Check out the results of SOL football teams in action on Friday. To view photos of the Norristown/Wissahickon, Quakertown/Hatboro-Horsham and PW/Abington games, please visit the Photo Gallery.
Stats used in the wraps are provided courtesy of Calkins Media. For complete high school football coverage, visit the web site www.PhillyBurbs.com<http://www.PhillyBurbs.com>.
NORRISTOWN 14, WISSAHICKON 13
It’s a whole new world for Norristown football this season.
Last year, the Eagles lost all 11 of their games after dropping the final seven of the preceding season. They carried the burden of that 18-game losing into the season and then promptly won their first two games under first-year coach Jason Powel, stunning the Trojans on the heels of last week’s win over Upper Merion.
“I want to give thanks to the coaches,” senior Isaiah Samuel said. “The coaches came in with six weeks and changed the whole entire team.
“We were close, but we’re so much closer. I love my team so much.”
“We’re a family now,” senior Joe Cross added. “We’re not just a football team – we’re a family.”
Powel was understandably proud of his team’s effort against a favored Trojan squad that last year defeated the Eagles 30-14.
“I’m proud that they want to play and they’re playing hard,” he said. “It just goes to show you that there’s a pulse in Norristown, and it’s coming out. If we can keep it up and worry about ourselves, we’re going to be fine.”
Cross spotted the Eagles an early lead when he picked up a fumble near midfield and took it in for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead with nine seconds remaining in the second quarter.
“Isaiah (Samuel) blitzed, and he made a great tackle,” Cross said of his teammate. “He popped the ball up in the air, and I just ran. I ran for my life.”
The Eagles, despite managing very little offense, took that 7-0 lead into halftime. They went on top 14-0 after Samuel came up with an interception on the Trojans’ 10-yard line and took it in for the score with 9:19 remaining in the third quarter.
“All I saw was them put three receivers on the side,” Samuel said. “We practice for that, and I knew the quarterback was going to try to throw it to the middle. He (Cross) tipped it, and I just went for it.”
That 14-0 lead was anything but secure. A 16-yard touchdown run by Josh Smith, who finished with 104 yards on 18 carries, made it a 14-7 game with 2:26 remaining in the third quarter.
Things got real interesting when the Trojans marched 69 yards for a score when Josh Trunk took it in from six yards out with 6:15 left in regulation. A missed extra point allowed the Eagles to cling to a 14-13 lead, but the game was far from over.
The Eagles were stuffed at the line of scrimmage going for it on fourth-and-one with four minutes remaining, and the Trojans took over at the Eagles’ 44. The Eagles’ defense held, and the Trojans never threatened the rest of the way.
“We were exhausted,” Samuel said. “But I looked to the sidelines, and I saw coach, and he pointed at me, and I knew what that meant. I said I’m going to buckle down.
“I wear this number (52) because I love Ray Lewis. He’s my number one linebacker, and I knew he would just buckle down, suck it up and play through it.”
“Coach preaches mental toughness,” Cross added. “That’s what today was – mental toughness. We had to fight through the pain and being exhausted, and we did.”
Powel said he was preaching defense all week, and his defense came up big.
“We were watching film all week, and I said, ‘These guys get off the ball,’” he said. “I think they realized – we have to make a play or two to stop them.
“As the game went on, we wore down a little bit. I called them in and said, ‘This is where adversity comes.’ They’re learning leaps and bounds how to play football. These guys are talented enough. If they do their jobs, those plays are going to happen.”
And how does it feel to be 2-0?
“Amazing,” Cross said.
“Amazing,” Samuel echoed. “I’m ecstatic.
“It was in the paper that we were going to lose 42-14. Across the board, everyone thought Wissahickon was going to win. To come out and prove everybody wrong that doubted us feels amazing. Amazing.”
The Trojans (1-1) will host Souderton next Friday while the Eagles (2-0) will host Plymouth Whitemarsh next Saturday.
Norristown 7-0-7-0 14
Wissahickon 0-0-7-6 13
UPPER DUBLIN 28, HARRY S TRUMAN 21
Junior quarterback Ryan Stover threw for 181 yards and three touchdowns and the Flying Cardinals’ defense shut out the Tigers in the second half, allowing Upper Dublin to turn a 21-14 halftime deficit into the hard-fought win.
