Souderton fell to nationally ranked St. Joe’s Prep 51-43 in a PIAA 6A state semifinal contest on Saturday. Photos provided courtesy of Kathy Leister Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos.
Class 6A
#12-1 ST. JOSEPH PREP 51, #1-1 SOUDERTON 43
SPRINGFIELD – As the final horn sounded on Saturday’s state semifinal contest, the Souderton faithful rose to their feet, their sustained applause speaking volumes about the pride they felt.
No, the Indians hadn’t defeated a heavily favored Hawk squad that is ranked third nationally in USA Today’s Super 25. As a matter of fact, they trailed 51-7 after senior Malik Cooper returned the opening kickoff of the second half 80 yards for a touchdown, giving the Indians every reason in the world to allow the running clock to bring a hasty end to the contest.
That didn’t happen. Instead, the Indians battled and battled and battled, scoring 36 unanswered points to close out the game – a tear that culminated with a five-yard touchdown run by junior Braydon Porter with three seconds remaining in regulation. Souderton’s season ended with.jpg)
that score, but what a season it was.
“This group (of seniors) growing up was a really special group,” Souderton coach Ed Gallagher said. “I’m so proud of them. They earned everything they got. They’re District One champs, they’re Suburban One Continental champs, and I told them – ‘You should be proud. No one’s ever taking that away from you. You battled, you lost to a better team today, there’s no question about it, but they kept fighting, and they didn’t quit.”
Senior quarterback Evan Kutzler engineered the Indians’ gutsy rally, scoring on a three-yard run and throwing for three touchdowns.
“They forced us to throw the ball, and we found some things that worked,” Gallagher said. “Evan shows so much heart – he’s a competitor, he’s a great athlete. I hope they have a basketball season so we can see him play basketball because he’s so much fun to watch play.”
Kutzler acknowledged it was tough seeing the Indians’ historic season end.
“It’s pretty hard – I’m trying to savor it right now,” the senior captain said. “When I was walking off the field, I took a last look at the scoreboard, a last look at the stands. It’s tough.
“I’m really proud of what we were able to do this season, putting our name in the history books. I couldn’t be more proud of this team. Those big games – Pennridge, Spring-Ford – we conquered adversity, and it feels so good to do this not only for our coaches but our former teammates who really put us in a position to be here. It’s big – it’s for the community as well. It’s huge.”
Any questions about how good St. Joe’s Prep was were answered quickly in a 30-point first quarter. The Hawks recovered a blocked punt on the Indians’ 25-yard line, and one play later, quarterback Kyle McCord, who will be taking his talents to Ohio State, threw his first of six touchdown passes in the first half, this one from 25 yards out to Sahmir Hagans.
Souderton’s Kyle Bob came up with an interception in the end zone, but three plays later, the Hawks recovered a fumble, and McCord connected with Hagans for a TD. Another blocked punt – this one for a safety – gave the Hawks a 16-0 lead, and a 30-yard McCord TD pass to Marvin Harrison Jr. after an Indians’ free kick made it a 23-0 game.
Prep’s lead grew to 37-0 before the Indians mounted a six-minute touchdown drive of their own. It began with Kutzler finding Purvy for a 20-yard pickup and was capped with a three-yard Kutzler run for the score.
“That was huge,” Kutzler said of getting on the scoreboard. “It was a huge momentum boost for us. We’re like, ‘All right, we can do this. We just have to put it all on the line in the second half and keep doing what we’re doing.’ That’s what we did, for sure.”
The Hawks’ needed just over a minute to get that score back when McCord connected with Hagans for his third TD that sent the Hawks into halftime with a 44-7 advantage.
“They’re a really good team all around,” Kutzler said. “They’re huge up front, they have a lot of athletes, their quarterback’s great, and they were definitely overpowering us the first half.
“When you see them on film, you’re like, ‘All right,’ and you get to the game, and it’s ‘Okay, these guys are big.’ It’s a different beast, but I wasn’t scared of them. I’ve got to have confidence in what we can do and just go out and make plays, and that’s definitely what we did in the second half. I think we played really well against them in the second half.”
Cooper’s kickoff return put the Hawks on top 51-7 less than a minute into the second half. The remainder of the half belonged to the Indians.
Kutzler showed his quick strike capability when he found Kyle Bob with a 31-yard touchdown pass. The Indians recovered an on-sides kick, and on their first play, Kutzler connected with sophomore Shaun Purvy for a 48-yard touchdown strike.
“You talk about it, and it’s not just you’re playing St. Joe’s Prep – this might be the best St. Joe’s Prep team they’ve had,” Gallagher said. “You think that you can exploit a couple weaknesses, but there really weren’t a lot of weaknesses.
“What was weird was – what we had success doing was throwing the football, which is not our forte, it’s not what we like to do. They forced us out of our comfort zone, forced us to throw the ball, and we had success throwing the ball. They took everything away we were trying to do in our running game. Credit to them, that’s a great plan.”
An 80-yard Souderton scoring drive was highlighted by a 52-yard run by senior Jalen White, who – one play later – took it in from three yards to make it a 51-28 game after three quarters. A 33-yard touchdown pass from Kutzler to Purvy cut the Hawks’ lead to 51-36, and the Indians weren’t finished yet, turning a Hawk fumble into their final TD.
“We scored three times against their first team defense,” Gallagher said. “I know the running clock was started in the second half, but they kept their starters in for a couple series. Even on our third touchdown, they had seven defensive starters out there.
“We scored three times on their starters and three times on their backups. Again, it doesn’t matter. We played well, and our kids kept competing. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Purvy displayed his big-play capabilities with his touchdown catches of 48 and 33 yards. He also was assigned the unenviable task of defending 6-4 wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., another Ohio State recruit.
“I believe in myself and I believe in this team,” Purvy said. “We just tried to disguise the coverages, do as much as possible to stop him from doing whatever he wanted against us.
“It’s very hard. He’s a senior, he’s very big. You just have to do as much as you can to stop him.”
“He was covering a superstar,” Gallagher said of Purvy. “Once he settled in he played much more sound defense as the game went on, and he was a star offensively. He really made some big plays.”
For Purvey, there were positive takeaways in Saturday’s season-ending loss.
“I take away that our team is very strong, and we can come back from anything,” the sophomore wide receiver said. “We can face adversity, and we come back even stronger.
“Next year I feel we’re going to have a great opportunity to come back here and do even better.”
Souderton (7-1, 5-0 SOL) closed out its successful season with a Suburban One League Continental Conference title and the District One 6A crown.
Souderton 0-7-14-22 43
St. Joseph Prep 30-14-7-0 51
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