Upper Moreland & Hatboro-Horsham were winners in Friday night’s SOL American Conference opener. UM/Wissahickon photos courtesy of Michael Rice Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos. CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports’ FOOTBALL GALLERIES.
UPPER MORELAND 14, WISSAHICKON 0
If the Golden Bears needed a wake-up call after rolling to a 4-0 record, they got it with last week’s 33-6 loss at West Chester Henderson. Staring the Bears in the face seven days later in Friday’s conference opener was a Trojan squad that – along with UM – was favored to challenge for the conference crown.
How would the Bears respond?
Coach Adam Beach needn’t have worried. Sparked by a textbook defensive effort and a strong ground game led
by Kyle Moore and Santino Rodriguez, the Golden Bears notched an impressive 14-0 win over the visiting Trojans.
“We got punched in the face last week,” Beach said. “We talked about playing with courage and reading our keys and just doing our job. I thought our kids did a great job, especially our seniors. No one pointed fingers, no one blamed anyone else. Everyone knew what they had to do to get better to help us win.
“As the game went on, the confidence grew because they were doing what they were coached, and they were having success.”
And as bounce-back wins go, this was a good one.
“It was a really good team win,” Beach said. “You saw the score last week. I thought our kids really rallied and kind of got refocused and bought into the scheme and the coaching. They stuck together, and it was great to see them come out and have some success.”
After coming up with a defensive stop of the Trojans on their first possession, the Golden Bears put together a long scoring drive that was capped with a two-yard touchdown run by Moore and a 6-0 lead.
“It was a lot of running on this drive, a lot of running,” Beach said.
The Golden Bears came up with another defensive stop but turned the ball back over to the Trojans.
“We’re inside the 20, and we throw an interception,” Beach said. “They get the ball, they get a first down, and then they throw an interception.”
Brody Hughes came up with the pick for UM, and the Golden Bears turned it into seven points when Moore scored his second touchdown of the day – this one from 13 yards.
“He broke at least two or three tackles – it was a really nice run for him,” Beach said.
The Bears went for two and Moore ran it in, giving the Bears a 14-0 lead heading into halftime.
“Second half, we get the ball, we start the drive, and we throw another pick,” Beach said. “They put together a drive and get down to the one-yard line, and we stopped them on fourth-and-one. That was a really big moment for us in the game, but now we’re on the one.
“We don’t get the ball to the 10 – we get the ball to the eight, and we have to punt. Grey Tucker had a great kick. They had no return, and he got them all the way out to the 45. It was a great kick by Grey under duress in the end zone, and that’s a key play.”
The Bears came up with stops on first and second down. On third down, Rodriguez burst through the line for a sack.
“He had a great sack and knocks them back to fourth-and-20 because they were probably going to go for it because they’re on their side of the 50, so that sack made them punt the ball,” Beach said. “We get the ball and we’re just running the ball, and we get the ball inside the 20, and we turn the ball over on downs.”
It was still a 14-0 game heading into the fourth quarter when the Trojans – benefitting from a ‘chunk play’ – were on the move.
“They had a nice 30-yard pass, and they get down inside our 20,” Beach said. “It was about three minutes to go in the game, and we get a pick in the end zone. BJ Chambers picks off the pass and takes it out to the 20. We get a couple of first downs, and that’s the game.”
The important win was in the books for the Golden Bears, and it was their defense that played a starring role.
“It was a group effort,” Beach said. “It wasn’t just one guy. All three levels were doing well. They were trying to confuse us with motion and things like that. The defensive communication was stellar We were not ever out of position, and we were able to make the plays.
“Obviously, we had the big plays – Santino (Rodriguez) has a sack. Connor Lennox again busts through for a great sack, and Ethan Starr had a sack late in the game when they’re trying to run the quarterback around the weak side.
“Noah Fuchs, who is basically the quarterback of our defense, was really great for checks. Ben Holcombe, Julian Melendez – everyone stepped up and made plays. It was a great team effort, and it was really good to see.”
On offense, Rodriguez and Moore were the workhorses.
“They ran the ball extremely well,” Beach said. “With this team, it’s about the team. That’s the strength of us. We stay together, and we’re for each other.”
Up next: Upper Moreland (5-1, 1-0 SOL) will be on the road at Harry S Truman Friday, and Wissahickon (4-2, 0-1) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Friday.
Wissahickon 0-0-0-0 0
Upper Moreland 7-7-0-0 14
HATBORO-HORSHAM 24, WILLIAM TENNENT 14
There was nothing flashy about it – the way the Hatters controlled the line of scrimmage, grinding out one time-consuming drive after another, but it certainly was effective with the end result a 24-14 win over the Panthers.
In the first quarter, quarterback Brendan Heaphy scored on a one-yard plunge to cap a 51-yard scoring drive. After the Panthers evened the score in the second quarter on a one-yard run by Gavin Mensch, Heaphy capped a 74-yard touchdown drive with another one-yard quarterback keeper that sent the Hatters into halftime with a 14-7 lead.
“We had fairly long drives, but they were kind of methodical,” Hatters’ coach Tom Butts said. “They were kind of just grinding out. I don’t think we had more than a 10 or 15-yard play.”
The Panthers evened the score on a 10-yard touchdown run by Braden Rementer, but the Hatters had an immediate answer, regaining the lead (21-14) after a 15-yard touchdown run by Joey Biermaas.
“He’s been kind of a dude for us this year,” Butts said of Biermaas, whose 118 yards rushing led the Hatters.
Heaphy gave Hatboro-Horsham a two-score advantage when he split the uprights on a 30-yard field goal for the 24-14 final.
“We’re 1-0 in the league now, and that’s kind of a big deal,” Butts said. “It’s kind of a fresh restart for us.
“I think we played a pretty tough schedule this year, and I think we’re road tested, so to speak, which has helped us out with the last two games.”
The Hatters’ coach lauded the efforts of his line play on both sides of the football.
“Up front is where we’re living – our line on both sides of the ball has been the reason we won the last two games,” Butts said. “They get after it, and they change the line of scrimmage. They get off the ball, and they really did a good job with that Friday night.
“Our first drive was seven minutes long, and we had another drive that was seven minutes long.”
Comprising the Hatters’ offensive are Landon Mitchell, Nate Wisloski, Shane Maloney, David Gartland, Dom Sestito, Ryan Bennett and tight end Ryan McCarty. Most are two-way players who anchor the defensive line as well.
Caden Edwards was a catalyst on defense for the Hatters with a pair of interceptions, including one late in the fourth quarter to seal the Panthers’ fate.
Up next: Hatboro-Horsham (2-4, 1-0 SOL) will be on the road at Wissahickon Friday, and William Tennent (2-4, 0-1) will travel to Springfield Twp Friday.
William Tennent 0-7-7-0 14
Hatboro-Horsham 7-7-7-3 24
About the Author
