Wissahickon, Neshaminy, Hatboro-Horsham & Springfield Twp were winners this weekend. Check out the recaps. Wissahickon/Lower Merion photos provided courtesy of Michael Rice Photography, and Springfield/New Hope-Solebury photos courtesy of Karla Donohoe. Check back for galleries of both games.
Non-league
WISSAHICKON 56, LOWER MERION 28
Points came easily for both teams in the first half of Saturday’s non-league contest.
So easily that by halftime the two teams had combined for 71 points. The second half was another story entirely. The Trojans came out of halftime with an adjusted defensive strategy and shut out the Aces on their way
to the non-league win.
“We jumped on them early,” Graver said. “You have to give Lower Merion credit. They had a pretty good game plan, and they were able to do some things offensively against us. They played pretty well in the first half, but we were able to make some defensive adjustments in the second half and shut them out.”
The Trojans exploded for 43 points in the first half and took a 15-point lead into halftime. The Aces never got any closer.
“For us always, it starts with our offensive line,” Graver said. “They continue to improve each week, and they had another great day.
“I thought our defense did a good job in the second half of making adjustments.”
Comprising the Trojans’ offensive line are Billy Stout (left tackle), Ethan Baritz (left guard), Scott Youngblood (center), Trey Atchinson (right guard) and Jayden Nealman (right tackle) as well as tight end Hassan Freeman.
While the O-line set the tone for a big offensive performance, there was a catalyst on the defensive side of the ball as well in the Trojans’ strong second half showing.
“Our free safety, Dom Harvey-Sheppard Harvey, is playing really well on both sides of the ball,” Graver said.
For the game, the Trojans had 48 rushes for 328 yards. They were equally effective throwing the ball. Quarterback Nolan Pounds finished the game 9-for-12 for 186 yards and three touchdowns.
Quasir Sampson led the way on the ground with 22 carries for 162 yards and two touchdowns. Dom Sheppard-Harvey – who had four touchdowns – had eight rushes for 66 yards and three touchdowns and one reception for 16 yards and a TD. Jason Murray Jr. had a 22-yard touchdown reception, and Aidan Wescott had an 82-yard touchdown reception.
Wissahickon (2-1) will travel to Sun Valley for a non-league game Friday.
Wissahickon 43-13. 56
Lower Merion 28-0. 28
NESHAMINY 21, CHELTENHAM 14
(Stats provided by Neshaminy FB/MaxPreps)
Neshaminy improved to 3-0 on the young season, but this win was anything but easy.
With a minute remaining in the third quarter, the Redskins broke a 14-14 tie when quarterback Michael Eckhart connected with Connor Frederick for a touchdown to give Neshaminy a 21-14 lead that stood until the final whistle.
The Panthers struck first and led 6-0 after one quarter, but the Redskins rallied to knot the score 14-14 at halftime, thanks to TD runs by sophomore Brock Williams and Eckhart.
Williams led the Redskins on the ground with 76 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries. Eckhart completed eight passes for 112 yards, and Nick Sassano completed his only pass attempt for 28 yards.
On the defensive side of the football, Carson Schneider and Luke Howell led the way with nine tackles each. Schneider finished with three tackles for loss and Howell had two TFLs and one of the Redskins’ three sacks. He also had a forced fumble.
Williams and Michael Sassano each had an interception.
Neshaminy (3-0) will begin SOL National Conference play on Friday at North Penn, and Cheltenham (0-3) will host Council Rock South Friday in its SOL Continental Conference operner.
Neshaminy 0-14-7-0 21
Cheltenham 6-8-0-0 14
Friday, Sept. 6
HATBORO-HORSHAM 34, ABRAHAM LINCOLN 32
The Hatters picked up their first win of the young season Friday, but it did not come easily.
It took a big defensive play late in the fourth quarter to stonewall a two-point attempt that would have tied it to preserve the win.
“Bryan Acevedo had the stop on the one-foot line,” Hatters’ coach Tom Butts said. “He’s a senior and a grinder in the weight room. Just to see his face when he came off the field was beautiful – it was great to see his hard work in the offseason pay off.”
There was no mistaking the significance of the win.
“Going 0-3 is brutal, so this was a huge win for us,” Butts said. “It doesn’t get any easier. Our schedule this year is significantly more difficult than last year, which is what I wanted. I asked for that.
“Our goal every year is to make the playoffs, and now the goal is to win in the playoffs, and I don’t think you can play 2A schools and be prepared to win in the playoffs. Lincoln is a 6A school, so this was a huge win for us from a playoff standpoint.”
