Check out the recaps for SOL football teams in action Friday. CB West/Souderton photos provided courtesy of Kim Supko, and PW/Interboro photos courtesy of Michael Rice Photography. Pennsbury/CR South photos courtesy of Darryl Rule of JD Photography. Check back for galleries.
Non-league
SOUDERTON 20, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 13
Ed Gallagher and his players don’t pay a whole lot of attention to the prognosticators, so when most picked Souderton to fall to 0-3 after taking on Central Bucks West, they were unfazed.
With good reason.
Turns out they intended to win, and they did just that.
“I thought we played our most physical and complete game of the year,” Souderton coach Ed Gallagher said. “CB West is a physical team. They like to run the football. They’re excellent, well-coached, and they still got their yards.
“We just thankfully were able to keep them to one touchdown and two field goals. It was a really great defensive effort by our kids, and offensively, we made enough plays to keep them at bay. We scored three touchdowns. It was really nice.”
There was no mistaking the significance of Friday’s win as the defending Continental Conference champions head into league play next week.
“This is huge,” Gallagher said. “You look at the schedule, and you knew there was a daunting non-league schedule. You’re playing three champions out of the gate – you’re playing the PAC champion in Spring-Ford, the District 1 champion in South, and the National Conference champion in West, so you’re staring down the barrel and thinking – we could start 0-3.
“In my head, I’m saying, ‘If we do start 0-3, we’re still going to be okay because there’s a lot of winnable games in our league. As long as we can stay healthy, we’re going to be fine.’ We really shocked a lot of people tonight.”
The Indians took a 7-0 led when junior quarterback Ben Walsh scored on a counter. West knotted the score, but the Indians were on the move again.
“We were going in to score again and fumbled, and the ball got loose and kicked out to midfield,” Gallagher said. “West somehow got a field goal just as time expired.”
A huge Houston Marshall touchdown run put the Indians on top.
“He broke off a 60-70-yard run for a touchdown,” Gallagher said. “We missed the extra point and were only up 13-10.”
West knotted the score with a field goal, but the Indians had a timely answer, scoring the go-ahead touchdown with the scoreboard clock winding down in the fourth quarter.
“It was probably a 50 or 60-yard pass from Ben Walsh to Hunter Smeltz to win it,” Gallagher said. “They had exactly 1:17 left to work with after the kickoff. They went four-and-out – they threw four incomplete passes.”
The Indians’ coach tipped his hat to his defense.
“To hold that team to one touchdown,” Gallagher said. “(Middle linebacker) Jayden Bergey is finally feeling himself again. He missed all of last year with a torn ACL and then he retore it and was just cleared for our first game.
“He played against Spring-Ford, and it was the first football he played in two years. It took him a while to get used to it, and in week three, he was used to it. He played really well – he was all over the field.
“And Houston Marshall had another great game. He had 17 tackles last week against CB South, and he had a bunch of tackles again tonight. I thought overall we played really well defensively and made enough plays offensively. It’s pretty awesome.”
Souderton (1-2) will host Harry S Truman on Friday in its Continental Conference opener, and Central Bucks West will travel to Abington for its National Conference opener.
Souderton 0-7-6-7 20
Central Bucks West 0-10-0-3 13
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 33, UPPER DUBLIN 7
(Game info courtesy of @ADRobinson3/The Reporter X. Game stats courtesy of CB South FB)
They just keep rolling along.
The Titans wrapped up their non-league schedule with yet another big win. Although the Flying Cardinals did what no other team had done this season – they scored a touchdown, Friday’s game belonged to the Titans, who have outscored their opponents 89-13 heading into conference play next week.
Owen Pinkerton broke a scoreless tie with five minutes remaining in the first quarter when he hooked up with Braylen Cape for a 19-yard touchdown, and the Titans had a 7-0 lead after one quarter.
It was his first of two touchdown passes in the game – his second a dazzling 78-yard pass to Danny Gies gave the Titans a 27-7 lead with less than a minute remaining in the third quarter.
“Owen Pinkerton continues to be really good,” South coach Tom Hetrick said. “He made plays with his feet, and he was pretty efficient in the passing game tonight. We were able to throw the ball around a little bit.
