picked off a pass.

“It’s just painful and hurts my stomach seeing a program have to deal with this,” Dillon said. “They had such an incredible run and they did it with the same kind of students they have right now. It really is pretty crazy what they were able to accomplish.”

Remsen St. Mary’s had not lost a regular season game since 2018 before this season, when they fell to Newell-Fonda. They were 2-0 against the Gaels all-time heading into this meet,

St. Edmond will now set its sights on a return home where they will host Bishop Garrigan Friday night inside Dodger Stadium.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing — St. Edmond: Ethan Swisher 8-40, Aaron Hindt 2-26, Kinnick Henning 5-14. Remsen St. Mary’s: Dalton Klein 13-39, Dayton Kneip 4-7.

Passing — St. Edmond: Ethan Swisher 7-9-0-201. Remsen St. Mary’s: Dalton Klein 4-14-1-31.

Receiving — St. Edmond: Jakob Koopman 5-139, Aaron Hindt 2-62. Remsen St. Mary’s: Dayton Kneip 2-19, Beau Johnson 2-12.