CB East and Abington were winners in SOL football action Saturday. Check the recaps.
SOL Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 27, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 20
This was a game for the ages, and no matter what happens the remainder of the season, it’s a safe bet this is the game they’ll remember, this is the one they’ll be talking about.
“We’ve been in a lot of great high school football games, and it’s just unfortunate we’ve come out on the short end of it,” East coach John Donnelly said. “The Pennsbury game was a one-point game, the Quakertown game was a rally at the end, Souderton was similar.
“I’m so happy for our guys to come out on the right side of it this time. West played a heck of a game, they really did.”
In the end, it was a game of inches as the Bucks – on the Patriots’ five-yard line with two seconds remaining- saw quarterback Gavin Grondahl’s pass to Eric Ojert come up just short of a touchdown and a potential tie.
The Patriots escaped with a win, thanks to a 28-yard Evan O’Donnell to Chris Lochetta touchdown strike with 1:10 remaining in regulation that broke a 17-17 tie.
“Evan O’Donnell and Chris Lochetta – these guys are lifetime buddies,” Donnelly said. “They live in the (same) neighborhood. They just have incredible chemistry together.
“Chris got a great release, and Evan threw a great ball. We had excellent protection. He just made a perfect throw. That was a well executed play.”
The final 70 seconds after East scored were wild indeed as West quarterback Gavin Grondahl led a thrilling drive that ended just five yards short of the goal line and overtime.
“When we scored with a minute 10, I just kept telling our guys – ‘It’s not over. There’s a lot of time left,’” Donnelly said. “I tried to remain as calm as I could, and everything erupted afterwards. The students rushed the field. It was a lot of fun and memory those guys will have for a long time. It was just a great community win.”
There were early indications this was going to be a war. Joseph Fay put the Bucks on the board with a six-yard touchdown run only to watch the Patriots reel off 17 unanswered points in a stretch that extended from the second quarter into the third. Included in that East run were a pair of short touchdown runs by Jake Ventresca and O’Donnell sandwiched around a 28-yard Michael Smigley field goal. ODonnell’s TD was set up by a Drew Bethke interception.
“Drew Bethke’s interception set us up with good field position, and he had a ton of tackles – he played well,” Donnelly said.
The Bucks came roaring back with Garrett Hitchens taking it in from 20 yards out to make it a 17-13 game at the end of three quarters. A 50-yard touchdown run by Fay gave the Bucks a 20-17 lead, and the two teams were deadlocked after Smigley’s second field goal of the game, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.
Donnelly acknowledged the strong efforts of several players who didn’t find their way into the spotlight.
“I think our kicking game was solid with Ian Leff and Michael Smigley,” the Patriots’ coach said. “I know Jake Ventresca had (27) rushes. I don’t know what he ended up with, but every yard was hard earned today because there was a lot of physicality on both sides. It was a tough, blue collar football game.”
Ventresca finished with 76 yards and one touchdown. O’Donnell threw for 215 yards and a TD. Lochetta and Will Silverman each caught seven passes – Lochetta for 113 yards and a TD and Silverman for 69 yards.
For the Bucks, Hitchens was the leading ground gainer with 110 while Fay had 77.
The win avenged last year’s devastating 14-13 loss at the hands of the Bucks.
“Last year, we had a field goal to win the game – it was kind of like a chip shot, and we did not make it,” Donnelly said. “That was a heartbreaker and certainly one the guys wanted to make amends for.
“Every game means so much, but this is certainly one the guys will remember for a long, long time. It’s bragging rights for a lifetime. We had probably two dozen alumni that came back and were on the sidelines.
“People sent text messages and e-mails during the week. We had different guest speakers. Jack Lamb came and spoke to the team on Friday. Mike Moosbrugger – who played in the late 90s and went down to Wake Forest – he came and talked to the team. Our guys understand, but they certainly let our players know how much it means to them and how much they are behind us and the whole mantra – once a Patriot always a Patriot.”
Central Bucks East (3-4, 1-2 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks South on Friday for another rivalry game.