“We had a third-and-long towards the end of the third quarter – it was third-and-forever. He put a ball out there and gave Danny Gies a chance. Danny had a great catch and took it in for a touchdown. He’s got great body control – he’s a good receiver.”
The Titans also had success running the football.
A two-yard touchdown run by Gavin Graham put the Titans on top 14-0 less a minute into the second quarter, and with 58 seconds remaining in the half, Pinkerton used his feet, running 22 yards up the middle for a touchdown and a 21-0 lead at halftime.
The Flying Cardinals got on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter on a 20-yard touchdown run by Ron Shepherd only to see the Titans answer with the dazzling Pinkertown-to-Gies connection.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Dan McCusker hauled in a Pinkerton pass deflected by his teammate in the end zone for the 33-7 final. It was Pinkerton’s third TD of the contest.
“The offensive line played pretty well,” Hetrick said. “They were sort of stacking the box against us a little bit, but I think we were able to still do some of the things we were trying to do, so it was a good effort. There are still things we need to clean up – some needless penalties in the second half. That’s on me to get them to not do those kinds of things.
“Like I told them – to win any game in this area, it’s not easy, so we’ll take every one of them that we get.”
The Titans’ defense once again dominated the line of scrimmage and never allowed the Cardinals to get untracked.
“Our defense continues to play pretty solid football,” Hetrick said. “They hit us for a touchdown – it was the first touchdown we’ve given up this season, so I think our defense continued to play pretty well.
“Their quarterback (Ryan O’Sullivan) is a goodlooking kid, and he has the ability to make some plays, and their running backs are slippery. As a whole, we were able to do some pretty good things.”
The Titans’ defense limited the Cardinals to just 188 yards of total offense. Senior Eddie Bowen once again led the charge, finishing with seven tackles, which included a sack. Brandon Zubyk had six with one tackle for loss while Reid Ermigiotti and Jim Wade both had five. Ermigiotti also had a sack.
On the offensive side of the football, Pinkerton’s big night included 11 completions in 18 attempts for 200 yards and three touchdowns. He also was the Titans’ leading ground gainer. finishing with 102 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries. Gies led the Titans with four receptions for 113 yards and one touchdown. Kube added 60 yards on nine carries.
For the Cardinals, Ryan O’Sullivan was 13-for-18 for 85 yards. Shepherd’s 56 yards on 11 carries led UD’s ground game.
Central Bucks South (3-0) will be on the road at Central Bucks East Friday to begin SOL National Conference play.
“Our whole conference is one big gauntlet, so we’ve got to keep looking at the things we need to do to get better,” Hetrick said. “Now that we get in the conference, some of the things we did tonight that I wasn’t happy with – you’re not going to be able to consistently get away with.
“We were able to do it tonight – we made some plays, so we just have to keep getting better.”
Upper Dublin (1-2) will be on the road at Council Rock North for its SOL Continental Conference opener Friday.
Upper Dublin 0-0-7-0 7
Central Bucks South 7-14-6-6 33
PENNSBURY 23, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 15
The tone was set early in this one.
Less than two minutes into Friday’s game, Chris Karamis returned a blocked punt 34 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 Pennsbury lead.
Then it was Angelo Pereira connecting on his first of three field goals – this one from 30 yards – to put the Falcons on top 10-0. His second field goal of the half from 26 yards put the Falcons on top 13-0, but the Golden Hawks struck late when Jake Maurer caught a 28-yard touchdown reception from Marley Emerson with seven seconds remaining to make it a 13-7 game at halftime.
The Falcons got their running game untracked in the second half, and a huge Jordan Brensinger run to the 2-yard line set up the short touchdown run by Kaden Brown to put the Falcons on top 20-7.
A 42-yard run by Brensinger, who once again surpassed the 100-yard mark, set up an 18-yard field goal for Periera to give the Falcons a 23-7 lead.
“We picked up the pace a little bit in the second half offensively,” Pennsbury coach Galen Snyder said. “We knew that they have pretty good run defense, a pretty good defensive front.
“North Penn hurt them pretty good last week, and a lot of that was in the air. We knew we were going to have a battle, and it was.”
The Golden Hawks scored a touchdown with less than five minutes remaining and converted the two-point play to make it a 23-15 game. That’s as close as they would get.
“Our defensive front really stopped Rock South’s run game,” Snyder said. “The defensive front was the best group on the field for us.”
