Check out the results for SOL football teams in action Friday. Neshaminy/Downingtown West photo provided courtesy of Jesse Garber (http://jsgarber.zenfolio.com/p318377327 )
Stats used in the wraps are provided courtesy of Calkins Media. For complete high school football coverage, visit the web sites: http://www.theintell.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/ and http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/sports/high-school/fall/football/
ABINGTON 27, CHELTENHAM 0
Abington was a team on a mission.
The Ghosts not only needed to get in the win column after an 0-2 start, they hadn’t forgotten the 41-36 loss they endured at the hands of Cheltenham in the Thanksgiving Day game between the neighboring schools last November.
“Man, that was bitter,” senior George Reid said. “That one stuck around the whole offseason.
“We waited the whole offseason. This was the game we had circled on our calendar, and we knew they did too. This is the one we really wanted.”
Kevin Conlin wasn’t at the helm for that Thanksgiving Day game, but losses in the first two games were motivation enough for the first-year coach.
“We needed this more than you could believe, more than you could ever even come close to comprehending,” Conlin said. “We’ve been working, working and working, and we’ve been fighting both games where we’re in it.
“I told the guys, ‘We are so close, we’re right there.’ We just needed something to get us over the hump. We’re hoping maybe the atmosphere going on here and the Cheltenham game puts us over the edge. We’re really hoping that’s what it takes.”
There was an almost playoff atmosphere surrounding the game with the large crowd and emotionally-charged student sections on both sides. The Abington faithful erupted when junior Darryl Davis-O’Neil raced 66 yards for a touchdown and 7-0 first quarter lead.
Reid’s 23-yard TD reception from junior quarterback Billy Griffenburg sent the Ghosts into halftime with a 14-0 lead.
In the third quarter, Davis-O’Neil lofted a halfback option pass that Reid – who also had an interception – hauled in and took 85 yards to the house.
“Man, we worked on that once or twice in practice – I didn’t think we’d actually run it in a game,” Reid said. “Once he called it, I was like, ‘There’s no way I can drop this, I have to go get it.’”
A three-yard touchdown run by Davis-McNeil – who finished with 176 yards and two TDs – closed out the scoring in the fourth quarter.
“We had some big plays, which are great, but if you’re going to win consistently, you have to drive the ball,” Conlin said. “I said earlier in the season the offensive line was going to be our forte with me being an ex-offensive lineman and an ‘O’ line coach. We like to lineup and try to be physical with teams.
“Our offensive line just wasn’t doing it the past two weeks – we challenged all five of them. We have three seniors (Thomas Penecale, Barry Johnson and Dillon Scheurer) that have been playing together a long time, and I challenged them earlier in the week, I pushed them pretty hard this week, and they responded. They’re the kind of kids – they’re the reason I like coaching because no matter what they’re always going to come out ready to work, and that’s the most important part.”
Reid also tipped his hat to the Ghosts’ offensive line.
“We needed the ‘O’ line to step up,” the Temple-bound senior said. “This whole year we’ve been pushing them and pushing them, and that’s what got us over the hump.”
The Ghosts’ coach also credited the strong play of Joe O’Brien, Isaiah Cruz and Jackson Taylor for their blocking from the tight end and fullback positions.
“They really did a nice job tonight, really opened some holes for Darryl,” Conlin said.
Jarrett Jenkins led the Panthers with 75 yards on the ground.
Abington (1-2) will be on the road at Bensalem for Friday’s SOL opener, and Cheltenham (1-2) will be on the road at Upper Dublin.
EXTRA POINTS: Friday night – dubbed Rivals Unite – was about more than just football. The neighboring schools used the event to raise money to fight pediatric cancer. Between the two schools, they sold 900 t-shirts with Abington selling out of its 600 shirts in school in the days before the game. The Abington student section was a sea of white while the Cheltenham side was golden.
Prior to the game families of students from both schools who battled cancer were recognized at midfield. At the age of three, Nate Viand, a first grader in Abington, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The family adopted the mantra ‘Relentless,’ and they have been relentless – through chemotherapy and treatments in their quest to fund research.
