By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher BUENA VISTA TWP. — St. Augustine Prep football coach Mark Reardon says the goal his team has each week is to physically wear out its opponent, to break the will of the other team. The Hermits couldn’t do that Friday night against a gritty Mainland Regional squad that was rested up after coming off a bye week, so they figured they might as well just let their talent take over. The Hermits took an early 13-0 lead after one quarter — and after waiting out a 67-minute rain and lightning delay — added touchdowns in the second and fourth quarters to cruise to a 27-3 win over Mainland and stay undefeated. “It definitely took the edge off, not knowing if we were going to get back on the field or not,” said Hermits offensive lineman Blaine Fox, a senior from Mullica Hill, about the hour-plus rain delay after the first quarter. “You’re legs get tired when you’re just sitting there. You just have to shake it off. We were pretty jacked up coming out of it, and we did our job.” Prep (5-0) came out on fire on their first drive, taking the ball inside the Mainland 10-yard line before a fumble recovery by Kolin Roberts stopped the drive. Mainland (2-2) was forced to punt, however, setting up great field position for the Hermits. A few plays later, quarterback Jose Tabora hooked up with Shamere Collins on an 11-yard touchdown pass that gave Prep a 6-0 lead. Collins made it 13-0 by returning a punt 43 yards for a score later in the quarter. Collins had an outstanding game, finishing with a touchdown catch, a punt return for a score and an interception. Ryan Swenson returns a kickoff during the first quarter against St. Augustine Prep. Ryan Swenson returns a kickoff during the first quarter against St. Augustine Prep. Mainland limited Tabora to just 58 yards passing, forcing the action inside, where the Hermits had to grind out yardage on the ground. Fox and Reardon both were impressed with a Mustangs defense that held its ground despite being pounded with 45 running plays. St. Augustine’s defense was just as stout against a team that was coming off a 33-point outburst against Ocean City two weeks ago, allowing just 53 rushing yards on 32 carries. “Their effort was all there and they did very well in the secondary,” Fox said of the Mustangs. “They put six in the box on pass plays, so it was tough for us, but we did our job and it’s on to the next one.” “The thing I like about us defensively is how physical we are. We can run, and yeah, we’re fast, but we are really physical and that takes its toll on people. Not tonight, because Mainland played tough, but that’s really what we want to be defensively. We want to be downhill and physical,” Reardon said. “Like I tell the kids all the time, we are looking to take our opponent’s will. Mainland wouldn’t let us do that tonight.” Reardon said he is trying to keep his team focused on the next game and not look ahead to possibly getting a home playoff game in a notoriously difficult South Jersey Non-Public A bracket. The Hermits still have to face Absegami, Egg Harbor Township and Vineland before the cutoff date. “It’s so hard because it’s the white elephant in the room, just sitting there. Mainland is a good football team, and we have to play Absegami, which is a good team that is going to play their butts off here next week. We could easily lose any of these games,” Reardon said. “Ultimately, hopefully getting a home playoff (is our goal). But we have three really good teams left to play. We need to play like we did tonight.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]