Comprising the defensive line are Chris Karamis, Andrew Dale, Liam Davis, Jake Berkenstamm. Linebackers Walker Murray and Luke Beighley also came up big for the Falcons.
“They did a nice job stopping the run” Snyder said.
Pennsbury (2-1) will be on the road for its National Conference opener at Pennridge Friday, and Council Rock South (1-2) will travel to Cheltenham for its Continental Conference opener Friday.
Council Rock South 0-7-0-8 15
Pennsbury 10-3-7-3 23
NORTH PENN 35, QUAKERTOWN 12
What a difference a year makes.
Last year, Quakertown traveled to North Penn and stunned the Knights with a 38-17 win. This year, the Knights turned the tables, earning their third win in three games, and they did it in convincing fashion, opening up a 21-6 halftime lead and never looking back.
Christian Johns-Wallace scored on a three-yard touchdown run, the Knights turned a fumble recovery into a touchdown, and then Aidan Eves had a seven-yard TD run that gave the Knights their three-touchdown lead after one quarter.
The Panthers’ lone score came when quarterback Brady Martin connected with Aiden Burgy for a 36-yard touchdown pass.
“For the most part, we played pretty good defense,” NP coach Dick Beck said. “We gave up a big play in the first half – I was not happy with that. I think it was a breakdown by the kid on the cover, but we recovered from that.
“I think our offensive line’s got to play better. We’ve got to be able to run the ball with a little more consistency on first and second down.”
Eves punched it in from a yard out to give the Knights a 28-6 lead after three quarters. The two teams exchanged scores in the fourth quarter.
Beck credited the play of his junior quarterback in the win.
“Matty Bucksar was just phenomenal tonight, throwing the ball, running the ball,” Beck said. “We probably had a couple of drops, but he was unbelievable.
“He had a great drive at the end of the half. Unfortunately, we had a bad snap and don’t make the field goal. I was a little disappointed, but we had a good goal-line stand. I was really happy with that.”
Also drawing high praise was the Knights’ linebacker core.
“I thought we were pretty active up front – the D-line and the linebackers,” Beck said. “We have three really solid linebackers- Nate Schepian, Cole D’Ambrosio and Christian Johns-Wallace – who is probably the best linebacker we’ve had in a long time. Those three guys have just been phenomenal for us all year. They’re the teeth of our defense. They really make us go. Those are the guys that make stops on defense.”
North Penn (3-0) will host Neshaminy in Friday’s National Conference opener, and Quakertown (0-3) will host Bensalem in its Continental Conference opener.
Quakertown 0-6-0-6 12
North Penn 21-0-7-7 35
BENSALEM 28, ABINGTON 20
(Game info courtesy of @ArtisticMayhem1 X/PA Football)
The Owls opened up a 21-0 lead in the third quarter and appeared to be on their way to an easy win, but the Ghosts didn’t go down quietly. The Owls, however, would not be denied and notched a win that upped its record to 2-1.
“It really does feel good, especially coming off a tough week last week – the guys thought we could have played a little better at Pennridge, so it was good to be able to come home.” Bensalem coach Alexander Houston said. “They’re seeing that the hard work pays off. Stay focused week to week, day to day, and good things happen.
“We’re really fortunate, and I’m happy for our guys that we got a win tonight.”
The Owls got on the scoreboard first when quarterback Myles Annan found Aidan Mayfield, who took it to the house with an impressive run, giving the Owls a 7-0 lead. An Annan to Thomas Bailey connection for a 53-yard TD sent the Owls into halftime with a 14-0 advantage. Annan completed just 3 of 4 passes but had 101 yards in the air and two TDs.
Another Annan-to-Bailey completion – this one with a dazzling catch by Bailey for an 83-yard TD – and the Owls led 21-0.
Abington got on the scoreboard with a touchdown pass, and an Ayden Turner punt return for a touchdown pulled the Ghosts to within seven, 21-14, late in the third quarter. Seven points is as close as they would get as the Owls held on for the win.
There was plenty of praise to go around when it was over.
“Aidan Mayfield – he’s special,” Houston said. “It was a physical game. He got the ball a lot, and he kept answering the bell. He scored twice.
“I thought Thomas Bailey – when he was out there – he had a 60-yard throw-and-catch. It was just amazing because the ball was ahead of him, he speeds up, he gets underneath it, end catches it with one hand, and he scored when we really needed a score.