The Railsplitters- who did not have a kicking game – scored on their first offensive play of the game and converted their two-point attempt to lead 8-0 early. The Hatters answered with a long touchdown drive that was capped with a Kayden Collazo touchdown to make it an 8-7 game.
After a defensive stop with the Railsplitters on their own 9-yard line, Luke Foley ripped off a 91-yard touchdown run, and the Hatters – who missed the extra point – led 13-8.
Another defensive stop was followed by yet another Hatters’ touchdown drive, this one ended with quarterback Chris Roughton connecting with Foley on a 32-yard screen pass that gave the Hatters a 20-8 lead.
Abraham Lincoln trimmed that lead to 20-14, and Foley once again answered, this time with a 60-yard touchdown run to make it a 27-14 game at halftime.
In the third quarter, Roughton scored on a 2-yard quarterback sneak to put the Hatters on top 34-20.
The Railsplitters did not go away and scored a pair of touchdowns but came up short on both their two-point attempts, plays that loomed large.
Foley had a stellar outing to lead the Hatters, finishing with 14 carries for 229 yards and two touchdowns. He also had one reception for 32 yards and a touchdown.
Michael Clauser had 15 carries for 61 yards, and Ty Teasley had 6 carries for 40 yards.
“Luke Foley had an incredible day – we just got him back from an injury,” Butts said. “He dislocated his shoulder.
“Michael Clauser has kind of been our dude on both sides of the ball. He’s our strong safety and a running back. We really feed off him. He’s taken on a huge leadership role for us. Colazzo also is a two-way starter and never comes off the field unless he needs a blow.”
All told, the Hatters finished with 55 carries for 406 yards and four touchdowns.
“Our offensive line really controlled the day as far as running the football,” Butts said of a line comprised of Riley Russell (left tackle), Owen King (left guard), Colin Schwartz (center), Dominic Grandinetti (right guard) and Mike Randa (right tackle).
“Colin Schwartz has become the leader of our O-line,” Butts said.
Hatboro-Horsham (1-2) will host Upper Darby in a non-league game Friday.
Abraham Lincoln 14-18 32
Hatboro-Horsham 27-7 34
SPRINGFIELD TWP 54, NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 0
It’s no secret that New Hope-Solebury has been struggling as it tries to build up its program.
If anyone can understand the Lions’ plight, it’s Springfield Twp coach Chris Shelly, who saw his varsity program cancel its season in 2016 for lack of numbers.
“We know New Hope doesn’t have many kids, but we need to go out there with the same mentality and try to get better every week,” Shelly said. “I was really pleased with how they played with intensity from all 50 of our guys.
“ If we get in a game like that, we’re going to play the right way and get our young kids in as fast as we can, but the young kids really played hard. Last week against Kensington – they wanted to keep that shutout. Our seniors and our upperclassmen really enjoy coaching up the young kids.
“We knew New Hope was struggling. They’re trying to build it back up, so we want to be sure we respect that program because I’ve been there. We’ve been there with our football program. We just want to do the right thing, but we also know we’re building to a Suburban One standard that we’ve got to meet.”
The visiting Spartans scored early and often on the way to their second win of the young season.
“We keep telling our guys we’re going to play to a standard,” Shelly said. “We know how good our Suburban One is. We won’t get there for a couple weeks, but our guys gotta get better each week.”
Quarterback Jack McGuckin got the ball rolling with a 10-yard touchdown run and turned the fumbled extra point into a two-point conversion, running it into the end zone for an 8-0 lead. CJ Johnson scored on a 10-yard run, and McGuckin’s 12-yard touchdown run put the Spartans on top 22-0 after one quarter.
The second quarter opened with Johnson’s second TD run – this one from 35 yards out, and he followed that with a 25-yard touchdown run. Then Theo Ferragame had a four-yard touchdown run. Zymar Small scored on a 22-yard run to send the Spartans into halftime with a 48-0 lead.
Jude Nosal closed out the scoring with a 10-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
For the game, the Spartans had 28 rushes for 311 yards and eight rushing TDs. Johnson finished with six carries for 89 yards and three touchdowns. McGuckin had four carries for 63 yards and two touchdowns.
Springfield Twp (2-1) will be on the road for a non-league game at Elizabethtown Area High School Saturday at 2 p.m.
“We’re really excited about next week,” Shelly said. “We’re playing a 5A football team, which to me is like a Suburban One type challenge. We’re going to treat this like a playoff game, and then we just have to keep building.”
Springfield Twp 22-26-6-0. 54
New Hope-Solebury 0-0-0-0. 0
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