Check out the results for SOL football teams in action Friday. Check back for Kim Supko’s photos of the North Penn-La Salle game and Larry Small's photos of Souderton vs Plymouth Whitemarsh...CLICK HERE. Neshaminy photo provided courtesy of Jesse Garber (http://jsgarber.zenfolio.com/p848137460)
Stats used in the wraps are provided courtesy of Calkins Media. For complete high school football coverage, visit the web sites: http://www.theintell.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/ and http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 17, HATBORO-HORSHAM 6
Corey Cepeda and his teammates on defense had just spent the night punishing any Hatter that touched the football, taking a shutout into the fourth quarter before the Hatters got on the scoreboard with 6:05 remaining.
“Everyone 100 percent stepped up,” said Cepeda. “Honestly, it’s a mentality. Everyone has that mentality – they want to come out, they want to be rough, they want to be tough. That’s how we set the tone. You’ve got to set the tone.
“We came together as one ‘D’ remarkably. These boys are my brothers. When the going got tough, we did not stop. I thought the guys did an amazing job tonight.”
According to the senior defensive tackle, who doled out his share of big hits, theirs is team defense.
“(It’s a) don’t be the hero defense,” said Cepeda. “You have one position, one job. You hold that position, you hold your team.
“You try and be a hero, and the team falls apart. Every single one of these guys completely took their own position, took their own responsibility, and that’s how we worked so well together.”
“It’s all about us doing our job,” added junior linebacker Jake Reichwein, another catalyst on defense. “As long as everyone does their job, we’ll do great on defense.
“We had a couple of little mistakes that we can fix, and I think we’re going to be good in the future.”
The team concept is a recurring theme on this squad.
“I think we have a very talented group here,” coach Chas Cathers said. “Everybody has done a great job understanding what their role is on this football team, and I think that shows with the numbers that we have and everybody understanding that they’re a part of this.
“That’s what we talked about before we came out today. We’re not going to win games with a bunch of single players. We’re going to win games as a team, and I thought today we showed that with our special teams play, our defensive play and our offensive play. It was a group effort.”|
Neither team scored in the opening quarter, but a pair of Josh Crecca completions set the stage for a three-yard TD run by Jake Reichwein, propelling the Bucks to a 7-0 halftime lead.
A 49-yard scamper by junior quarterback Ryan Moylan took the Bucks’ to the Hatters’ 15. After a penalty pushed West back to the 18, runs of 10 and five yards by Moylan set up a one-yard TD by Reichwein.
“He’s a big physical running back for us, and when we need a couple of yards we’re going to go to Jake because he’s just an exceptional football player,” Cathers said of Reichwein. “He’ll dig deep and really get those yards for us when we need them.”
A West drive stalled at the Hatters’ six-yard line, but Kenny Doak converted a 21-yard field goal to put the Bucks on top 17-0.
Chris Edwards showed his flare for creating something out of nothing when the Hatters’ junior quarterback – flushed out of the pocket – found running back Anthony Kwiatanowski, who raced down the sidelines for a 26-yard touchdown that made it a 17-6 game. An interception by senior Frank Amsler with 1:59 remaining and the Hatters on the Bucks’ 12-yard line put the finishing touches on the West win.
“I think our defense has been playing really well,” Cathers said. “We have some talented kids on the defensive front.
“Especially in the second half, they picked the intensity up. I’m sure they’re going to be disappointed about giving up a score, but they should be proud of what they did. They definitely brought the wood and they were hitting nice and hard and playing assignment football which is really a good thing to see.”
The Bucks’ second-year coach lauded the performance of several defensive players.
“I think Frank Amsler played a great game, especially with his interception on the goal line,’ Cathers said. “Zane Williams played well. Ricardo Washington, a sophomore, did an outstanding job coming in when Don McCauley went down. Our two defensive ends had a pretty nice game – Jack Benstead and Michael Taylor.”
The win was significant for a West squad that dropped its first three games of the 2015 campaign en route to a 3-7 season.
“We just wanted to start the season off right,” Reichwein said. “Past seasons we’ve come out a little short, but I think we can do great things this season.”
“We came out here – the past is the past,” Cepeda said. “We wanted to come out, and we want to make a new name for ourselves.
“I wouldn’t want to be out here with anybody else. These guys are great, amazing.”
Central Bucks West (1-0) will host Council Rock South next Friday, and Hatboro-Horsham (0-1) will be on the road at Central Bucks East on Saturday (11 a.m.).
