The fourth time was the charm for the North Penn football team when it faced La Salle in Saturday’s PIAA Class AAAA Eastern Final. The win was the first for the Knights in four games against the Explorers the last two seasons. To view photos of the game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
‘This is our time.’
It was a phrase that was repeated often by coaches and players in the days before North Penn’s eagerly awaited showdown against a nemesis La Salle squad in Saturday’s PIAA Class AAAA Eastern Final. Three times the Knights had faced the Explorers during the past two seasons, and three times they came up short. The most recent was a 44-27 drubbing in the season opener for both teams in early September, the most heartbreaking - a 38-35 loss in last year’s Eastern Final.
The Knights once again found themselves in the role of underdog when they faced the Explorers in Saturday’s high stakes rematch at Northeast High School, but on this day, North Penn’s players would not be denied, willing their team to a gutsy 21-14 win over last year’s state runner-up.
“This is all a dream,” senior captain TJ Smink said. “Last night I didn’t sleep – I was just envisioning this game over and over in my head, praying to God for the win.
“To go 0-4 against a team – I didn’t want it to happen. We’re going to Hershey. There’s nothing better than this.”
The Knights are going to Hershey because they simply refused to lose. There was James Fielder – four weeks removed from being sidelined with a hematoma in his thigh muscle that threatened to end his season – leading the offense as he bulled his way to a 104-yard day with every one of those yards hard-earned. There was Ralph Reeves scoring three more touchdowns, bringing his total to seven in two games and earning the four-year varsity veteran his first trip to Hershey.
There also was a Knights’ defensive unit that frustrated standout La Salle quarterback Matt Magarity into a very ordinary 14-for-34 performance. Even more remarkable was the fact that the Knights shut out the Explorers in the second half - a far cry from the initial meeting between the two teams that saw La Salle score 34 second-half points to turn a 21-10 halftime deficit into a lopsided win.
“It’s all about putting pressure on their quarterback,” senior defensive end Shayne Watson said. “We couldn’t let him get any big plays. Our D-backs did their jobs, and our D-line shut down the run. Everybody did their job. It was a great day of football.”
“We really dug down deep,” senior linebacker Danny Wynne added. “Everyone played their position, and we just executed the plays. Nobody was being selfish. Everyone did what they were supposed to do, and it worked.”
This season is starting to read like a fairy tale for a Knight squad that staggered out of the gate to a 1-2 record but has now won 12 straight.
“We were down and out at 1-2,” said senior Corey Ernst, who delivered big plays in the air and on the ground for the Knights. “We came back and won the conference, and to make a run like this and get a chance to play in Hershey is just unbelievable.”
Since their 1-2 start, the Knights’ defense – torched for 95 points combined in losses to La Salle and St Joe’s Prep – has allowed an average of less than 10 points a game.
“After that 1-2 start, we were like, ‘We just really have to start playing,’ and we came together as a whole,” senior defensive tackle Josh Cook said. “Everybody just kept getting better and better and better, and it really paid off. It’s just working together as a family, as a team, and now we’re going to Hershey.”
As time was winding down in regulation, the Explorers – trailing 21-14 and down to their last gasp – had the ball near midfield. While the Knights’ defense was rising to the occasion yet one more time, the players on the sidelines were doing their part as well, imploring the North Penn faithful to rise to their feet and make some noise.
They didn’t need any encouragement. The noise on North Penn’s side of the field was deafening with the student section chanting in unison to the stunned La Salle fans, ‘Why so quiet?’
The celebration began in earnest when North Penn junior Steve Gozur came up with an interception in the game’s final minute to officially seal La Salle’s fate. In one unforgettable December afternoon, the Knights had put to rest the memories of losses past. Redemption had never tasted sweeter.
“It’s the greatest feeling in the world,” senior Matt Smith said. “It’s better than anything.”
“It’s amazing,” Cook said. “It’s a dream come true. I’ve been working for 12 years for this – from Cannoneers to middle school and now playing for the North Penn Knights. It’s one of the greatest things that could happen.”
“There’s not a better feeling,” Watson added. “I dreamed about this the whole year. Every year I’ve been playing football I dreamed about going to states, and we finally made it.”
On this day, the Explorers with all their high profile talent simply could not match the passion, the heart and the desire of a Knight squad with a singular goal.
“This is the best feeling I’ve ever had in my life,” Wynne said. “This is what we worked for as a team our whole year. This was our number one goal. We took it a game at a time. Today we executed our plays and played hard-nosed football.”
“This is what we worked for all season,” Ernst added. “This is one of the toughest games I’ve ever played in, if not the toughest, but it just shows the character of both teams that neither team would (budge).”
“This means the world to us,” senior Dan Gevirtz said. “It’s every single one of our dreams – to get to states and win states. It’s like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders. We lost to La Salle three times, and we finally beat them and we’re going to states. There’s no better feeling.”
What propelled the Knights’ to such lofty heights?
“Hard word and dedication,” Watson said. “Blood, sweat and tears. Every single one of these players worked hard offseason, preseason, during the season. Every practice we go hard and we stay excited. We do everything we have to do.”
“We proved everyone wrong,” Gevirtz added. “No one was showing us any respect. We lost guys like Dom Taggart, Craig Needhammer and all those guys, but we had other guys stepping up like Matt Smith, James Fielder and Kyle Mayfield.”
And that is just the beginning of a long list of contributors on a close-knit Knight squad that is heading to Hershey.
“I consider every single person on this team my brother,” Smink said. “We would all go into a fight against the odds, and we would stick in there with each other. I trust every single one of the people on my team. They’re my best friends, and there’s nothing better than this.”
“I feel like I just won the lottery,” Watson added. “That’s what it feels like. I will never forget this. I’ll tell my grandchildren about this.”
One more chapter remains to be written in the Knights’ storybook season when North Penn will face Central Dauphin in the state final on Saturday, 6 p.m., at HersheyPark Stadium. Whatever happens, the Knights will remember Saturday’s win over La Salle for a lifetime for it was indeed ‘their time.’
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