Also honored was the Metzgar family whose son Paul graduated from Cheltenham while Michele, Chase and Ella are Abington students. The family attended in memory of their son and brother, Shane Joseph Metzgar, who – at eight months – was diagnosed with stage 4 Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma. He lost his battle at 19 months old.
Abington Police Officer Gerry Costello and his son Ed lost a son and brother, Stephen, a 2013 graduate of Abington, who lost his battle with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. He was diagnosed after his freshman year at Salve Regina University.
In April of 2016, freshman marching band member Juwan Adams was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Although he missed 32 days of school last year, he still managed to make the honor roll every term and kept a smile on his face. This summer, he participated in grueling workouts with the band while receiving radiation treatments five days a week. On Thursday, Juwan celebrated the end of treatment.
Cheltenham 0-0-0-0 0
Abington 7-7-7-6 27
SOUDERTON 42, HATBORO-HORSHAM 27
Souderton – off to its first 3-0 start since 2006 – exploded for 508 yards of total offense in Friday’s win over the Hatters. Koby Khan ran for 130 yards and five touchdowns, Brandon Targana rushed for more than 100 yards and a touchdown and Joey Curotto had his third 100-plus yard passing game in three outings.
Not a bad night for the Indians, who won just four games in each of the last two seasons.
“It’s a great start,” coach Ed Gallagher said. “We looked at the way the new conference was aligned and saw who we were able to get for our non-league games.
“We’ve had a great rivalry with Plymouth Whitemarsh in our opening game, and we were able to continue that. That was a good start to get the first win. To be able to play Hatboro and Quakertown, who have been in our league for most of the years I’ve been coaching, it just seemed like a natural fit. It’s been a couple of years since we played either of them. It’s nice to be back in the Continental, and its nice to be playing these meaningful games.
“A lot of these kids played Souderton Braves against Horsham and against Quakertown in Pop Warner. Those are the kind of games you want to play, leading up to this week when we’re opening our league schedule against our biggest rival (Pennridge). I love the way the schedule has worked out.”
Gallagher also has to love the way his team is performing, and no one has been performing better than Khan and Curotto, who – according to Gallagher – are benefitting from the improved play of an offensive line comprised of tackles Trevor Watts and Austin Moyer, guards Andrew Stein and Jack Morgan, center Lucas Carreras and tight end James Malm.
“Overall, they did a great job,” Gallagher said. “They kept Joey (Curotto) clean – we didn’t have any sacks. We were able to effectively throw the ball, and we ran for a bunch of yards.
“And the backs are blocking for each other. It’s a wonderful thing. The offense works a lot better when you play unselfish. Brandon Taragna had close to 130 yards tonight and our last touchdown. Overall, it was just a great team effort. I’m very happy with the offense, and the defense played better in the second half. We let up some big ones the first half. We gave up 21 points at halftime, and we only gave up six after half.”
A pair of Khan touchdown runs spotted the Indians a 14-0 lead before Brandon Brandt-Crews caught a 19-yard touchdown pass from Chris Edwards. It was still a seven-point game at halftime (28-21) with Khan accounting for all four of Souderton’s touchdowns and Edwards twice finding Brandt-Crews.
Edwards led the Hatters with 243 yards of offense, including 153 and two touchdowns in the air.
Souderton (3-0) will travel to Pennridge for its SOL opener next Friday while Hatboro-Horsham (0-3) – scheduled to play Springfield – is off until Sept. 23 when the Hatters will travel to Upper Moreland.
Souderton 14-14-7-7 42
Hatboro-Horsham 7-14-6-0 27
HARRY S TRUMAN 30, WILLIAM TENNENT 21
The Tigers were outscored by a combined 82-6 margin in their first two games of the season against district powers Ridley and Upper Dublin, but instead of letting those losses define them, the visiting Tigers gutted out an important win heading into the league season.
“It was essential if we wanted to move in the right direction this season,” coach Jon Craig said. “It’s interesting – we haven’t been 0-2 to start a season for a long time.
