Upper Dublin defeated PW in an SOL American Conference showdown Friday. Check back to view game photos.
By Scott Huff
Plymouth Meeting – Upper Dublin quarterback Ryan Stover fired a career high five touchdown passes and also ran for a sixth touchdown – and yet the marvelous senior may not have been the brightest star for the unbeaten Cardinals (7-0, 4-0) in a 42-0 victory over host Plymouth Whitemarsh (5-2, 2-2).
“I have told everyone all year that our defensive unit is the best unit on our football team,” said Upper Dublin head coach Bret Stover as his defensive team recorded five sacks – recovered thre fumbles – had an interception – and limited the explosive PW offense to just 160 yards of total offense and no points. “Our linebackers (Henry Winebrake, Jack Rapine, and Stacey Gardner) really fly to the football. We lost Stacey early in the game (ankle injury), but both Henry and Jack played great games tonight – and both of them are three-year starters.
“Henry is an old-school linebacker that goes hard from sideline to sideline,” added Stover of his senior tri-captain. “And Jack sets the edge and makes play after play.”
“Getting a shutout is our defensive goal every game,” said Winebrake who also starts at offensive guard. “We have three shutouts in a row now, and now we have to keep it up next week.”
Upper Dublin – which opened its SOL American Conference season with a 42-6 win over Cheltenham – has now shut out Springfield (62-0), Wissahickon (49-0), and PW (42-0) the last three weeks. Overall, the Cardinals have outscored SOL American Conference opponents 195-6.
“In order for us to win the game we felt that we had to get some long drives,” said Plymouth Whitemarsh head coach Dan Chang. “We had to sustain drives – but those linebackers really fly to the ball and kept us from doing that.
“Nafeese (Nasir) played with a banged up shoulder,” added Chang of his gifted running back who managed 101 tough yards on 20 carries over the first three quarters. “But we had to pull him in the fourth quarter.
“Stover has to be considered one of the premier quarterbacks in the state,” continued Chang. “The thing that impresses me the most is that he makes great decisions.”
Stover completed 17-of-24 passes for 219 yards and threw his five touchdown passes to five different receivers. And the lanky 210-pound signal caller completed passes to nine different receivers.
“The way that our defense plays – the offense doesn’t have to put up big numbers, but we still want to take care of business,” said Stover – the QB. “It was a good feeling to be able to play four quarters tonight. It was good to prove that we can play a whole game.”
“We really did need to come out and see if we could play four quarters,” said Stover – the Head Coach. “The score really didn’t show it – but PW gave us a good test tonight.”
The score at the close of the first half was a competitive 14-0 in favor of the Cardinals. Upper Dublin became the Flying Cardinals in the third quarter, scoring 21 points to put the game away.
Upper Dublin scored on its first drive of the ballgame. Stover capped an eight-play, 80-yard drive with a gorgeous 19-yard touchdown strike to Michael Sowers. Todd Sprit would connect on the first of his six extra point attempts.
Stover would cap the second Cardinal scoring drive in the second period on a 4-yard touchdown run. The scoring drive covered five plays and 33 yards and was set up by a fumble recovery by Isaiah Henrich.
Upper Dublin scored the first of its three third period touchdowns on a 9-yard scoring pass from Stover to Kalief Lee. The touchdown pass culminated a scoring march that covered nine plays and 51 yards.
Upper Dublin scored the second of its three third period touchdowns on a 9-yard pass from Stover to Danny Boggs. The TD pass capped a short four-play drive that covered just 35 yards.
Upper Dublin scored the third of its three third period touchdowns on a 39-yard pass from Stover to Cole Swiger. The drive was set up by a fumble recovery by Winebrake.
The final Upper Dublin score came in the fourth period as Stover fired a 14-yard touchdown pass to Rockwell Wright. The drive was set up by an interception by George Weems.
Next up for the Cardinals will be a date with Upper Moreland. The Golden Bears (6-1, 3-1) own a 49-35 victory over PW and hope to compete with Upper Dublin with a share of the conference lead on the line.
“It’s all about every Friday night,” said Stover – the QB. “Upper Moreland will be a good test for us.”
A test that the Upper Dublin defense will be glad to take.
Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals 7 7 21 7 – 42
Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials 0 0 0 0 – 0
UD: Michael Sowers 19 pass from Ryan Stover (Todd Spirt kick)
UD: Stover 4 run (Spirt kick)
UD: Kalief Lee 9 pass from Stover (Spirt kick)
UD: Danny Boggs 9 pass from Stover (Spirt kick)
UD: Cole Swiger 39 pass from Stover (Spirt kick)
UD: Rockwell Wright 14 pass from Stover (Spirt kick)
Upper Dublin PW Colonials
18 First Downs 11
135 Yards Rushing 135
224 Yards Passing 25
359 Total Offense 160
2-34 Punts / Average 3-34
6-60 Penalties / Yards 5-40
Upper Dublin Cardinals
Rushing: Ryan Stover 8-64 & TD; Kalief Lee 12-50; Justin Horn 1-9; Phil Butler 2-6; David Bryant 1-4; Naiim Huff 1-4; and Stacey Gardner 1 (-2). Totals – 26-135 & TD.
Passing: Stover 17-24-1; 219 yards & 5 TD; Horn 1-1-0; 5 yards. Totals 18-25-1; 224 yards & 5 TD.
Receiving: Michael Sowers 3-57 & TD; Cole Swiger 1-39 & TD; Kalief Lee 3-32 & TD; Rockwell Wright 2-21 & TD; Danny Boggs 2-21 & TD; Jack Rapine 2-18; Stacey Gardner 1-14; Evan Scott 1-10; James Lampmann 2-7; and EJ Livriere 1-5. Totals 18-224 & 5 TD.
Interceptions: George Weems.
Plymouth Whitemarsh
Rushing: Nafeese Nasir 20-101; Jake Winterbottom 7-48; Blaise Gravinese 5-22; and Joe Stoberi 6 (-36). Totals 38-135.
Passing: Joe Stoberi 3-7-1; 20 yards; Zach Zygmunt 1-1-0; 5 yards. Totals 4-8-1; 25 yards.
Receiving: Ross Jair 1-14; Blaise Gravinese 2-6; and Ben Billings 1-5. Totals 4-25 yards.
Interceptions: Mike Swider.
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