On October 25th 2024,  St. Thomas Aquinas played against the 4A powerhouse team,  American Heritage Patriots. The STA Raiders came into this game after a tremendous 44-6 win against the Monarch Knights. With this being the senior night, and the last regular season game for the Raiders, hopes were high for another win to finish off the regular season and carry this momentum into the playoffs. Going into the game, players reviewed countless hours of footage of the opponent in order to prepare.  

The Patriots dominated the run-game with 274 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground. They also had 268 yards passing and three touchdown passes. The Raiders prevailed through the air with 300 passing yards and 134 rushing yards total. Nevertheless, the Patriots came out on top with a score of 42-38. This loss brought the Raiders record to 7-3 heading into the playoffs. Junior Jakhi Barber shared, “It’s unfortunate that we didn’t stop the run-game. The Patriots are a well coached team with great athletes. Next year we’ll be ready for them!” The Patriot’s win helped their record to 6-3 heading into the playoffs.