“Most of the kids – if not all the kids – had never been 0-2 to start the season, so that was a big shock to lose the way we did. We got beat up in those two games. To get one in the W column was essential. A lot of young players in our program grew up tonight, and hopefully, it will carry over because it was a tough game. We were down multiple times in the game. We were down late in the fourth quarter, and to come back and win and the way we did was pretty impressive. A lot of my guys showed a lot of courage and heart tonight.”
The Panthers raced to a 14-0 lead, thanks to touchdown runs of 44 yards and one yard by Sean Bragen, but the Tigers – or more specifically David Akinwande – responded, first with a 43-yard touchdown run and then a 19-yard return after a fumble recovery to make it a 14-12 game. Jorden Freeman’s two-yard TD pass to Chris Andreacchio sent the Tigers into halftime with an 18-14 lead.
That score stood until the fourth quarter when Jake Herbert caught a 38-yard touchdown pass from Jason Schweizerhof to put the Panthers on top 21-18.
The Tigers, however, refused to lose. A Freeman to Sayyid Saunders 36-yard touchdown pass made it a 24-21 game. Another Akinwande TD run iced the big win.
“I called it a program win,” Craig said. “We had guys cramping tonight because of the heat, so we were rolling a lot of bodies in.
“It just seemed like different guys stepped up at different times and made plays. They rode through the rough times, and that was the most impressive part – they didn’t give up on it where there have definitely been times when we’ve quit in other situations in the past. It was a very proud moment for me and my staff to see our kids stick with it and gut out a win.”
Freeman finished the night with 206 yards of total offense – 125 on the ground. Akinwande led the Tigers with 166 yards rushing. Bragen finished with a game-high 176 yards on the ground.
Harry S Truman (1-2) will be on the road at Council Rock South in its SOL opener, and William Tennent (0-3) will travel to Pennsbury for a non-league game on Friday.
Harry Truman 0-18-0-12 30
William Tennent 0-14-0-7 21
NORTH PENN 38, PENNSBURY 0
Nick Dillon ran for four touchdowns to complement Reece Udinski’s stellar passing day as North Penn (3-0) dominated Pennsbury in Friday’s nonleague matchup.
Udinski finished the evening with 19-of-23 passing for 315 yards, all in the first half. The Knights racked up more than 400 yards in the first half.
“You always want to make sure you start off strong, make sure you do what you want to do in the beginning, make sure the other team is not getting any good plays,” said Dillon, who led all rushers with 84 yards on 10 carries plus his quartet of touchdowns.
Ricky Johns opened the scoring just over two minutes into the game and the Knights never looked back. The up-tempo, quick-strike North Penn offense scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions, and Kelly Macnamara booted a 32-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to give North Penn the 38-0 lead it would hold through the second half.
For Pennsbury (1-2), junior quarterback Zach Demarchis completed five of his first six passes in a 7-for-13 night. But the swarming North Penn defense allowed just two plays of more than 10 yards on the night.
North Penn (3-0) will host Central Bucks West in its SOL opener on Friday, and Pennsbury will host William Tennent in a non-league contest Friday.
Pennsbury 0-0-0-0 0
North Penn 14-24-0-0 38
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 21, QUAKERTOWN 12
The Bucks upped their record to a perfect 3-0 while the Panthers – who kept themselves within striking distance all game – continue to look for their first win.
An early touchdown pass for 49 yards from quarterback Ryan Moylan to Nicholas Ferrentino gave the Bucks a lead they would not lose. Noah Wood’s five-yard touchdown run pulled the Panthers to within one, and that 7-6 score stood until midway through the third quarter when Moylan punched it in from two yards out to give the Bucks a 14-6 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Again, Wood and the Panthers answered with the senior running back once again taking it in from five yards. The two-point conversion failed, and it was a 14-12 game. The Bucks tacked on another TD on a one-yard run by Jake Reichwein to close out the scoring.
Wood led all ground gainers with 95 yards while TJ Rakowsky led a balanced West attack with 78 yards.
Central Bucks West (3-0) will travel to North Penn for its SOL opener Friday, and Quakertown (0-3) begins league play at Wissahickon on Friday.
