The McDonogh football team knew it was going to have to lean on its defense a little more Friday against visiting Calvert Hall.

That side of the ball certainly responded for the Eagles, who also got a lift from junior kicker Aidan Zoeller.

The No. 3 Eagles forced four turnovers in the first half and Zoeller accounted for the game’s first nine points with three second-quarter field goals, paving the way for a comfortable 37-17 win over the No. 6 Cardinals in Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference play.

Quarterback Braeden Palazzo threw two touchdown passes and running back Mason Graham ran for two scores as McDonogh (7-1) strengthened its hold on second place with a 4-1 conference mark. Calvert Hall (4-3) is now 1-2 in the conference.

Big plays on defense came from a handful of Eagles. Linebacker Kamden Laudenslager recovered a fumble and defensive back Carlos Ferguson recorded an interception in the first quarter. Then lineman Joseph Buchanan had a sack and fumble recovery before defensive back Brandon Finney captured the Eagles’ second pick of the half.

With Calvert Hall’s defense also proving formidable, the Eagles only mustered a 9-0 lead before Finney’s interception gave the McDonogh the ball on the Cardinals’ 40-yard line with 1:21 to play in the half. It took six plays and 53 seconds for the Eagles to finally find the end zone, with Palazzo finding Finney for an 18-yard touchdown pass for a 16-0 halftime lead.

“You have to give credit to Calvert Hall’s defense … Our guys knew this was going to be a challenge. And we challenged our defense to get some stops and make plays,” McDonogh coach Hakeem Sule said. “We preached pursuit throughout the week and getting to the ball, and we knew there would be some opportunities and our guys were able to make some plays.”

With the lead at 16-3 midway through the third quarter, the Eagles’ offense took advantage of a Cardinals defense that spent a lot of time on the field in the first half. An eight-play, 80-yard drive featured a 16-yard pass from Palazzo to Jeff Exinor Jr. and a 35-yard scamper by Graham before Palazzo found Nick Abrams from 5 yards out to make it 23-3.

Down 30-3 in the fourth quarter, the Cardinals rallied, getting an electric 93-yard kickoff return from Chris Hewitt Jr. to provide a spark. After lineman Emile Dore stripped Palazzo in the backfield and recovered the ball at McDonogh 9, running back John Asuquo needed three carries, the last one from 4 yards out, to make it 30-17 with 8:53 to play.

McDonogh’s defense would step up again to reassure the home crowd. The Cardinals had the ball on their 47 when end Jameson Exinor deflected quarterback Mekhi Brown’s pass. On fourth-and-8, Brown connected with Hewitt on a short pass, but Buchanan’s sure tackle kept him short of the first-down marker.

After rattling off a lengthy list of defenders who made big plays for the Eagles, who also got three sacks, Laudenslager added: “It’s great because we know somebody is going to make a play every time, and the defense this whole year has just been stellar. I’m so proud of all the guys.”

A methodical seven-play, 51-yard drive featured 23 yards from Graham, who scored from 10 yards to ice the win. Zoeller added four extra points to his three field goals.

Calvert Hall coach Josh Ward gave credit to his defense for hanging touch and also looked at the strong fourth quarter to build on as the Cardinals travel to St. Mary’s next Friday in what he called a must-win game to stay in playoff contention. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

“Offensively, we said before the game that the team that’s going to win this is going to be the one who has the least amount of turnovers and controls the ball,” Ward said. “So now we got to bounce back. Monday we got to go back and work on the things we talked about.”

McDonogh has next week off before hosting conference foe Concordia Prep at 6 p.m. Oct. 25.

Other football scores

Bel Air 29, Patterson Mill 13: Just two miles on Emmorton Road separate Patterson Mill and Bel Air high schools. And the football teams share an even closer connection.

Patterson Mill coach David Huryk led Bel Air for a decade, while current Bel Air coach Eric Seigel served as an assistant. The tandem grew close during that stretch and remained so even when Huryk left to coach the crosstown rival three years ago.

The friends became opponents Friday, when Bel Air traveled down the street and beat their neighbors, 29-13. The Bobcats shut out the Huskies in the second half to end a three-game losing skid and even up its season record at 3-3.

Patterson Mill (4-2) scored on two of its first three possessions — rushing scores from RJ Wilhelm and Will Green — then didn’t find the end zone again on its final five possessions. Two punts, two turnovers on downs and a game-sealing interception by Bel Air’s Nathan Calamita stamped a suffocating defensive effort.

“Coach preached all week to do your job,” senior linebacker Evan Feeney said. “We’ve talked about it all week, all year. This is the game we wanted.”

The Bobcats put up two scores of their own on their final two possessions of the opening half and entered the break with a slim 14-13 advantage. With the defense allowing no more, the Julien Horton-less Bel Air offense piled on.

— Taylor Lyons

Spalding 47, Concordia Prep 0: Spalding’s starters held their breath.

Stress wasn’t something they were used to as of late. The nationally ranked Cavaliers have blown through every team they’ve faced this year, and since MIAA A Conference play began, Spalding starters became regular second-half spectators.

Seniors Trent Gillis, Delmar White, Alijah Jones and Malik Washington cheered when freshman Luke Winkler batted down Concordia Prep quarterback Kam Faulcon’s third-down pass. Spalding led 47-0, the running clock triggered by the mercy rule was running out, and the starters assumed their eighth victory and sixth-straight shutout was safely in hand.

That is until Saints coach Joe Battaglia called for a timeout.

No team has scored on Spalding since DeMatha on Aug. 31. Concordia wanted to be the first.

Faulcon took the field with his skill players again. As time expired, the Saints quarterback scrambled back as a few Spalding linebackers chased him down, and he threw.

His receiver tried to wrap his hands around the ball in the end zone. The four Cavaliers mobbing him made that fairly hard to do. The shutout streak survived.

It was a messy game by Spalding’s standard. The second-half kickoff was fumbled over to Concordia possession. A pick-six was negated by a pass interference call. Missed tackles cost double-digit yards.

“We’re a little beat up with some injuries, but we gotta keep practicing hard and create internal competition in all phases,” Spalding coach Kyle Schmitt said. “That’s the thing that we continue to create and drive us.”

— Katherine Fominykh

Fallston 38, North Harford 0

Field hockey

Glenelg 7, River Hill 1

Severn 5, Roland Park 0

Boys soccer

McDonogh 2, Archbishop Spalding 0

C. Milton Wright 5, Aberdeen 0

Key School 2, St. John’s Catholic Prep 1

Girls soccer

Severna Park 3, Severn 1

Long Reach 3, Reservoir 2

Boys volleyball

Harford Tech 3, Patterson Mill 1

Baltimore Sun Media staff contributed to this article. Have a news tip? Contact Glenn Graham at ggraham@baltsun.com, 410-332-6636 andx.com/GlennGrahamSun.