Rory Dixon, Marian (Photo courtesy of First Class School Photography)

HOMETOWN — The Marian football team is feeling good about itself through the first part of the season.

The Colts are off to their first 4-0 start since 2012 after a 34-6 victory over Shenandoah Valley on Friday in a Schuylkill-Colonial Blue Division game at Men of Marian Stadium.

And while Marian coach Billy O’Gurek is happy about that, he also aware that there is more to work on to make the season a success.

“The most important thing going forward is how are we going to get better,” O’Gurek said. “We have a lot of guys who can run, and each week it might be a little different. But we have a lot of guys who can make good plays.”

Running back Rory Dixon made a big play for Marian less than two minutes into the game when he broke loose down the sideline for a 49-yard run with 10:25 left in the first quarter to give his team a 7-0 lead.

The Colts wound up producing 354 yards of offense against the Blue Devils, with Dixon rushing for 140 yards. He doubled to Colts’ lead to 14-0 in the second quarter on an 11-yard run.

Marian scored two more touchdowns before halftime to build a 28-0 lead, with quarterback Gregory Tirpak scoring on a 1-yard run and Tirpak throwing an 18-yard touchdown pass to Rocco Griguoli.

“We had a lot of explosive plays,” O’Gurek said. “The execution was good. We have a real multiple offense and some heavy sets. I’m happy that the guys took the week seriously and prepared. We finally got Dixon rolling after a couple of plays. When he gets into the open field, he’s tough to bring down.”

Marian produced one more score in the third quarter on a 15-yard run by Dixon for his third touchdown run of the game.

Shenandoah Valley, for its part, showed signs of moving the ball and produced 217 yards of offense. The Blue Devils had trouble finishing off drives, and that resulted in turning the ball over on downs.

The Blue Devils averted being shutout in the fourth quarter when Mike Elchisak broke loose for a 35-yard touchdown run with 6:42 left in the game.

“We couldn’t convert enough third downs. We had pass plays where guys were open and we couldn’t connect,” Shenandoah Valley David Bench said. “Defensively, we have to make stops. There were way too many missed tackles. There were guys in the right spots. They just weren’t making the plays. There are winnable games on our schedule. We thought we could have been a little bit more competitive tonight.”

Game Summary

Marian 34, Shenandoah Valley 6

SV (0-4, 0-3)         0          0          0          6  —    6

Mar (4-0, 3-0)          7       21         6          0  —    34

Mar — Dixon 49 run (Tom kick)

Mar — Dixon 11 run (Tom kick)

Mar — Tirpak 1 run (Tom kick)

Mar — Griguoli 18 pass from Tirpak (Tom kick)

Mar — Dixon 15 run (kick failed)

SV — Elchisak 35 run (run failed)

Team Statistics

SV-Mar

First Downs —- 12      15

Rushes-Yards — 28-141      34-257

Passes —- 9-21-0      4-6-0

Passing Yards —- 76      97

Total Yards —- 217      354

Fumbles/Lost —- 0-0      0-0

Penalties — 4-40      5-50

Individual Statistics

RUSHING: Shenandoah Valley — Elichisak 20-69, Burrous 2-40, White 1-18, Bench 3-7, Getz 1-6, Reyes 1-1. Marian — Dixon 14-140, Ashfield 5-49, Tom 4-32, Kotsko 5-20, Tirpak 2-15, Koslop 1-7, Gerhart 1-1, Griguoli 1-(-1), Sartori 1-(-6).

PASSING: Shenandoah Valley — Bench 9-21-0, 76. Marian — Tirpak 4-6-0, 97.

RECEIVING: Shenandoah Valley — Burrous 4-48, Sinkus 3-18, Getz 1-7, Reyes 1-3. Marian — Tom 2-67, Griguoli 2-30.