Central Bucks West 7-0-7-7 21
Quakertown 0-6-0-6 12
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 39, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 13
Tyler Watson sprinted 42 yards for a touchdown on his team’s first possession of the night, and the Titans were off and running. By halftime, they led 20-0 – thanks to a TD run by Nate Norris and a 28-yard touchdown pass from Sam Thompson to Cole Braccio.
South led 27-0 after Norris took it in from five yards out in the third quarter before the Hawks got on the scoreboard, thanks to Nick Gallo’s blocked punt. The Hawks opened up a 39-7 lead before the Hawks tacked on a late TD.
Thompson accounted for 241 yards of total offense, including 145 and two touchdowns in the air. All told, the Titans amassed 443 yards while the Golden Hawks were limited to 197.
Central Bucks South (3-0) will host Central Bucks East in a rivalry game in its SOL opener Friday at War Memorial Field. Council Rock South (0-3) will host Harry S Truman Friday in its opener.
Central Bucks South 6-14-13-6 39
Council Rock South 0-0-7-6 13
NESHAMINY 42, DOWNINGTOWN WEST 14
The Whippets hung tough for a while, trailing by just one touchdown at halftime, but the visiting Redskins reeled off 21 unanswered points in the second half to win going away.
Mason Jones had another huge night for the ‘Skins. The senior quarterback threw for 279 yards and three touchdowns – 180 in the first half. A 74-yard touchdown pass to Mike Garlick put the ‘Skins on the board, and they led 14-0 after Will Dogba, who had 143 yards on the ground, punched it in from three yards out. The Cougars trimmed that led to seven, and the two teams exchanged TDs in the second quarter. Jones found Cory Joyce for a 54-yard touchdown pass and a 21-7 lead, but the Whippets trimmed that lead to seven at halftime (21-14).
A 95-yard touchdown drive by the Redskins to open the second half was capped when Zach Tredway – who finished with 143 receiving yards – hauled in a Jones pass and took it in from 27 yards out. Mike Crescenzo added a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns on runs of two and five yards.
Neshaminy (3-0) will host Council Rock North in next Friday’s SOL opener.
Neshaminy 14-7-7-14 42
Downingtown West 7-7-0-0 14
UPPER MORELAND 41, UPPER PERKIOMEN 34
The visiting Indians led 27-14 at halftime and appeared to be on their way to an easy win. That wasn’t the case as the Golden Bears came roaring back, rallying to knot the score 27-27 after three quarters and then scoring a pair of fourth quarter TDs to eke out the come-from-behind win.
In the third quarter, the Bears were sparked by a 65-yard touchdown run by Sterlen Barr and a five-yard TD run by quarterback Casey Decker to tie the game. Upper Perk responded with a touchdown early in the fourth quarter to go back on top 34-27, but UM got that one back when Decker found Brett Brossman with a 25-yard touchdown pass. Barr’s 29-yard touchdown run proved to be the game winner.
Barr led the Bears with 203 yards on the ground and three touchdowns.
Upper Moreland (2-1) will be on the road at Plymouth Whitemarsh for its SOL opener on Friday.
Upper Perkiomen 12-15-0-7 34
Upper Moreland 7-7-13-14 41
PERKIOMEN VALLEY 38, PENNRIDGE 20
The Vikings – benefitting from the strong arm of quarterback Stephen Sturm – rolled to a 38-0 lead after three quarters before the Rams got on the scoreboard in the final quarter. Sturm put up astonishing numbers, throwing for 432 yards and five touchdowns. His favorite target, Justin Jaworski, finished with 296 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
The Vikings led just 3-0 after one quarter and then all but put the game out of reach with 21 unanswered second-quarter points to go into halftime with a 24-0 lead.
Jagger Hartshorn had three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter – one each to Ryan Cuthbert, Anthony Kelly and Nick Tarburton, but by that time, the outcome had already been decided. Hartshorn threw for 182 yards and added 45 on the ground.
Pennridge (1-2) will host Souderton in a rivalry game in Friday’s SOL opener.
Pennridge 0-0-0-20 20
Perkiomen Valley 3-21-14-0 38
POTTSVILLE 35, WISSAHICKON 13
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