Check out the results for SOL football teams in action Friday. Check back for photos of the PW/Abington, CB West/CR South, Wissahickon/Central, Upper Moreland/Phoenixvile, Upper Dubin/Truman and Pennsbury/La Salle games...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/
BENSALEM 23, WILLIAM TENNENT 17
Ecstatic.
That was the only word coach Ed Cubbage needed to describe his emotions after the Owls’ snapped a 29-game losing streak that had been hanging over their heads since 2013.
“We discussed it – we said, ‘This is what it is,’ and it becomes a goal obviously to break the streak,” the Owls’ coach said. “The kids, the fans, our student body were all on the field chanting, ‘No more streak.’ It was great.”
It certainly didn’t look as though the Owls would be doing any celebrating when they found themselves staring at a 17-7 deficit in the third quarter, but on this night, they would not be denied, scoring 16 unanswered points to close out the game.
A 39-yard touchdown run by Malcolm Carey made it a 17-13 game, but the two-point conversion failed.
“At that point, the kids got back in the game,” Cubbage said. “The kids just hung in there.”
Stone Moore’s 11-yard touchdown run and Matt Corbett’s extra point put the Owls on top 20-17, and Corbett’s 24-yard field goal put the finishing touches on the win.
“The kids worked so hard for this,” Cubbage said. “We had a great camp, we’ve had great practices. It was just awesome to see them come through.”
Tennent’s Sean Bragen finished with a game-high 127 yards rushing. Bensalem’s Keith Parrish and Malcolm Carey combined for 183 yards on the ground.
Bensalem (1-1) will travel to Lincoln for a non-league game next Friday, and William Tennent (1-1) will host Harry S Truman.
William Tennent 0-10-7-0 17
Bensalem 7-0-6-10 23
NESHAMINY 31. PENNRIDGE 24
Mason Jones and Will Dogba were the last to leave Helman field after Friday’s dramatic win. The two seniors had certainly done their part to make it a good night for the Redskins, accounting for more than 400 yards of total offense and four touchdowns.
“This is definitely a big win for us,” Jones said. “They beat us the last two years, and that was extra motivation for us.
“We had a good week of practice in preparation for them. Pennridge is a good team. They’re going to win a lot of games, but it was a great win for us as a team.”
Jones threw for 276 yards and a pair of TDs, and making his performance even more impressive was that fact that he lost his favorite target – Zach Tredway – for the game late in the first quarter after he took a hard blow to the head. In Tredway’s absence, Oleh Manzyk was more than happy to pick up the slack. The super soph had touchdown receptions of 65 and 78 yards, and his 52-yard reception to the Rams’ two-yard line set up the game-winning touchdown.
“Losing Zach in the offense – he’s a big key,” Jones said. “I’ve known him all my life, and I have very great chemistry with him.
“It all comes down – someone has to step up, and Oleh was big for us. He’s a super athletic kid, and he was able to win his matchups. He played a really good game. Basically, all of our receivers as a group made plays tonight.”
Dogba, meanwhile, had 145 tough rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, including the game winner from one yard out with 42 seconds remaining.
“Will is one of the toughest running backs I have ever played with,” Jones said. “I love the kid. He’s a hard runner.
“He earns every single one of his yards. He never complains, he doesn’t care about the workload. He came up big for us tonight.”
In the back-and-forth contest, the Redskins took a 10-7 lead into halftime, thanks to a 39-yard field goal by Dylan McDonald that broke a 7-7 tie.
Jagger Hartshorn - who had another huge night on the ground – raced in from 16 yards out to put the Rams on top 14-10 in the third quarter.
“He’s very gutsy,” Neshaminy coach Steve Wilmot said of the Rams’ senior QB, who ran for 195 yards. “You saw him cramping up in the fourth quarter – he’s their guy.
“We knew he was their guy watching film, and he proved he’s the guy. He’s a very, very good player.”
Dogba answered with a 13-yard TD run. Matt Mauer’s 41-yard field goal knotted the score 17-17, and the Rams appeared to have all the momentum when Josh Pinkney took it in from 26 yards out to give Pennridge a 24-17 lead with 4:32 remaining in the contest.
That lead stood for all of 14 seconds as Jones found Manzyk with a short pass that the sophomore speedster took in from 78 yards to knot the score after McDonald’s extra point.
“We have a check, and if we see that someone’s uncovered – Mason called the check,” Wilmot said. “He saw no one was on Oleh. He’s going to be a special player.”
It looked as though that tie would be shortlived when an electrifying Pinckney run took the ensuing kickoff to the Redskins’ 11-yard line, but the run that was negated by a penalty that brought the ball all the way back to the Rams’ own 38.
It was three-and-out for the Rams’ offense, and the ‘Skins took over on their own 38 with 2:37 remaining. On a huge third down play, Manzyk made a juggling catch of a Jones pass over the defense and took it to the two-yard line, setting the stage for Dogba’s TD.