In the first half, Truman quarterback Mark Lopez-Shefcyk – who finished with 155 yards - connected with Justin Fant for a pair of touchdown passes. Sandwiched between those two TD passes was an 89-yard kickoff return by Brandon Hill that put the Tigers on top 14-7. Upper Dublin’s Kaleif Lee took it in from 57 yards out to knot the score 14-14 before the Tigers cashed in for another score as time was about to expire in the half.
A pair of Stover TD passes in the second half propelled the Cardinals to the win. The Tigers hurt themselves with five turnovers in the loss.
Upper Dublin (2-0) will travel to Abington next Friday for a rematch of last year’s District One AAAA opening round game, a 55-25 Abington win. The Tigers (1-1) will travel to Cardinal O’Hara.
Upper Dublin 7-7-7-7 28
Harry S Truman 14-7-0-0 21
ABINGTON 23, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 8
The Ghosts used a pair of touchdown runs by Juawine Sowell to open up a 14-0 halftime lead on their way to the convincing win over the defending American Conference champions. Sowell’s first TD came in the opening moments of the game, and the tone had been set.
A safety in the third quarter gave the Ghosts a 16-0 lead. The teams exchanged fourth quarter touchdowns with PW backup quarterback Anthony Mirable delivering a TD pass to break up the Ghosts’ shutout bid.
Middle linebacker Daron Boone had another big game defensively for the Ghosts.
Abington (2-0) will host Upper Dublin next Friday while the Colonials (0-2) will travel to Norristown next Saturday.
Abington 7-7-2-7 23
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-8 8
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 34, SOUDERTON 19
Things didn’t look all that promising for the Bucks after the Indians – sparked by a 17-yard Nate Landes TD run – opened up a 13-3 lead at the end of one quarter. On the heels of a 41-14 loss at the hands of Central Bucks South last week, the Bucks were staring at the possibility of an 0-2 start.
But not for long.
A 32-yard touchdown run by Dallas Owen and a 30-yard field goal by Kenny Doak sent the two teams into halftime deadlocked 13-13. For Doak, it was his second field goal of the game. He connected on a 41-yarder in the first quarter.
In the third quarter, the Bucks outscored the Indians 21-0 to cap a 31-0 tear and effectively putting the game out of reach. Owen – who finished with 165 yards - had TD runs of 67 and 51 yards in the quarter.
Central Bucks West (1-1) will host Pennridge next week while the Indians (1-1) will travel to Wissahickon.
Central Bucks West 3-10-21-0 34
Souderton 13-0-0-6 19
QUAKERTOWN 40, HATBORO-HORSHAM 13
The Hatters led 7-6 at the end of one quarter, benefitting from a 66-yard touchdown pass by Casey Walsh to Calvin Broaddus Jr. The Panthers had an answer, scoring 21 second-quarter points to go into halftime with a 27-13 lead. Quarterback Alec Vera, who finished with 166 yards in the air, found Rob Burns for a 71-yard TD pass, and he also ran it in from 12 yards out in the quarter.
Walsh threw for 224 yards in a losing effort.
Quakertown (2-0) will travel to Cheltenham next Friday while the Hatters (0-2) will travel to Lansdale Catholic next Saturday.
Quakertown 6-21-7-6 40
Hatboro-Horsham 7-6-0-0 13
NORTH PENN 19, WEST CATHOLIC 16 (OT)
Matt Ammendola connected for the game-winning field goal from 27 yards out in overtime to propel the Knights to a win. With defending 3A state champion Archbishop Wood waiting in the wings next week, this was as close as it gets to a must-win in the second game of the season.
Ammendola’s field goal was his fourth of the night. He missed on a 22-yarder in the game’s closing minutes but more than made up for that in OT.
West Catholic led for the better part of the game, opening up a 16-6 lead before Ammendola connected from 30 yards out to make it a 16-9 game at the intermission. A 59-yard touchdown run by Nick Isabella knotted the score 16-16 late in the third quarter, and that tie stood until Ammendola’s game winner.
Nyfease West had 99 yards on the ground to lead the Knights.
North Penn (1-1) will host Wood next Friday night.
West Catholic 0-16-0-0-0 16
North Penn 3-6-7-0-3 19
COATESVILLE 47, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 34
In a game that saw the two teams combine for more than 800 yards of total offense, it was the Red Raiders – fifth in the latest PennLive PA Prep rankings – accounting for 447 of those.
