North Penn rallied from a 19-13 halftime deficit to defeat Perkiomen Valley 40-19 in a District One Class AAAA semifinal game. To view game action photos, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Ben Reese
TOWAMENCIN – You could say it was a triumph of old-time, smash-mouth football over the flashy, quick-strike offense.
You could say that, but it wouldn't be exactly true.
True, North Penn did use a grind-it-out running game and a staunch defense to beat Perkiomen Valley's fast-paced offense in the District One AAAA semifinal game, winning 40-19. But the Knights also salted the game with just enough passing to keep the Vikings off balance.
“I thought we could run on this team,” North Penn head coach Dick Beck said after the game. “Actually, I feel we can run on anybody but that's our game plan.
“Then, if they start creeping up, we're going to beat you on play action (passing).”
Well, North Penn used more running than passing. Quarterback Austin Shearer completed eight of 12 passes for 171 yards and one touchdown.
But it was the ground game that carried the day for the Knights. Nyfease West scooted and scampered his way to 211 yards and two touchdowns and his running mate, Luke Berry, bulled his way to 160 yards and two scores of his own.
Both Beck and West had praise for the Knights' offensive line.
“What can you say about the O-line,” Beck said. “We really came off the ball especially in the second half and played with an attitude.
“We made a little adjustment at halftime with how we wanted to block. Luke Berry was really running hard and getting that second, third, fourth extra yard.”
West had similar feelings.
“Our offensive line is great,” the sophomore running back said. “I feel so protected by my offensive line.
“They're great; they're wonderful. I love practicing with these guys; I love playing with these guys. We're like family.”
And he knew the Knights could run against the Vikings.
“We felt we could run on them,” West said. “We're a power team. We like to run the ball.”
And run they did.
In addition, North Penn made some other adjustments at halftime. The Knights did some tweaking with their defense.
In the first half, Perkiomen Valley had matched the North Penn on the ground. Viking quarterback Rasaan Stewart had gained 161 yards rushing himself.
But Beck and his coaching staff figured something out at halftime. In the final two quarters, Stewart could manage only 18 yards on the ground.
“What we wanted to do was get another linebacker in the box,” Beck explained. “They were kind of spread out and we didn't want them to beat us on a big play.
“They were hurting us so much running the ball especially the quarterback so we switched up the coverage and put an extra guy in the box and it helped.
“Kris Akins got into the box, and a couple times they tried to run that QB up the middle and he was right there to make the hit. That was the biggest adjustment at halftime.”
In order to win, North Penn had to rally back from a 19-13 halftime deficit. The Vikings had taken the lead in the second quarter with a pair of touchdowns.
But the Knights bounced back with a field goal of 35 yards from Matt Ammendola early in the second period and another by Ammendola from 19 yards out as the half ended.
“We've been behind before at half and come back,” said Beck. “We weren't going to panic.
“The score at the end of the half was huge for us. Getting that field goal at halftime was big.”
West agreed with his coach.
“It (the comeback in the second half) means a lot to us,” he said. “It shows how hard we work in practice and shows how hard we wanted to win tonight.”
The game started out like it was going to be a track meet. Following the opening kickoff, Stewart took the first play from scrimmage 82 yards for a touchdown with only 18 seconds elapsed on the clock and, after a botched extra point, the Vikings led 6-0.
North Penn wasn't to be outdone, however. After Justin Hudimac returned the ensuing kickoff to the NP 32, West bolted 68 yards for a TD 21 seconds later and Ammendola kicked the extra point for a 7-6 lead.
Then, suddenly, things slowed down. Neither team could mount a scoring drive in the first quarter.
The Knights did get the first points of the second period on Ammendola's first field goal. It put North Penn on top 10-6.
That lead didn't last long, however, Perkiomen Valley put together a five-play, 53-yard drive that ended with Stewart going the final 11 yards to give the Vikings a 13-10 lead.
North Penn drove down the field on its next possession, marching from its own 41 to the PV 26. The drive stalled and Ammendola missed a 36-yard field goal attempt.
That gave Perkiomen Valley the ball again and another chance to score, which it did. The Vikes drove from their 20 to the end zone, largely on the passing arm of Stewart, with the quarterback breaking loose from the North Penn 32 to score, making it 19-10.
That set up Beck's important score at the end of the half. Ammendola's 19-yard field goal after a drive of 73 yards gave NP a boost at 19-13.
In the second half, the North Penn rushing attack really started to grind out yards and eat up minutes on the clock. The Knights went 70 yards in 11 plays and five minutes and 25 seconds to tie the game at 19-19 after a bad snap stopped the extra point attempt.
The biggest result of Beck's defensive adjustment at halftime was evident on Perkiomen Valley's first offensive series of the second half. The Vikings lost six yards on three plays and had to punt.
North Penn took over on the PV 48 and rolled all the way to the end zone, picking up four straight first downs on four consecutive plays. Berry did the honors, pushing in from the two, and Ammendola's kick put the Knights ahead to stay at 26-19.
The North Penn offense wasn't through, however. Austin Shearer hit Nick Wright with a pass in the waning seconds of the third quarter and Wright – who shed a pair of would-be tacklers - fought his way into the end zone to up the margin to 33-19.
The final score of the game was again the result of a punishing ground game. Nine plays after taking over on its own 45, Berry rolled into the end zone to make it 40-19.
North Penn will now face Neshaminy for the District One title. The Redskins beat Abington 35-14 in the other district semifinal.
“It seems like every year we're playing Neshaminy sometime in the playoffs,” Beck said. “It's really a fantastic accomplishment for these guys.”
Perkiomen Valley 6 13 0 0—19
North Penn 7 6 20 7—40
PV – Rasaan Stewart 82 run (run failed)
NP – Nyfease West 68 run (Matt Ammendola kick)
NP– Ammendola 35 field goal
PV – Stewart 6 run (Matt Genuardi kick)
PV – Stewart 32 run (kick blocked)
NP – Ammendola 19 field goal
NP – West 11 run (run failed)
NP – Luke Berry 2 run (Ammendola kick)
NP – Nick Wright 68 pass from Austin Shearer (Ammendola kick)
NP – Berry 1 run (Ammendola kick)
Perkiomen Valley North Penn
First downs 13 31
Rushing yards 201 370
Passing yards 133 171
Total yards 334 541
Passing 10-21-1 8-12-0
Fumbles – lost 2-1 1-0
Penalties – yards 4-20 2-20
Punts-Avg. 2-38 0-0
Individual statistics
Rushing
Perkiomen Valley: Rasaan Stewart 15-169, 3 TD; Mark Bonomo 7-30; Kurran Holland 1-10; Ryan O'Donnell 1-(-)8.
North Penn: Nyfease West 25-211, 2 TD; Luke Berry 26-160, 2 TD; John Posavec 2-13; Nick Wright 1-3; Austin Shearer 3-(-)1; Team 2-(-)4.
Passing
Perkiomen Valley: Stewart 10-20-1, 116 yards; Dakota Clanagan 0-1-0.
North Penn: Shearer 8-12-0, 171 yards, 1 TD
Receiving
Perkiomen Valley: O'Donnell 4-75; Bonomo 3-17; Clay Domine 2-26; Clanagan 1-15.
North Penn: Wright 3-93, 1 TD; Justin Hudimac 3-45; Connor Gill 2-33.
Interceptions
North Penn: Michael Liddy.
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