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-0-6 6
Central Bucks West 0-7-7-3 17
NORTH PENN 33, LA SALLE 24
La Salle had made a habit of spoiling North Penn’s opening night games, winning six straight openers – a streak that was emphatically broken on Friday when the Knights took an early lead and never looked back on their way to the impressive win.
“I told our kids – it doesn’t make or break our season, but it certainly feels good,” coach Dick Beck said.
There were heroes galore for the Knights, and topping the list was quarterback Reece Udinski, who spread the ball around to eight receivers and threw for 203 yards and four touchdowns.
Not to be overlooked was the team’s offensive line that did not return one starter from last year’s district runner-up squad but paved the way for the Knights to accumulate 407 yards of total offense.
“I thought the ‘O’ line did a really nice job pass protecting,” Beck said of a line that featured Keith Caputo and Wu Sung at tackle, Ryan Cody and Joe Cataldi at guard and Matt Bevan at center.
“Obviously, Reece (Udinski) played very well in the game, and I don’t want to downplay what he did because he was great tonight,” the Knights’ coach said. “But I thought the ‘O’ line really did a nice job. We moved the ball on the ground with a lot of success, but I also thought they did a nice job pass blocking. It was a good night for them.”
If the Knights needed an early boost, they got it when Nick Dillon raced 18 yards on the first play from scrimmage on a pitch to the outside. The drive was capped when Justis Henley hauled in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Udinski.
“The first down we had a nice play, gained big yards,” Beck said of the opening drive. “Second down we had play action, the guy’s open but dropped it.
“We bounced back with Reece throwing strikes to everybody. I felt the kids were doing a nice job getting open, and Reece did a nice job delivering the ball. Getting that first touchdown - Justis made a nice play getting over top the linebackers. The throw was a little low, and he went down and caught it. He made a great adjustment.”
When Dan Drop returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown, the Knights led 14-0 less than four minutes into the game. The Explorers trimmed that lead to 14-7 when Syaire Madden – who ran for a game-high 186 yards – took it in from nine yards out.
A pair of Udinski touchdown passes in the second quarter – the first to Ricky Johns for 37 yards and the second to Nick Vasger – sent the Knights into halftime with a 26-10 lead. The Explorers would get no closer than nine the rest of the way.
North Penn (1-0) will host Downingtown East next Friday. The two squads met twice last year. The Cougars won the regular season meeting 28-24 in week three, but the Knights won when it mattered most, defeating East 27-14 in a second round district game.
La Salle 7-3-14-0 24
North Penn 14-12-7-0 33
SOUDERTON 38, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 23
Joey Curotto is officially back.
The Indians’ senior quarterback spent the offseason rehabbing from an injury that occurred last season, and any doubts about his ability to bounce back were put to rest with his 207-yard passing performance that included three touchdowns.
“He really played well,” coach Ed Gallagher said. “He ran well. It’s amazing – he played so well last year against PW.
“I said that to him before the game – ‘You have your opportunity here again. I hope you play like you did last year,’ and he did. He really gutted out another one for us and provided some great leadership.”
Perhaps no play loomed larger than Curotto’s 53-yard screen pass for a touchdown to Koby Khan in the closing moments of he first half that pulled the Indians within two of the host Colonials at the intermission (16-14).
“I thought they outplayed us in the first half,” Gallagher said of the Colonials. “We weren’t executing very well.
“We thankfully made a play toward the end of the first half, and at halftime, I think our kids regrouped and knew they were capable of playing better. They came out and played – not a flawless second half – but a much better second half. They executed very well.”
Khan’s 43-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter gave the Indians a lead they would not lose.
“Once he gets the ball out in space, he’s tough to tackle,” Gallagher said of Khan, who also ran for a touchdown. “He ran pretty hard.”
When Austin Miller scored on a 70-yard TD pass from Curotto, the Indians led 28-16. PW quarterback Joe Stoberl found Vince Martino with a 68-yard touchdown strike to make it a 28-23 game, but Brandon Targana capped an Indian scoring drive when he took it in from a yard out to seal the win.
Not to be overlooked in the win was the performance of the Indians' defense in a second half that saw the Colonials score just seven points.
"We had a couple of kids step up for us defensively," Gallagher said. "Bret Vince made a couple of big plays. He's been playing outside linebacker, and he stepped up.
"Dan Yerk played really well defensively. It was a good team effort."