Coatesville led 7-6 after one quarter and upped that lead to 20-6 before a 42-yard run by Josh Adams made it a 20-13 game. The Raiders took a 27-20 lead into halftime. Things got interesting when South quarterback Kevin Witchey – who threw for more than 200 yards and three TDs – connected with teammate Matt Weeks for a 73-yard touchdown, knotting the score 27-27 after the extra point.
The Raiders answered with three touchdowns to seize control of the game.
Adams finished with 143 yards and two touchdowns. He also was on the receiving end of a 38-yard Witchey TD pass.
The Titans (1-1) will host Central Bucks East next Friday.
Coatesville 7-20-13-7 47
Central Bucks South 6-14-7-7 34
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 40, SIMON GRATZ CHARTER 25
Brandon McIlwain continued to work his magic behind center. The Indians’ junior quarterback had a hand in all six of his team’s touchdowns – rushing for four and passing for two more. All told he accounted more than 320 yards of total offense.
The Indians opened up a 14-0 lead only to watch Gratz trim that lead to one in the third quarter, and Gratz still trailed by just three midway through the fourth quarter (28-25). The Indians turned a fumble recovery into a TD when McIlwain found Chris Welde with a 69-yard touchdown pass, and they never looked back.
The Indians (2-0) will host Pennsbury next Friday in a battle of former National Conference rivals.
Council Rock North 6-8-14-12 40
Simon Gratz 0-7-12-6 25
UPPER MORELAND 35, ARCHBISHOP CARROLL 17
Tyler Whitmore scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 57-yard run, and the Golden Bears were off and running. By halftime, they led 28-7 on their way to the resounding non-league win.
Whitmore, despite seeing limited action in the second half, finished with 154 yards and two touchdowns. Senior quarterback Josh Abrams also had a big game, throwing for 195 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for another as the Golden Bears controlled this one from wire to wire.
Upper Moreland (2-0) will face Conwell Egan next Friday night at Harry S. Truman High School.
WILLIAM TENNENT 56, FELS 14
The Panthers rebounded from a disappointing loss to Mastery Charter in week one to rout Fels, scoring early and often. In the opening minute of the game, senior Sam Collazo scored on a 52-yard touchdown run, and things only got easier. Quarterback Nik Banks hooked up with John Ryan for a pair of first quarter touchdowns. For good measure, Tennent’s defense recovered three first quarter fumbles, which included Colin Tye’s fumble recovery in the end zone for a TD.
Sophomore running back Tyler Lynch finished with a game-high 117 yards, which included an 83-yard TD run in the second half.
Tennent (1-1) will host Oxford next Friday.
PENNSBURY 56, FRANKFORD 8
Any thoughts that Frankford could give Pennsbury a run for its money were put to rest early. Charles Snorweah – playing fullback for the first time in Friday’s game– scored midway through the first quarter on a two-yard carry. By halftime, he had three touchdowns, and the Falcons had a 42-0 lead on their way to the rout.
Quarterback Mike Alley connected for a pair of touchdown passes, and the Falcons’ defense held their visitors to less than 200 yards.
Pennsbury (2-0) will travel to Council Rock North next Friday.
Frankford 0-0-0-8 8
Pennsbury 14-28-7-7 56
OCTORARA 30, UPPER MERION 28
The Vikings (0-2) lost a heartbreaker on Friday night when their field goal attempt in the closing seconds of the game fell short.
CHELTENHAM 24, BISHOP MCDEVITT 7
DOWNINGTOWN WEST 28, NESHAMINY 7
The Redskins hung tough for one half, but a late touchdown by the Whippets in the closing moments of the first half spelled the beginning of the end. The 'Skins knotted the score 7-7 after Matt Magdelinskas scored on a four-yard touchdown run, but the Whippets responded and took a 14-7 lead into halftime. A botched snap on a punt set up another Whippets' score in the third quarter, and the Redskins were never heard from again.
The Redskins (0-2) will host Council Rock South next Friday.
Neshaminy 0-7-0-0 7
Downingtown West 0-14-7-7 28
BENSALEM at COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH (Ppd. to Saturday, Sept. 6, 4 p.m.)
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