By Mike Sidhly
NEFJ Correspondent

PROVIDENCE – Setting the tone is something every football  coach wants from their team in week one.

That’s exactly what Dan Koppen got from his La Salle squad on Friday night.

The Rams dominated North Kingstown, 34-7 in an RIIL opening night matchup to secure their first win of the season.

Quarterback Sam Perry threw for two touchdowns, both of them to receiver Jalen Moseley. Sophomore running back Aiden Wilson added two on the ground in the win.

Koppen was satisfied with his team’s output and preparedness.

“It’s good, I didn’t know what we were going to get,” he said. “You never know when you’re playing against a team for the first time, but I thought our guys came out and were ready to go. We played physical, and North Kingstown is a great team.”

La Salle dominated from the opening drive, taking the ball first and converting a red zone fourth down to extend the possession. Then, Perry lobbed a right side throw to Moseley, who tapped both feet down in the end zone to secure the score and 6-0 lead after a missed extra point.

La Salle showed out defensively on North Kingstown’s first drive, forcing a fumble on the quarterback, which was recovered by junior linebacker Ryan Amaral at the Skippers’ four-yard line. The Rams capitalized right away, as running back Aiden Wilson pushed through for an easy touchdown, giving La Salle a 13-0 lead late in the first quarter.

After trading punts for eight minutes, La Salle got its first big play through the air. It was another hookup from Perry to Moseley, this time a 55-yard deep post in which Moseley did the rest, scampering for a long touchdown to secure a commanding, three-score lead.

“He’s awesome, he’s just a freak athlete,” said Perry of Moseley. “There’s nobody in Rhode Island that can match him athletically, and he’s just going to kill everyone all year.”

That 20-point lead was all that was needed, as La Salle was able to hold North Kingstown to only seven points in the second half, while putting up 14 themselves thanks to another short Wilson touchdown, and a defensive scoop-and-score towards the end of the game.

LaSalle will now face Eagle Academy II in week two. Despite the dominant effort, Koppen knows there’s always room for improvement.

“The substitutions for one, we need to get better at that if we’re going into special teams,” he added. “Defense with just playing our keys and our assignments and not really getting frazzled when they throw a different look at us, which shouldn’t be a problem.

“There’s a bunch of stuff I’m sure I’m going to see on the film.”