An interception by junior Joel Stills sealed the Rams’ fate.
“This team has a lot of heart,” Wilmot said. “The senior class has a lot of heart. I really wouldn’t expect anything other than to come back.
“We have a high character team. We knew it was an evenly matched game, and whoever worked harder was going to win. We just tried harder.”
Neshaminy (2-0) will be on the road at Downingtown West next Friday, and Pennridge (1-1) will travel to Perkiomen Valley.
Neshaminy 7-3-7-14 31
Pennridge 0-7-10-7 24
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 7, ABINGTON 0
Coming off a season-opening loss to Souderton, Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Dan Chang expected Friday’s non-conference game against Abington to provide a true test of the Colonials’ mental toughness.
Chang got everything he bargained for. The Colonials (1-1) had to deal with an Abington offense loaded with high-caliber weapons. The Colonials committed an abundance of penalties. They put the ball on the turf too many times. They failed to take advantage of numerous chances to put the game out of reach.
But the Colonials overcame it all, punching in the lone touchdown of the evening and earning their first win of the season with a 7-0 win in their home opener.
“The entire week, the point we hammered was our mental toughness,” Chang said. “What are we going to do when things go bad? Because things are going to go bad. So it’s really nice to see those lessons come to life here tonight.
“A lot of times tonight when we could have folded and given up a score, our defense really held them. Our offense moved the ball, but we made too many mistakes where we couldn’t punch it in. But we did enough to get it done. It was great to see.”
The only touchdown of the game came early in the second quarter. After taking over on downs at their 21-yard line, the Colonials marched 44 yards to the Abington 35. On third-and-33, PW quarterback Joe Stoberl aimed for the front corner of the end zone, where two PW receivers and three Abington defensive backs went up for the ball. The pass deflected out of the hands of PW wideout Vince Martina – who had a pair of Ghosts to contend with – and into the waiting arms of fellow wideout George Rocchino for the score.
The hosts were able to make the touchdown hold. The Ghosts put up a valiant effort, led by a standout effort from running back Darryl Davis-McNeil, who led all rushers with 28 carries and with 139 yards.
“Our coaches kept telling us all week, ‘Don’t sleep on him, he’s very fast,’” said PW tailback/linebacker Jamal Khan. “I think we adjusted very well. We did well, we held our own, and we didn’t let them score.”
On the offensive side of the ball, Khan led PW with 91 yards on 14 carries. Blaise Gravinese picked up 56 yards on 10 carries and Stoberl added 21 yards on the ground to go with 6-of-11 passing for 125 yards.
The Ghosts threatened late, sparked by a 50-yard pass from Connor Reed (3-of-13, 69 yards) to George Reed (2 catches, 55 yards), but the drive stalled inside the red zone with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter.
“A lot of the things we’re doing, it’s mental mistakes,” said first-year Abington coach Kevin Conlin. “They’re giving everything they’ve got, but we went offsides on 4th and 3 … you can’t have things like that. The mental mistakes and the minor mistakes add up and end up as 7-0 losses. It’s tough for them - losing two games by 7 points is tough to swallow.
“We’ve got a great running back. We’ve got a great wideout – we’ve just got to figure out a way to not only get him the ball, but to protect the quarterback to get him the ball. That’s probably been one of the underlying themes of the past two weeks. The kids are going to step up. We’ve got great kids and great seniors here.”
Both teams head into neighborhood rivalries next week. Abington (0-2) will look to get Conlin his first win next Friday when the Ghosts host Cheltenham, while Plymouth Whitemarsh (1-1) visits Norristown the next day.
Abington 0-0-0-0 —0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-7-0-0—7
NORTH PENN 23, DOWNINGTOWN EAST 7
Kelly McNamara put her name in the record books when she nailed a 22-yard field goal with 6:04 remaining in the third quarter of Friday night’s non-league showdown. The junior placekicker became the first female in North Penn history to connect on a field goal, but of far more importance to McNamara and her teammates was the fact that the field goal gave the Knights a lead they would not lose (10-7) en route to the big win.
Stealing the spotlight in the win were senior quarterback Reece Udinski and junior wide receiver Justis Henley. Udinski threw for 262 yards and a pair of touchdowns with Henley hauling in six of those passes for 143 yards and a touchdown.
With 1:11 remaining in the first half, it was Udinski’s 18-yard touchdown pass to Henley on fourth-and-13 that spotted the Knights a 7-0 lead. Early in the third quarter, the Cougars capitalized on a long kickoff return and a short field (16 yards) to score their lone touchdown, knotting the score 7-7.
Sparked by McNamara’s field goal, the Knights closed out the game with 17 unanswered points, tacking on a pair of touchdowns – the first on a Ricky Johns one-yard run and the second on a Udinski to Owen Thomas eight-yard pass. Johns led the Knights’ ground game with 96 yards.