Also for the Indians, Zach Bradshaw was perfect on four extra points and also had a 23-yard field goal. It was Shane Day’s interception that set up the Indians’ touchdown to close out the first half.
PW’s Khan Jamal had a game-high 80 yards on the ground.
For the Indians, the win avenged last year's 20-14 overtime loss to the Colonials.
"We have had a pretty good opening rivalry with PW. We won by a touchdown down there two years ago, and they won by a touchdown (at Souderton) last year," Gallagher said. "There were lots of momentum swings in this game.
"That's a good team, a team that's going to win a decent number of games and could be a playoff team again. It really is a huge win to springboard us into our rivalry games coming up."
Souderton (1-0) will host Quakertown on Friday in the renewal of a rivalry while Plymouth Whitemarsh (0-1) will be at home against Abington.
Souderton 7-7-14-10 38
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2-14-0-7 23
NESHAMINY 28, ROMAN CATHOLIC 20
The visiting Cahillites led 14-7 after AJ Gaymon fielded a punt and raced 87 yards for a touchdown, but a 47-yard touchdown pass from Mason Jones to Zach Tredway sent the two teams into halftime deadlocked 14-14.
Jones found Will Dogba for his second touchdown of the game – this one for 22 yards - to put the ‘Skins on top 21-14 after three quarters. The Cahillites, however, refused to go away, pulling to within 21-20. A seven-yard touchdown scamper by Jones put the Redskins on top 28-20, their final margin of victory.
Jones was impressive in the Redskins’ opener, passing for 268 yards. Tredway was his number one target with 105 receiving yards while Michael Garlick hauled in four passes for 98 yards. Dogba finished with 100 yards rushing.
Tredway (nine tackles) and Garlick (eight tackles, one interception) also had huge nights on the defensive side of the football. Eddie Parry had six tackles, and Paul Depompeo had four.
Neshaminy (1-0) will travel to Pennridge next Friday.
Roman Catholic 0-14-0-6 20
Neshaminy 0-14-7-7 28
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 42, CHELTENHAM 7
The Patriots’ defense was in midseason form in Friday’s opener, limiting the host Panthers to just 30 total yards and only two first downs. Their offense was impressive as well, exploding for 21 points in the second quarter and adding 21 more in the third en route to the no-doubt-about-it victory.
Ryan Plack’s 15-yard interception return for a touchdown broke a scoreless tie in the second quarter. Also in the second quarter, Wes Verbit hauled in a pair of Matt Szczypiorski touchdown passes – the first for 16 yards and the second for 49. In the game, Szczypiorski threw for 168 yards.
Cheltenham’s lone score came in the second quarter when Dylan Jones returned an East fumble 91 yards for the score. The big play made it a 14-7 game but not for long.
Central Bucks East (1-0) will host Hatboro-Horsham next Saturday at 11 a.m., and Cheltenham (0-1) will be at home against Bishop McDevitt on Friday.
Central Bucks East 0-21-21-0 42
Cheltenham 0-7-0-0 7
PENNSBURY 10, FRANKFORD 6
A young Falcon squad picked up a win in Dan McShane’s debut at the helm. Pennsbury – thanks to a 24-yard field goal in the opening quarter by Christopher Kopp – took a 3-0 lead into halftime and still found itself clinging to that three-point lead heading into the final quarter.
The Falcons’ defense kept the visiting Pioneers off the board with a goal line stand as time was winding down in the second quarter.
Frankford scored a touchdown early in the fourth quarter to go on top 6-3, but the Falcons responded. Tyrone Hodges Jr. took it in from one yard out to give the Falcons – who managed just 188 yards of total offense - their final margin of victory.
Pennsbury (1-0) will host La Salle on Friday.
Frankford 0-0-0-6 6
Pennsbury 3-0-0-7 10
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 13, ABINGTON 7
Defense was the story of the Titans’ win over the Ghosts, and it was three interceptions by South that turned the tide.
A 43-yard touchdown run by quarterback Jack Johns – who split time behind center with Sam Thompson – gave the Titans a 7-0 first quarter advantage. They took that lead into halftime, and with the Ghosts driving, Tom McLaughlin came up with an interception that might well have been the turning point as the Titans took the ball 80 yards for a score. Tyler Watson took it in from seven yards out to give the Titans a 13-0 lead.
A 65-yard touchdown run by Darryl Davis McNeil – who finished with a game-high 145 yards – made it a 13-6 game at the end of three quarters. With the Ghosts driving, Watson came up with an interception to seal the Ghosts’ fate.
