The Pilots' reign of supremacy in 2021 continues. 

Dan Rohn and the Purple and Gold (10-0) notched their 10th straight victory on Friday night, defeating Grosse Pointe South, 35-20. It came on the heels of a dominant second-half performance that saw the Pilots outscore the Blue Devils, 21-6, in the final half of play. In doing so, Rohn & Co. captured the Region 4 District 2 championship in Division 2. 

"It's a step in the direction of where we want to keep the program moving," Rohn said after the victory. "Like I told these kids, it's just one win. But, it's a thing we can check off. You know, you check off a (Catholic League) conference championship, Prep Bowl championship and now a district championship. Now, we get back to work and get focused, and hopefully we get ready to win a regional." 

Sophomore Rhett Roeser led the way for the Pilots offensively, with three rushing scores in the contest. 

Grosse Pointe South battled De La Salle tough in the first half, and got on the scoreboard first via a 55-yard touchdown reception from senior Will Johnson, who made multiple defenders miss en route to the end zone. 

Johnson, a five-star recruit and University of Michigan commit, was a menace to deal with all night long. He finished with two touchdowns in the loss. 

"He (Johnson) is a dynamic football player, and the good thing about what we were doing offensively is that we were grinding the football and forcing him to make a lot of tackles," Rohn said. "I think that took a little bit out of him. You couldn't tell, based on the way he played. He's going to be a special player to watch on Saturdays." 

The Blue Devils kept the Pilots off the scoreboard in the opening quarter, and took a 7-0 advantage into the second quarter. 

It stayed that way until Roeser found the end zone -- from 13 yards out -- with 6:10 remaining in the first half. 

On the ensuing kickoff, though, Grosse Pointe South answered right back. Senior Jonathan Drake returned the Cody Cummins kick 95 yards for the touchdown, tying things up at 14. 

On what was a cold, frigid night at Warren Fitzgerald High School -- the host site of Friday's playoff tilt -- the Pilots had a battle on their hands for the first time in over a month. 

Remember, the Purple and Gold had outscored their previous four opponents -- which included Detroit U-D Jesuit three times -- by a total margin of 184-47. 

It wasn't nearly as easy for Rohn's squad against the Blue Devils. 

De La Salle's ground attack -- spearheaded by Roeser and junior quarterback Brady Drogosh -- finally started wearing out Johnson and Grosse Pointe South's defense in the second half. 

Drogosh, aided by some great blocking from his offensive line, recorded two 3-yard rushing scores in the third quarter. 

Drogosh's final rushing TD of the night made it a two-score game -- 28-14 -- in favor of the Pilots, with 4:50 to play in the quarter. 

The final half of play also saw the Purple and Gold produce some big stops on defense. 

At the 2:03 mark in the third quarter, senior Will Beesley came through with a crucial sack on a fourth-down conversion attempt for Grosse Pointe South. The stop, which caused a turnover on downs for the Blue Devils, shifted momentum in favor of De La Salle heading into the fourth quarter. 

Johnson did find the end zone once more, on a direct-snap run -- out of the wildcat formation -- with 6:32 remaining in the game. 

However, the contest was all but over by that point, and Roeser punched it in once more for good measure -- from five yards out -- with 1:52 to play. 

Rohn was proud of the way his O-line opened up holes for the run game throughout the night. 

"I think you have to talk about the kids up front and the positive contributions they made for our team tonight," Rohn said. "Our offensive line just keeps playing well, and at halftime, we just said, 'Listen, we're going to make a couple minor adjustments to the blocking schemes.' But, we weren't going to go away from who we are. We're a run-first team, and we're going to run the ball down your throats and hopefully score some points." 

Next up for the Pilots is the Div. 2 Regional 4 final. It pits the Purple and Gold against the Roseville Panthers (7-4), with kickoff set for Friday at 7 p.m. (location TBD).