While Udinski and company stole the spotlight, the Knights’ defense was turning in a stellar performance of its own, limited the Cougars to 108 yards of total offense.
North Penn will take its 2-0 record to Pennsbury next Friday night to close out its non-league season.
Downingtown East 0-0-7-0 7
North Penn 0-7-10-6 23
UPPER DUBLIN 41, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
For the second time in as many weeks, the Flying Cardinals put 41 points on the scoreboard, and for the second time in as many games, the defending district champions did not allow a point.
On Friday in Levittown, the Flying Cardinals, who led 14-0 after one quarter, took a 34-0 lead into halftime. Senior Justin Horn had another big night behind center, throwing for 322 yards and two touchdowns. All told, the Cardinals amassed more than 500 yards of total offense.
Phil Butler accounted for a pair of first quarter touchdowns – the first on a 27-yard run and the second on a run of 19 yards. He led the Cardinals ground game with 62 yards. Malik Bootman added 60 yards and a touchdown. Jalen Heim, JT Breslin and Jack Jamison each caught a TD pass with Jamison going 90 yards for a TD to close out the scoring in the third quarter.
Truman was led by David Akinwande with 61 yards on the ground.
Upper Dublin (2-0) is off until Sept. 16 when it will host Cheltenham in its SOL opener. Harry S Truman (0-2) will be at William Tennent on Friday.
Upper Dublin 14-20-7-0 41
Harry S Truman 0-0-0-0 0
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 28, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 7
Joshua Crecca found Kevin O’Hanlon with a 34-yard scoring strike just over two minutes into the first quarter, and the Bucks were off and running. Another Crecca completion set up a one-yard touchdown run by Jake Reichwein.
By halftime, that lead had grown to 21-0, thanks to a nine-yard TD scamper by Ryan Moylan, and the Bucks extended that to 28-0 before the Ryan Magrann took it in from one yard out to put the Hawks on the board.
Crecca paced the Bucks’ offense with 187 yards in the air – 110 to O’Hanlon.
Central Bucks West (2-0) will be on the road at Quakertown next Friday, and Council Rock South (0-2) will host Central Bucks South on Friday.
Council Rock South 0-0-0-0 7
Central Bucks West 14-7-0-7 28
SOUDERTON 26, QUAKERTOWN 20
The Indians improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2010, opening up a 26-14 lead and holding on for the win. Koby Khan rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Indians. The senior running back put Souderton on the board with a two-yard touchdown run, and Khan’s second TD run from two yards out gave the Indians a 13-0 lead early in the second quarter.
The Panthers’ Bobby Wheeler turned a blocked punt into a touchdown, but Joey Curotto got that back with a 58-yard touchdown pass to Camerin Carroll. Austin Clarke’s TD pass to Tim Shevlin made it a 19-14 game at the intermission. The Indians went on top 26-14 on Curotto’s three-yard touchdown run before the Panthers scored a fourth quarter TD to close out the scoring.
Souderton (2-0) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham on Friday, and Quakertown (0-2) will host Central Bucks West.
Quakertown 0-14-0-6 20
Souderton 7-12-7-0 26
PHOENIXVILLE 33, UPPER MORELAND 19
The Golden Bears and Phantoms found themselves deadlocked 7-7 early in the second quarter, but the Phantoms took a 20-13 lead into halftime on their way to the non-league win.
Turnovers played a major role in a game that saw just 12 yards separate the Golden Bears from their visitors. UM turned the ball over five times – four times in the second half.
Casey Decker led the Bears’ attack with 176 yards – 97 in the air.
Upper Moreland (1-1) will host Upper Perkiomen in a non-league contest next Friday.
Phoenixville 7-13-6-7 33
Upper Moreland 0-13-6-0 19
LA SALLE 28, PENNSBURY 0
The Falcons managed less than 100 yards of total offense against an Explorer squad eager to right its ship after a season-opening loss to North Penn. La Salle scored a touchdown in each of the four quarters en route to the shutout win.
Pennsbury (1-1) will host North Penn next Friday.
La Salle 7-7-7-7 28
Pennsbury 0-0-0-0 0
CHELTENHAM 33, BISHOP McDEVITT 29
CENTRAL 27, WISSAHICKON 21
The Trojans accumulated 440 total yards of offense but came up short on the scoreboard. Darryl Baldwin led the way with 200 yards and three touchdowns while quarterback Mike Schoenleber rushed for 100 yards and threw for 100 more.
The Trojans battled back in the second half to take the lead but couldn't overcome two fumble returns for touchdowns by Central in the second half.
Defensively, Marco Rivera, Mike Schoenleber and Jared Taylor forced fumbles while Rivera, Chad Dubin and Shane Ford recovered fumbles. Rasheed Wright also came up with an interception.
Wissahickon (1-1) will host Pottsville on Friday night.
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