“To finish a game and win a close football game, I think we’re a pretty good football team, and we have a ton to play for yet,” Donnelly said. “We’re rolling into CB South next week, which is a very good football team and well coached. It’s for the CB Cup, so our guys – just like they know kids from West, they know kids from South. They’ve grown up with these guys. We had a great crowd today, and I think they’ll travel with us to South next weekend.”
Central Bucks West (2-5, 1-3) will be on the road at North Penn.
Central Bucks West 0-7-6-7 20
Central Bucks East 0-10-7-10 27
ABINGTON 24, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 8
The Ghosts led from wire to wire, although they had a pair of fumbles to open the game. The Indians’ drives after recovering the fumbles stalled, thanks to a pair of Keith Hudoka interceptions with the second leading to an Abington touchdown.
A one-yard touchdown by Tamir Berthau gave the Ghosts a 7-0 lead after one quarter, and after Reese Gibbs nailed a 29-yard, Chris Kretchman scored from five yards out to send the Ghosts into halftime with a 17-0 lead.
The two teams exchanged touchdowns in the second half with Andrick Wesh scoring from two yards, and Rock North’s Robbie Ranelli scoring on a 12-yard run.
Wesh (68 yards) and Chance Byrd (68 yards) led the Ghosts’ ground game. Berthau threw for 65 yards.
For the Indians, Mike Sylvester’s 63 yards in the air led the offense.
Abington (4-3, 2-2 SOL) will host Harry S Truman on Friday, and Council Rock North (1-6, 0-4) will travel to Souderton for a non-league game Friday.
Abington 7-10-0-7 24
Council Rock North 0-0-0-8 8
Friday, Oct. 5 (Expanded game wrap)
SOL National Conference
HARRY S TRUMAN 29, PENNSBURY 24
The Tigers saved their best for last, rallying from a 17-7 halftime deficit to outscore the Falcons 22-7 in the second half. A Javeer Peterson interception brought an abrupt end to the Falcons’ last-ditch effort for a comeback and preserved the win.
The win was Truman’s first over Pennsbury since 2001, coming on the heels of the program’s first win over Neshaminy since 1995. It also marked the return of long-time Pennsbury coach Galen Snyder and his former assistant, Mike LaPalombara, whose roles are now reversed at Truman. More importantly, the gutsy win puts Truman in an excellent position to compete for the conference title. The Tigers and Neshaminy are both 3-1 in conference play, trailing only Council Rock South (3-0).
It's an enviable position but not one coach Mike LaPalombara gave a lot of thought to heading into the season.
"Last year we didn't beat Pennsbury, we didn't beat Neshaminy and we didn't beat Abington – the three big schools around the area that we would normally face," the Tigers' coach said. "We had a good football team, and we knew the kids coming back.
"I knew we would have a good team again, but as far as what they were going to achieve, I was just trying to set the goals for us like – get a winning season, make the playoffs and, if possible, challenge for the league title. As we started moving along in the beginning of the season, I could see some things, and we started thinking in our own minds that maybe there were expectations to compete for that, but I don't think out of the get-go because we were all trying to stay focused on the smaller steps rather than the bigger ones."
The Tigers kept their title hopes very much alive with a second-half comeback that began with a defensive stand and a three-and-out for the Falcons. On the Tigers’ first possession of the second half, Deondre Winton – who’s making a habit of delivering big plays – took it to the house from 32 yards out to make it a 17-14 game.
Another three-and-out for the Falcons set the stage for a three-yard touchdown run by Terrence Rodgers that put the Tigers on top 21-17 at the end of three quarters. The Falcons weren’t finished yet and Jayvon McNeil capped a scoring drive with a one-yard plunge to give Pennsbury a 24-21 lead.
Truman – once again displaying a resiliency that has been its trademark – answered with a scoring drive that included a critical fourth down conversion. Winton once again put the finishing touches on the drive, taking it in from 22 yards out. A successful two-point conversion from quarterback Dylan Snelling to Winton put the Tigers on top 29-24, a score that held until the final horn.
