Information for this story courtesy of the DuBois Courier-Express/Tri-County Sunday

CURWENSVILLE 29, SMETHPORT 18

CURWENSVILLE – The Curwensville Tide jumped out to a 21-0 lead and held off the Smethport Hubbers for a 29-18 victory in the District 9 Class A quarterfinals Friday night at Riverside Stadium.

The Tide (9-1) helped the visiting Hubbers (4-6) commit six turnovers. However, the Hubbers did get back to within 21-18 by the end of the third quarter. Curwensville nearly returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown and scored again to take control of the game.

Tide running back Alex Holland rushed for 140 yards on 28 carries and scored two touchdowns on 1-yard runs. He’s on the verge of a 2,000-yard season with 1,982 yards going into next week’s semifinal game against Cameron County.

Holland’s first touchdown gave the Tide the initial lead with 2:50 left in the first quarter. Quarterback Alec Starr made it 14-0 not long after that on a 1-yard run with 11:57 left in the second quarter. Then at the 6:34 mark of the second quarter, Tide quarterback Hunter McCracken threw an 11-yard pass to Jesse Zorger.

Smethport got on the scoreboard before halftime on Ryan Wells’ 4-yard run with 3:24 left. In the third quarter, Kevin Lord scored on a 2-yard run and Kolin Strawcutter added a 10-yard run to get the Hubbers within three points. Smethport failed to score points after all three of their touchdowns.

Holland put the Tide up a comfortable 11 points with his third 1-yarder with seven seconds left in the third quarter.

Smethport actually outgained Curwensville, 230-217, but six turnovers — three interceptions and three lost fumbles — derailed the Hubbers’ upset hopes. McCracken picked off Lord twice and Shane Hoover added the third interception.

Wells led the Hubbers with 78 yards rushing on 13 carries. Smethport also helped the Tide commit three turnovers as Jory Okerlund and Andrew Paulik intercepted Tide quarterback Starr.

Smethport was making its first playoff appearance since 2004. Curwensville will take on Cameron County in the district playoffs for the first time. The two last met in last year’s Allegheny Mountain League Championship game that the Tide won, 6-0.

CURWENSVILLE 29, 

SMETHPORT 18

Score By Quarters

Smethport          0             6             12           0             —           18

Curwensville    7             14           8             0             —           29

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

CUR - Alex Holland 1 run (Taylor Bumbarger kick), 2:50.

Second Quarter

CUR - Alec Starr 1 run (Taylor Bumbarger kick), 11:57.

CUR - Jesse Zorger 11 pass from Hunter McCracken (Taylor Bumbarger kick), 6:34.

S - Ryan Wells 4 run (run failed), 3:24.

Third Quarter

S - Kevin Lord 2 run (run failed), 4:50.

S - Kolin Strawcutter 10 run (run failed), 2:10.

CUR - Holland 1 run (McCracken run), 0:07.

                S             CUR

First Downs      10           13

Rushes-Yards  36-172 40-130

Passing Yards  58           87

Comp-Att-Int  5-12-3  8-15-2

Total Yardage 230        217

Punts-Average                3-19.7  5-26.2

Fumbles-lost     3-3         1-1

Penalties-Yards              6-62      9-84

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing - Smethport: Ryan Wells 13-78, Kevin Lord 11-39, Bran Zetwick 5-25, Kolin Strawcutter 5-17, Tony Farrell 2-13. Curwensville: Alex Holland 28-140, Zach Dimmick 5-12, Alec Starr 5(-17), Hunter McCracken 1-(-4), Team 1-(-1).

Passing - Smethport: Kevin Lord 5 of 12, 58 yds., 0 TDs, 3 Ints. Curwensville: Hunter McCracken 7 of 11, 66 yds., 1 TD, 0 Int.; Alec Starr 1 of 4, 21 yds., 0 TD, 2 Ints.

Receiving - Smethport: Kolin Strawcutter 2-27, Ryan Wells 1-0, Jory Okerlund 1-14, Andrew Paulik 1-17. Curwensville: Jesse Zorger 4-38, Shae Best 2-24, Shane Hoover 1-4, Kyle Barrett 1-21.

Interceptions - Smethport: Jory Okerlund, Andrew Paulik. Curwensville: Hunter McCracken 2, Shane Hoover.