The Pilots continued their dominant start to the 2020 MHSAA playoffs Friday night, taming the St. Clair Shores Lakeview Huskies, 35-6, in a Division 2 district semifinal contest.

Unlike a week ago against the Roseville Panthers, though, the Pilots did not quickly produce a barrage of points and jump out to a big, early lead.

Instead, Lakeview had the ball the entire first quarter, and the game was 0-0 going into the second quarter. The Huskies found the end zone first, punching it in from one yard out with 10:14 remaining in the quarter.

Slow and methodical was the approach for Lakeview. And up to this point in the game, it had been working for the Huskies. 

Yet, the Pilots didn't allow it to affect them or to disrupt their style of play -- a sign of how far they have come as a team, according to DLS head man Dan Rohn. 

"I think it speaks a lot for what we're doing and where we're going," Rohn said after the game. "Obviously, they wanted to slow the game down, and they thought that was their best opportunity. It was a great idea, as they kept us off the field the entire first quarter. We didn't get the stops that we needed to. But, we believed in our scheme and our kids. We could've made a bunch of changes. But, we didn't do it, and I was really happy with our kids."

De La Salle was held off the scoreboard until scoring via a 25-yard touchdown pass from sophomore passer Brady Drogosh to junior receiver Alton McCullum with 8:18 to play in the second quarter.

The score was set up by a 57-yard scamper on a fourth-and-1 play from senior quarterback JC Ford. 

Momentum began to shift in the Pilots' favor soon after, with senior running back Brett Stanley taking it in from 66 yards out for the game's next score. 

It gave De La Salle a 14-6 advantage with 5:58 to play in the half.

Stanley followed it up with an interception on the Huskies' next offensive possession. 

The Pilots took advantage of the Lakeview turnover, and proceeded to score via a 38-yard TD pass from Drogosh to junior tight end Gavin Grzywacz with 4:38 to go in the first half.

It gave DLS a 21-6 lead headed into halftime. 

Stanley, already with a touchdown and interception to his name at this point, was just getting started. 

He opened up the second half with a kickoff return that he took back to the Lakeview seven-yard line. 

The Pilots took advantage of the great field position, and scored via none other than a Stanley three-yard TD run.

Stanley's third-quarter dominance continued with a TD run from two yards out with 4:59 to play in the quarter. 

It provided DLS with a 35-6 cushion going into the fourth quarter, and also marked 35 unanswered points from the Pilots. 

Neither side scored in the fourth quarter, resulting in the convincing win for the Purple and Gold.

Rohn's defense was stout all night long, pitching a shutout in the second half. 

Additionally, Stanley finished the contest with a game-high three scores. 

Rohn had high praise for the senior after the game. 

"You know, Brett Stanley's been a special player in this program for a long time," Rohn said. "He's not only a special football player. He's an all-state wrestler and all-state baseball player. He's the kind of kid you want in your program. And I'm happy he's having the kind of success he is right now, and he's a great senior leader for us. We expect Brett to be making those plays at this point, and he's been making them the last couple of weeks. And he just seems to be getting better and better as the playoffs go on." 

Stanley and the Pilots will now play Port Huron for the District 16 championship next week (time TBD).