Earlier, the Falcons’ defense forced a three-and-out on the Tigers’ opening possession of the game, but a muffed punt gave the Tigers possession at the Falcons’ 27-yard line. Two plays later, Terrence Rodgers raced in from 27 yards out for a 7-0 lead.
Freshman Brady Burgfectel put the Falcons on the board with a 21-yard field goal, and a pair Drew Hensor touchdown runs – the first from 55 yards – put the Falcons on top 17-7 at halftime.There was not a whole lot to suggest a Tiger comeback in the second half.
"At halftime, we made a couple of adjustments to where we wanted to attack them instead of what we had originally thought," LaPalombara said. "We talked to the kids – we tried to instill in them that they were getting pushed around on the football field by Pennsbury, and they were. Everything was just a bit lethargic. Were some of the kids thinking we were just going to win the game? Are they still thinking about the Neshaminy win? Who knows what was on their minds, but they definitely were not putting it all out there.
"On the defensive line and the offensive line, we weren't fighting back. We were letting them just eat us up. We brought that to the kids' attention when we were in the locker room. I think they got the message, and they came out and fought back. I think that was the difference. I think they had enough of being pushed around out there."
Winton (84 yards) and Rodgers (72 yards) led the Tigers on the ground. Hensor paced the Falcons, finishing with 105 yards and two TDs on the ground and 51 yards in the air.
According to LaPalombara, there were countless players who contributed to the win.
"You have the offensive line fighting back, the defensive line fighting back," the Tigers' coach said. "You have Javeer (Peterson) getting that big pick at the end, and Javeer was such a leader throughout the whole thing.
"Dylan (Snelling), our quarterback, stepped up and was a leader the whole way. Deondre Winton – the impact he made once he was able to get himself going. TJ Rodgers, as usual, playing the way he was playing. You have Gabe Gipli, James Koliyah, Enzo Poulson – it's crazy. I know I'm leaving people out.
"In the first half, it was what it was, and in the second half, they came out and found themselves and really played football, and it was the whole team. Like I told the kids that didn't even get in the game, I said, 'You guys have to get more excited on the sidelines' because the team needed that complete energy. Without that energy, I'm not sure they would have continued to fight as long as they did throughout the fourth quarter because we really needed to keep going. They were getting tired, but when the ball was snapped, they just kept fighting."
The Tigers, according to their coach, are creating a buzz in the school and community.
"I have been around that district for so long teaching there, and last year it was so exciting because the tone of the school year really seemed to continue, for the most part, from the football season," LaPalombara said. "There was excitement. Kids that don't do anything in the school – they were feeling the excitement.
"The school spirit this year is really high. The whole school is feeling it, and if the school is feeling it, the community is feeling it because the kids are out in the community. It's having an impact on the whole community.
"I really like it because for years it's like you're always down at the next level below, and the kids walking around the hallways – it just always seemed to me that they were feeling like that. This gives them that opportunity to not be that way right now. Who knows what's going to happen next year and the years to come, but at least right now the way we're going, they have this year to celebrate, and they really should."
The turnaround, according to LaPalombara, began before he took over the helm last year.
"When (former coach) Ed Cubbage came in, we had some newer people in leadership in the school, and it became a little more positive," the Tigers' coach said. "I think that has continued.
"Gretchen Cammiso is our AD, and she's done such a good job. She's really into it completely, so a lot of credit for all of this goes to her. It's amazing – this is not something that's one, two, three people. It's an entire group of people that are doing this, and the kids are included in that. Our trainer, our principal, our athletic director, our teachers – everybody plays their own little role, whether they know it or not. What everybody does has an impact on the whole thing, so it's really cool."
Harry S Truman (6-1, 3-1 SOL) will travel to Abington Friday.
"We have Abington coming up, Pennridge and Bensalem – Bensalem's our rival, and Abington and Pennridge are really good," LaPalombara said. "It's not over yet."
Pennsbury (3-4, 2-1) will be on the road at Council Rock South for a conference showdown.
Harry S Truman 7-0-14-8 29
Pennsbury 3-14-0-7 24
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