Three SOL football teams were winners on Friday night. Check out all the action.
Stats used in the Pennsbury and Springfield wraps below are provided courtesy of Calkins Media. For complete game stories, please visit the web site www.PhillyBurbs.com<http://www.PhillyBurbs.com>.
#1-5 DOWNINGTOWN EAST 21, #1-4 QUAKERTOWN 0
By Scott Huff
Quakertown – Quakertown captured a Suburban One League Continental Conference championship – captured a PIAA Quad-A District One first round playoff game victory over Pennridge – and captured ten wins over the course of a miraculous 2014 football season – by manufacturing big plays.
However, the stunned Panthers watched helplessly as visiting Downingtown East made the big plays, jettisoning Quakertown from the playoffs with a 21-0 victory. Downingtown East will move on to meet Coatesville in a PIAA Quad-A District One semifinal game next week – while the Panthers will prep for their Thanksgiving morning rematch with Pennridge.
“We typically have been the team all year that has come up with the big plays to win games,” said Quakertown head coach George Banas. “It was uncharacteristic of us not to be able to come up with the big plays tonight.
“Give Downingtown East a ton of credit for making the plays they needed to make to win the game,” added Banas. “They have a very good football team.”
The first huge play for the Cougars came on Quakertown’s first offensive possession of the second period. On a second-and-eight at the Cougar 40-yard line, quarterback Alec Vera connected with a wide-open John Lilley for a 36-yard gain. However, the ball was stripped from the junior tight end at the four-yard line, and the ball was fumbled through the end zone was a touchback.
“That was huge,” said Banas. “If we score there, we go up 7-0 and maybe we hold the lead until the half and it is a different ballgame. But that didn’t happen, and they came back to get the two scores before the half.”
Downingtown East put together its most impressive drive in the second period. The Cougars marched 63-yards on nine plays and scored on a 2-yard touchdown burst by Keith Connor. Connor would finish with a game-high 133 yards on 29 carries.
The second big play that helped determine the game in East’s favor came on a scoring drive late in the second period.
Senior quarterback Andrew Hudson began to locate the Cougars heralded 6-foot, 7-inch junior tight end Cary Angeline. Angeline – who will be making a recruiting trip to Miami University on Saturday and is coveted by a number of Division One colleges – caught a 30-yard pass at the outset of the drive.
Angeline also closed out the drive with – on a fourth-and-one – a 31-yard touchdown reception from Hudson. On the play, he was initially wide open in the Panther secondary and finished off the touchdown run by breaking a number of Quakertown tackles. Angeline – who did not catch a single pass in the second half – finished the night with five catches for 94 yards and the touchdown.
“We had something called there that we just didn’t execute,” said Banas. “You don’t allow their go-to guy to get the ball in that situation.”
Downingtown East would put the game away with a fourth period score. The Cougars began to wear down the Panther defense and ground out an eight-play scoring drive – all running plays – that covered 65 yards. Connor – who carried six times on the drive for 48 yards – capped the scoring march with a 26-yard run. Drew Brennan concluded the scoring for the night with an extra point to boost the lead to 21-0.
The Quakertown defense played well enough, but the Panther offense struggled all night. Q-town would manage just six first downs the entire game – and only one in the second half. The Blue & White managed a meager 61 yards rushing and only 141 yards of total offense.
“I am proud of the way the kids have played this season,” said Banas. “We have had a tremendous season – won a championship – beat Pennridge in a playoff game, and we still get a chance to end the season with a win on Thanksgiving. I can’t complain.”
“We will take the week off and get ourselves healthy for Thanksgiving,” said standout Quakertown senior linebacker Hunter Nice. “We will put this game behind us – and we’ll be ready to play Pennridge.”
Quakertown was able to make all the big plays in the 14-10 win over the Rams in that District One first round meeting – and the Panthers hope that history will be able to repeat itself on Thanksgiving morning.
Downingtown East Cougars 0 14 0 7 * 21
Quakertown Panthers 0 0 0 0 * 0
DE: Keith Connor 2 run (kick failed)
DE: Cary Angeline 31 pass from Andrew Hudson (Connor run)
DE: Connor 26 run (Drew Brennan kick)
Downingtown East Quakertown
20 First Downs 6
212 Rushing Yards 61
137 Passing Yards 80
349 Total Offense 141
4-35 Punts / Average 9-41
4-40 Penalties / Yards 5-39
Downingtown East
Rushing: Keith Connor 29-133 & 2 TD; Saunders Healy 10-72; Dan Chisena 1-21; Jack Kincade 4-0; and Andrew Hudson 5 (minus 4). Totals 49-212 & 2 TD.
Passing: Andrew Hudson 9-20-1; 123 yards & TD; Saunders Healy 2-3-0; 14 yards. Total 11-23-137 & TD.
Receiving: Cary Angeline 5-94 & TD; Chisena 3-26; Ben Davis 1-11; Ethan Harris 1-8; Jake Hanford 1-8. Totals 11-137 & TD.
