Central Bucks West defeated second-seeded Perk Valley 14-13 and earned a spot in next week’s District 1 6A final. Photos provided courtesy of Kim Supko. Check back for a gallery of photos: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f745224687
District 1 6A semifinal
#1-11 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 14, #1-2 PERKIOMEN VALLEY 13
Jack Williams called it “football weather.”
“We love it,” the Central Bucks West junior said. “We’re playing Christmas music at practice in warmups. We’re loving it. If we (aren’t) playing in this weather, we aren’t doing it right.
For a while, it looked as though Friday’s football weather – which included a driving snow shower as the game got underway – would not be the Bucks’ ally as they struggled mightily to generate any kind of offense in the less-than-ideal conditions.
But in what has been something close to a magical postseason, the Bucks continued ‘doing it right,’ and they found a way to generate just enough offense and rode a strong defensive effort to a win that vaulted the 11th-seeded squad into next Friday’s District 1 6A final at top-seeded Garnet Valley.
“It’s just amazing,” Williams said. “It’s a great group of guys – we just kept battling. Man, I love these kids.”
The Bucks – arguably the hottest team in District 1 – have won eight of nine games after a 1-3 start.
“In the grand scheme of things, I had no clue what was going to happen – I wasn’t in over my head saying, ‘We’re going to make it to the 
district championship,’” West junior Conor McFadden said. “I didn’t know that, but week by week, I just saw – especially when the playoffs started – that new team to go after, and I would think, ‘We can beat this team. This is going to be a good game, but I think we have it in us.’
“Last year, we got taken out in the second round (of districts), and it was a bummer. When the game ended, it was – ‘Am I actually not going to practice tomorrow? Am I actually not playing a game next week?’ This feels awesome.”
Perk Valley entered Friday’s semifinal averaging close to 33 points a game, but the Bucks – after allowing 35 in their wild win over North Penn a week earlier – reverted to form, turning in a tenacious defensive effort.
“I think we all knew that (North Penn game) wasn’t necessarily a true (indicator) of who we were defensively,” West coach Rob Rowan said. “Look, North Penn is really good offensively. They led the SOL in scoring, they’ve got a lot of weapons, so this was more – ‘Let’s get back to playing our brand.’
“Our guys worked hard all week. I thought that showed tonight. I thought defensively the effort was off the charts. It was just an excellent
defensive effort at every level. Our goal was just to play sound really fundamental defense, and I think we did.”
The Bucks’ defense allowed two touchdowns – one came on a short field after a West turnover, and the other came the result of something close to a Hail Mary to end the first half.
“I feel like this week we set our defense back – we’re like, ‘this is who we are,’” Williams said. “We set the tone. We’re a smaller group, and we just wanted to let them know, ‘We’re going to fight harder, we want it more, we’re just going to keep coming at you.’”
It was Williams’ pick six with five minutes remaining in the opening quarter that spotted the Bucks a 7-0 lead after Ryan Clemens’ extra point. The interception – a defensive lineman’s dream – was returned 20 yards for a TD, and it came on the Vikings’ first play from their own 23 after a botched snap on a failed 30-yard field goal attempt by the Bucks.
“It was amazing,” Williams said of his pick six. “I saw the ball come up, made a play, went into the end zone.”
That lead was short-lived as the Vikings answered with a touchdown, benefitting from an interception of their own and a 21-yard touchdown run by Ryan Klimek to knot the score 7-7.
It looked as though that score would hold until halftime, but on fourth-and-18 at West’s 30-yard line with time winding down, PV quarterback Patrick MacDonald threw up a prayer that was caught in the end zone to send the Vikings into halftime – after a failed extra point that was the difference in the game – with a 13-7 lead.
“It was 50-50 play in the end zone, the kid made a great play, it was a great pass – sometimes you’re going to give those up,” Rowan said.
Neither team could find its offense in the third quarter, and after a particularly frustrating three-and-out series that saw the Bucks come up short on third and a long yard, Rowan had some spirited words for his offensive line.
“It’s inexcusable,” the West coach said. “It’s one yard, it’s inexcusable, and we always say – if you can’t get one yard, you don’t deserve to win. I was just so upset because we’re better than that. We talk about it all the time – if you can’t get a yard, you don’t deserve to win. We had to get a yard there.”
The Bucks’ defense forced another three-and-out for the Vikings, and the offense – looking far more inspired – took the field in dire need of a big play. That’s exactly what they got as Ganz Cooper hooked up with McFadden, who turned it into a 20-yard gain down the sideline, and the Bucks’ offense had a pulse.
“I love getting my hands on the ball because I know every time I do – it’s them wanting to take a shot or do something to get me out on the field and running because they know I have speed, and it’s fun,” McFadden said.
Eli Boehm followed with back-go-back runs of 12 and nine yards, and Vinny Cherubini carried 10 yards for another first down.
McFadden kept the drive alive and took the ball to the Vikings’ 15-yard line after coming up with a deflected pass for a 13-yard gain. Cherubini’s determined 14-yard run to the one-yard line set up a one-yard TD by Cooper with 2:41 remaining in the third quarter. Clemens’ extra point gave the Bucks a 14-13 lead.
“You can’t stop it all at the end of the day,” Rowan said. “You can’t take him (McFadden) away and take four (Boehm) away and take eight (Cherubini) away, and you can’t take three (Cooper) away, and you can’t take seven (Williams) away because he’s developing into a really, really good threat.”
Late in the fourth quarter, a fumble recovery by the Bucks on a punt at the Vikings’ 22-yard line put an exclamation point on the win.
McFadden, who was once again a difference maker, finished a big night with five catches for 120 yards to lead the Bucks, but he doesn’t share Williams’ affinity for the frigid conditions.
“The temperature – it scares me because I’m a big track guy, and I’ve had injuries to my legs in the past,” the junior track standout said. “I know coldness is dangerous. I don’t like it, but once I warm up, it’s not a problem for me.”
West – for the second time in as many weeks – came back from a halftime deficit to earn the win. In their win over North Penn last week, the Knights allowed just three points in the second half after giving up 32 in the first half. They shut out the Vikings in the second half of Friday’s win
“I’m so proud of the resiliency of this group – they just don’t flinch,” Rowan said. “I’m proud of this team and what it means to the community and what they get to experience with the community backing them so strongly. I’m just so proud of them.”
Central Bucks West (9-4, 5-2 SOL) will travel to top-seeded Garnet Valley for Friday’s District 1 6A title game at 7 p.m. The Bucks – who saw their season end in a 41-13 loss to Garnet Valley last year – fell to the Jaguars 14-7 in their season opener on August 26. A whole lot has changed since then.
“Last year they knocked us out, they knocked the team out in 2017 – my brother (Zane Williams) played on that team,” Williams said. “We wanted this game. We love it.
“Can’t wait to get out at practice next week. We’re having too much fun.”
Central Bucks West 0-7-7-0 14
Perkiomen Valley 0-13-0-0 13
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