“We had a really rough third quarter. Give credit to Abington -they kept playing, but we were struggling, and he comes up with an amazing catch, scores. We really needed it, and he couldn’t catch it unless Myles Annan threw it. I thought that was a really nice play.”
The Owls’ coach also credited several catalysts on defense.
“Defensively, Lucas Hasson played a really good game – getting us lined up, playing with intensity,” Houston said. “I thought Kenley Silaire made some really nice plays.
“As a team, we’re struggling in some areas, but we were able to pull out the win, and that’s the most important part.”
Bensalem (2-1) will open Continental Conference play Friday at Quakertown.
“Now we have to go on the road again,” Houston said. “We have to go see a tough Quakertown team, so we’re going to try and get healthy, have a good week of practice and get a great effort next Friday night.
Abington (1-2) will host Central Bucks West for its National Conference opener.
Abington 0-0-14-6 20
Bensalem 7-7-14-0 28
PENNRIDGE 19, HARRY S TRUMAN 0
The Rams’ defense pitched a shutout, and although the offense put up only 19 points, that was more than enough on this night.
“I thought the kids played with a nice grit today,” Pennridge coach Kyle Beller said. “It was a little bit sloppy game here and there, but anytime you get a shutout on defense, that’s a positive.
“They had two runs on us – one early and one late, and if you take those away, the defense might have held them to 50 yards. We’d bend a little bit, but we didn’t break, and the kids – when they had to – stepped up and played. That was great to see.”
The Rams had a touchdown waved off , but in the second quarter, Zach Swanson turned a Noah Keating pass into a touchdown that broke a scoreless tie and sent the Rams into halftime with a 6-0 lead.
The first of two rushing touchdowns by William Dougherty gave Pennridge a 12-0 lead after three quarters, and Dougherty’s second TD in the fourth quarter gave the Rams their final margin of victory.
“The offense moved the ball,” Beller said. “Here and there, we had some minor things that happened.
“Truman’s got some athletes – they’re big up front.”
The Rams’ coach credited several defensive catalysts.
“I thought Trevor Fuhs played really well on defense for us tonight as the whole defense did, – I believe he was in double digits in tackles, which is a nice thing to see a linebacker get,” Beller said. “Ian Gallagher on the D-line played well and (Andrew) Volberg. William Dougherty made some nice plays on defense for us tonight. Overall, I thought it was a really good effort on defense to get that shutout.
“Then offense was the same thing. We might not have had the same stats as last week, but the offensive line did a nice job. Credit to Truman for doing some things defensive-wise.
“I thought Ryan (Rowe) ran hard, and Noah was very efficient again – I think he was 9-for-10 in the first half. He had a nice night – he controlled the offense and ran it out and made some really great key throws at key times. Overall, you have to be pleased when you get a win.”
Keating finished the night 12-for-17 for 169 yards and a touchdown. Dougherty had 13 carries for 69 yards and two touchdowns. Swanson had two receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown, and William Wallace finished with five receptions for 53 yards.
On defense, Ryan Rowe had a team-high 10 tackles.
Pennridge (2-1) will host Pennsbury for its SOL National opener on Friday, and Harry S Truman (1-2) will be on the road at Souderton to open Continental Conference play.
Pennridge 0-6-6-7 19
Harry S Truman 0-0-0-0 0
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 38, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 13
It wasn’t a masterpiece by either side, but the Patriots were more than happy to come away with the convincing road win.
“It was sloppy,” East coach John Donnelly said. “We fumbled twice at the one and left 14 points on the field in the first half.
“We jumped all over them right from the beginning. The first play was a safety and then we went right down the field and scored.”
East’s 65-yard touchdown drive after the safety was capped with a Mike Price 20-yard touchdown run, and the Patriots led 9-0 two minutes into the game.
The twin connection – Logan Simkiss to Connor Simkiss for a 15-yard TD – gave the Patriots a 15-0 lead midway through the opening quarter.
A second safety when Tim Fuhrmeister came up with a solo tackle in the end zone made it a 17-0 game before the Indians got on the board late in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Logan Simkiss found Sam Pizel with a nine-yard touchdown pass. Brody Wojnicki’s extra point made it a 24-7 heading into the halftime intermission.
