The Rudder Rangers had one of their best offensive showings of the season Friday night. Unfortunately for the first-year program, they had no points to show for it.

The Rangers gained 226 yards of offense but never found the end zone as they dropped a 40-0 decision to the Cameron Yoemen in District 24-3A action at Merrill Green Stadium.

Rudder (0-7, 0-5) moved deep into Cameron territory on each of its five first-half possessions but failed to capitalize on any of them.

"In a lot of ways we are getting better," Rudder head coach C.M. Pier said. "We've just got to keep pushing forward and learn how to finish."

Cameron (6-1, 4-0), meanwhile, struggled through the first half but still managed a 21-point lead thanks to running back James Wells.

Wells, who finished with 142 yards on nine carries, scored twice in the first half on runs of 7 and 14 yards.

Quarterback Steven Townsend added a 6-yard touchdown pass to Tommy Anderson as the Yoe built its 21-0 halftime lead.

"Give credit to coach Pier and his staff and those young kids," Cameron head coach Mike Mullins said. "They did a good job, and they played hard. We finally picked it up and started playing well."

While the Yoe eventually managed to find paydirt, Rudder did not.

On its opening drive, Rudder drove to the Cameron 36-yard line behind the running of quarterback Tre Hammond and running backs Charlie Bush and Restevin Anderson. But after failing to convert on a long third down, the Rangers were forced to punt.

The next time they got the ball, the Rangers pushed 10 yards farther into Yoe territory, but a botched snap foiled a field goal attempt.

Rudder's best chance to score came after it reached the Cameron 7, but D.D. Cooke picked off a pass in the end zone to kill the drive.

The Rangers didn't threaten to score in the second half. The Yoe, meanwhile, added three more touchdowns, all in the third quarter, including a 67-yard pass from Townsend to Wells that came after Townsend scrambled out of Rudder's grasp before dumping the ball off to Wells.

"They play so well together and know what each other is going to do," Pier said.

The Rangers lost Hammond late in the third quarter when he suffered an injury. His status for the season finale next week at Madisonville was uncertain following the game.

"I've got to check with Doc," Pier said. "I'll have to see what the preliminary evaluation is and we'll get him to the doctor if not tomorrow, then first thing Monday morning."