Council Rock South celebrated Senior Night by picking up its second win of the season, downing William Tennent 28-7. Stats used in this article were provided courtesy of PhillyBurbs.com, a media partner with SuburbanOneSports.com. To read a complete game story, please click on the following PhillyBurbs.com link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/my_town/hamptons/cr-south-puts-it-all-together-against-tennent/article_7ad86441-ec8f-5553-b8bd-e9267322ab32.html
By Mary Jane Souder
NEWTOWN – Dallas Alves struggled with cramping in his leg after Council Rock South’s 28-7 win over William Tennent on Friday night, but thanks to his team’s huge Senior Night win, he was feeling no pain.
“It’s amazing, it was truly amazing,” Alves said. “Coming off the losses, it was really hard, but the dedication you have and you come out and play a game like this and to see all my teammates come out and play with real enthusiasm – it was awesome.
“Just to have the support of all the underclassmen and then to come up with a win like this was just amazing.”
The win was just the second of the season for Rock South, and the seniors wouldn’t have been celebrating without the standout efforts of several of their underclassmen.
Sophomore Vincent Alimenti ran for 138 yards on 18 carries in a superb showing, but no performance loomed larger than the effort of junior quarterback Greg Paprocki, who had a hand in all four of the Golden Hawks’ touchdowns.
“For being an underclassman and for his size at option quarterback, a lot of people underestimated him,” Alves said. “And then he comes out and has a performance like this, it’s just amazing to watch.
“It’s really great to be on the field with him. He’s in the huddle, and even after a penalty, he says, ‘Shake it off’ and comes in and is upbeat. He’s great.”
On a night that saw the Golden Hawks amass 415 yards of total offense, Paprocki accounted for 236 of those. He completed 5-of-9 passes for 139 yards and one TD. He also had 15 carries for 97 yards and three touchdowns.
“We have been working so hard,” Paprocki said. “Every day we’re lifting, we’re running and conditioning. We’re just working to get better every single day, and every single game we keep getting better.
“We have great core of seniors that are great leaders. All the juniors and all the sophomores follow right behind them. It’s fun playing with a group of kids that don’t quit.”
Quitting might have seemed like an easy alternative when the Golden Hawks – after capturing the SOL National Conference crown and advancing to the district title game last season – dropped their first five games of the year.
“The low point was the Neshaminy game,” Paprocki said of the Golden Hawks 21-14 loss to the Redskins. “We had a 14-0 lead at halftime.
“They’re a big rival, and in the second half, they came out and scored 21 straight points to beat us. That ripped the hearts out of us for a while, but kids like Dallas Alves and Christian Crane stepped up. They’re great leaders, and everyone responded to them very well. That got us through the tough times.”
On Friday night, those tough times were all but a distant memory, and it was Paprocki’s 83-yard touchdown strike to teammate Cameron Crosley early in the third quarter that all but sealed the Panthers’ fate, giving the Golden Hawks a 22-0 lead.
“In the back of our minds, we thought of the Neshaminy game because at halftime we were up two scores again,” Papocki said of his team’s 15-0 lead on Friday. “It was déjà vu all over again.
“We had trouble moving the ball the first couple of plays, and then we faked an option to the right. Cameron Crosley ran a fantastic route and really sold the option. He was wide open and did an awesome job.”
“Our passing game came to fruition this game,” Alves said. “We were having really, really good success with that. That’s a huge confidence builder.”
Paprocki, who had touchdown runs of one and four yards in the first half, put the finishing touches on a big night when he sprinted 18 yards for a TD that was the game’s final score. Senior lineman Nicholas Pellechia hoisted Paprocki in the air in celebration.
“The offensive line was doing a great job,” Paprocki said. “(Tennent) really brought the house, they blitzed big time on that play, and every single guy did their job.
“It was an easy way for me to walk in. I really owe those guys. They did an awesome job.”
For Rock South’s 23 seniors, it all added up to an unforgettable Senior Night.
“This season it was always just waiting it out, waiting it out,” Alves said. “You go day to day and the grind of just losing – it takes a large toll.
“When you come out and you’re able to play like this, and you’re able to have this experience as a team, it really pulls you through those hard weeks. You live for this moment.”
Next week, the Golden Hawks will close out their season when they face neighboring rival Council Rock North.
“It’s one thing to come off a loss - our coach always says, ‘North takes care of itself,’ but coming off a win, you have confidence going,” Alves said. “
NOTES: On the other side of the field, coach Biz Keeny has to be wondering when things will start going his team’s way. On Friday night, the Panthers lost starting quarterback Jeff Ledford to a shoulder injury. Ledford, a standout running back, moved to quarterback when QB Joe Lutz went down with a torn ACL in Tennent’s win over Bensalem. It is the fourth major injury in four weeks for the Panthers.
- Log in to post comments