Quakertown
Rushing: Rob Burns 13-27; Nick Bonomo 4-15; Jon Potynski 1-12; Aaron Besch 1-8; Tyler Kishbaugh 1-1; and Alec Vera 13 (minus 3). Totals 33-61.
Passing: Alec Vera 5-14-0; 80 yards.
Receiving: Luke Wood 3-44; John Lilley 1-36; and Besch 1-0. Totals 5-80.
Interceptions: Jon Potynski.
#1-2 PENNSBURY 45, #1-6 GARNET VALLEY 14
The Falcons exploded for 28 fourth quarter points, turning a tightly-contested game into a rout. When it was over, it was easy to forget that for one half the two teams exchanged touchdowns and went into halftime deadlocked 14-14.
Charles Snorweah picked up where he left off last week, racing in from 56 yards to give the Falcons – after a Josh Leon extra point – a 7-0 lead with 6:25 to play in the first period. The Jaguars rallied to knot the score later in the frame. Raheem Thompson’s eight-yard TD run gave the Falcons a 14-7 lead, but again the Jaguars answered, knotting the score at the intermission.
Leon capped a time-consuming drive in the third period by kicking a 39-yard field goal to put the Falcons on top 17-14 lead. The Jaguars appeared ready to answer but couldn’t covert a fourth down.
The rest of the night belonged to the Falcons.
Snorweah raced 60 yards for the score and a 24-14 Pennsbury lead. Once again the Jaguars moved the ball, but their drive ended when junior Jack Kenney recovered a fumble on the Falcons’ 32-yard line. This time it was quarterback Mike Alley delivering the big play, a 57-yard touchdown run. Pennsbury’s Rob Daly ran his first of two fourth-quarter interceptions back for a touchdown, and for good measure, Victor Delgado added a 31-yard touchdown run to cap off a 28-point fourth quarter scoring explosion.
Snorweah had another huge night for the Falcons, accumulating 187 yards on the ground. Alley added 116 yards on a night that saw the Falcons’ ground game account for 481 yards – 332 in the second half.
The second-seeded Falcons (11-1) will host sixth-seeded Upper Dublin in an all-SOL district semifinal match on Friday night.
Garnet Valley 7-7-0-0 14
Pennsbury 7-7-3-18 45
#1-6 UPPER DUBLIN 41, #1-3 BAYARD RUSTIN 23
(To read Dave Conard’s complete game recap and stats, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/article/content/upper-dublin-rolls-win-over-rustin-0048614)
The Flying Cardinals – apparently tired of all the talk about being the small team from the small SOL American Conference – manhandled a Golden Knight squad that had just one loss and plays in the vaunted Ches-Mont. The Cardinals rallied from a 23-14 deficit to trail by just two (23-21) at halftime. The second half belonged to Upper Dublin as the Flying Cardinals limited the Golden Knights to just 59 yards of total offense and only three first downs.
They outscored their hosts 20-0 in the second half, and the fun began when junior quarterback Ryan Stover found Matt Thompson for a 62-yard touchdown, giving the Cardinals a lead they would not lose. By the time it was over, Stover had completed 21-of-29 passes for 282 yards and four touchdowns. Thompson was his favorite target, finishing the night with nine receptions for 145 yards and three TDs. John Barrett had five catches for 76 yards. John Lee led the Cardinals’ rushing attack with 99 yards and one touchdown on nine carries. For the game, UD had 451 yards of total offense to just 290 for the Golden Knights.
Upper Dublin (11-1) will travel to Fairless Hills for an all-SOL district showdown at Pennsbury.
Upper Dublin 7-14-13-7 41
Bayard Rustin 14-9-0-0 23
Class AA
#1-4 SPRINGFIELD-MONTCO 15, #1-1 BRISTOL 14
No one breathed easily until the final horn sounded on Friday night’s district thriller at Harry S Truman, but the Spartans escaped with a 15-14 win to capture their program’s first District One AA title.
Springfield took a 7-0 lead in the opening quarter when Martin Worgan took it in from five yards out. That lead held until the third quarter when Donte Simmons went to work, putting his team on the scoreboard with a 60-yard run. The two-point conversion attempt failed, and the Spartans still led 7-6.
That lead was erased in the fourth quarter, thanks to another Simmons’ TD run, this from three years out. Once again the two-point conversion attempt failed, but the top-seeded Warriors led 12-7 with 8:14 remaining in regulation.
The Spartans answered with a clutch drive of their own, and Brett Righter capped off a drive that featured a whole lot of Worgan with an 11-yard touchdown run. Quarterback Chris Stone found Drew Toutkoushian for the two-point conversion and a 15-12 lead. A late safety by the Warriors in the closing seconds made it a 15-14 game.
Springfield (Montco) 7-0-0-8 15
Bristol 0-0-6-8 14
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