Watson led the Titans' ground game with 111 yards while Thompson added 98. Johns completed 7-of-14 passes for 61 yards. Defensively, Watson had a team-high six tackles. Nate Norris, Corey Charnetski and Matt Norris each added five.
Central Bucks South (1-0) will face Council Rock North next Saturday at noon at War Memorial Stadium. Abington (0-1) will be on the road at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday night.
Central Bucks South 7-0-6-0 13
Abington 0-0-6-0 6
UPPER MORELAND 7, WILLIAM TENNENT 0
Overtime was inevitable. Or at least so it seemed as neither team managed to put a point on the board for 46 minutes, but with 1:46 remaining in regulation, quarterback Casey Decker found Nick Pagano with a 46-yard touchdown pass that proved to be the game winner. The TD capped an 80-yard scoring drive for the Golden Bears.
Upper Moreland’s defense stole the spotlight in the win, delivering five interceptions.
Next Friday Upper Moreland (1-0) will host Phoenixville in a non-league contest, and William Tennent (0-1) will be on the road at Bensalem.
Upper Moreland 0-0-0-7 7
William Tennent 0-0-0-0 0
PENN WOOD 20, BENSALEM 9
Last year, Bensalem was shut out in a season-opening loss to Penn Wood. They went on to lose 10 straight.
On Friday afternoon, it looked as though the Owls might pick up their first win in three seasons when they took a 9-6 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Patriots closed out the game with 14 unanswered points to earn the non-league win.
A Matt Corbett field goal spotted the Owls a 3-0 lead. The Patriots answered with a touchdown, but Keith Parrish returned a Penn Wood fumble eight yards for the score to put the Owls on top 9-6 heading into halftime. That score stood until the fourth quarter.
Bensalem (0-1) will host William Tennent next Friday.
Penn Wood 0-6-0-14 20
Bensalem 3-6-0-0 9
FATHER JUDGE 40, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH
It was a rough opening night for the Golden Hawks, who saw the visiting Crusaders march 60 yards for a touchdown on their opening drive. Things didn’t improve a whole lot after that.
At the end of one quarter, Judge led 20-0 and took a 27-0 lead into halftime. The Crusaders, who amassed more than 400 yards of total offense, held a 259-33 advantage in yards in the opening half.
Council Rock South (0-1) will travel to Central Bucks West next Friday.
Father Judge 20-7-7-6 40
Council Rock South 0-0-0-0 0
RIDLEY 41, HARRY S TRUMAN 6
The Green Raiders dominated play in Friday’s opener against the visiting Tigers. They led 14-0 after one quarter and took a commanding 35-0 lead into halftime, outgaining a young Tiger squad 278-77.
The Tigers’ lone score came in the closing seconds of the third quarter when junior Sayyid Saunders hauled in a 47-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jorden Freeman.
Truman (0-1) will host Upper Dublin next Friday.
Harry S Truman 0-0-6-0 6
Ridley 14-21-6-0 41
ARCHBISHOP RYAN 47, QUAKERTOWN 7
The Panthers return just a handful of starters from last year’s SOL Continental Conference squad. Their inexperience showed.
Ryan led 7-0 after one quarter but blew the game wide open with 26 unanswered points in the second quarter to go into halftime with a 33-0 lead. Sophomore Christian Patrick’s nine-yard touchdown run on the Panthers’ opening drive of the third quarter accounted for the home team’s only score.
The Panthers – who were without Noah Wood - managed just 130 yards of total offense.
Quakertown (0-1) will be on the road at Souderton next Friday.
Archbishop Ryan 7-26-7-7 47
Quakertown 0-0-7-0 7
UPPER DUBLIN 41, METHACTON 0
Mike Cottom returned the opening kickoff 80 yards to kick off UD's season in grand fashion. It turned out to be a preview of things to come for the Flying Cardinals.
Senior quarterback Justin Horn made his first start a memorable one, connecting on 6-of-7 attempts for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for three more with TD runs of one, 18 and 59 yards.
Phil Butler hauled in an eight-yard TD pass, and George Weems added an 85-yard touchdown reception.
While the offense was putting up 41 points in an overpowering first half, the defense was turning in a stellar performance of its own, allowing just 66 total yards - 44 on the ground and 22 in the air - while forcing eight punts.
Upper Dublin (1-0) will be on the road at Harry S Truman on Friday night.
WISSAHICKON 42, MARTIN LUTHER KING 27
OCTORARA 47, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 20
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