An East interception set up a touchdown for the Indians, who pulled to within 24-13. The Patriots answered with sophomore Chase Ingram scoring on a five-yard run.
A highlight of the night for the Patriots came when Edon Wong – a team favorite – scored on a two-yard rushing TD
“Edon Wong is a senior reserve running back who is tremendous on scout team – he knows where everybody needs to be, and we were able to get him a run, and he got a touchdown, our last touchdown of the game,” Donnelly said. “Everybody was super excited for him because he’s such a great program kid.”
The Patriots’ coach had some concerns about the game.
“Fourteen points on the field fumbling on the one, four turnovers, penalties – it was sloppy play,” Donnelly said. “We’re young, but we had played pretty clean last week.
“There was still a lot of good in what we did tonight, but we certainly have to clean things up and get ourselves ready for CB South next week.”
Despite the absence of any kind of flow in Friday’s game, there were plenty of positives in the win.
“We still ran the ball very well,” Donnelly said. “We at times threw the ball effectively. The offensive line is our strength, and our tight ends blocked very well.
“We’ve got a really nice stable of running backs, a lot of guys we feel comfortable running the ball. We were pleased with that, we were pleased with the pressure that our front got. We only brought three a lot of time. Timmy Fuhrmeister did a good job. Our secondary made some nice tackles in the open field.
“They did some good things in terms of the RPO game, they had some good receivers that were catching the ball and running away a little bit. We’ll evaluate ourselves on film. We will enjoy this for a very short time – people say the 24-hour rule. It’s probably going to be the 12-hour rule. We have a huge game at home against CB South. They are ranked number one in the Big Ticket, they are ranked in the state. It’s a tall order for us, but we’ll be there next Friday ready to get after it.”
Central Bucks East (2-1) will host Central Bucks South Friday, and Council Rock North (0-3) will host Upper Dublin Friday.
Central Bucks East 17-7-7-7 38
Council Rock North 7-0-6-0 13
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 51, INTERBORO 6
(Game recap courtesy of emor09/Times Herald X)
Caiden Leszcynski and his teammates wasted little time before putting last Friday’s non-league loss to Wilson behind them. The Colonials’ quarterback threw for four first-half touchdowns, and PW led 44-0 at the
intermission on their way to the mercy rule win.
“We didn’t play our best game against Wilson, but they’re a very good football team – I think they’re going to win a lot of games,” PW coach Dan Chang said. “They were tough and physical.
“Our goal this week was to focus on what we can do better and focus on the things we didn’t do very well last week. I was pretty happy with my guys and their focus, and their execution tonight was a translation of all the stuff that we did at practice this week.
“They obviously were disappointed (with the loss), but they knew it’s not the end-all. We could either crumble or we can continue to build, and those guys responded well.”
Friday’s game started with the Colonials collecting an early safety, and then Leszcynski went to work, connecting with Mike Bongard for a 40-yard touchdown. The Colonials were off and running literally.
Leszcynski capped a brilliant opening half with a nine-yard TD pass to Marcus Laffredo.
“I was most pleased with our execution, both running the ball and passing the ball,” Chang said. “Caiden was excellent tonight. I thought our offensive line was physical – they were finishing blocks, and we were pretty versatile with who we had running the ball.”
Comprising the Colonials’ dominant offensive line are Jared Thomas-Payne, Shi-Nobi Morffiah, Max Vizza, Cole Ashbridge – who made his first varsity start, Eddie Moyett, Chase Rarrick and Kevin Hegerty.
“They had a tougher game last week, and I thought they really responded well this week,” Chang said.
While the offense may have stolen the spotlight, the Colonials’ defense was equally impressive.
“I thought our defense was spectacular,” Chang said. “They did not give up much at all. We had guys who are flying around on the field making big plays.
“Mike Bongard had another interception, Kevin Hegerty had an interception for a touchdown return. It was an all-around team effort.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh (2-1) will host Manheim Township in a non-league game Friday.
Interboro 0-0-6-0 6
Plymouth Whitemarsh 23-21-7-0 51
RADNOR 7, WILLIAM TENNENT 6
SPRINGFIELD TWP 54, NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY
(Check back for game information/photos)
HATBORO-HORSHAM 34, ABRAHAM LINOLN 32
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