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WEEK 8 RECAPS OCT. 20-21 |
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PORT ALLEGANY DEFEATS SMETHPORT PORT ALLEGANY- Tom Nasto hit Kyle Bachman with a 35-yard touchdown pass to help Port Allegany break a 14-14 deadlock en route to a 34-22 win and the AML North Title over Smethport Saturday afternoon at Port Allegany. The loss eliminates Smethport from the District 9 Class A playoff picture (See story below). Port Allegany will now play Curwensville in the AML Title game at 7 p.m. Saturday at Johnsonburg. It is the first time since 1988 that Smethport will not go to the playoffs. It is also the first time since 1988 that Port Allegany has beaten Smethport and advanced to the AML Title game. Port Allegany (6-2) took a 14-0 lead before Smethport (5-3) rallied back to tie the game at 14 early in the third quarter. The Gators responded by scoring the next three touchdowns, taking a 34-14 lead. The Hubbers added a touchdown and two-point conversion, but to no avail. Port Allegany led 14-8 at halftime. Cliff Fillhart led Port Allegany with 78 yards rushing on 16 attempts, while Jayson Nick had 68 on 16 carries and Travis Rankin 69 on 11 carries. If you have more information on this game, please E-mail it to us at d9sportscom@hotmail.com. SMETHPORT LOSS PUTS C-L, KANE IN CLASS A PLAYOFFS PORT ALLEGANY -- Port Allegany's 34-22 win over Smethport Saturday eliminated Smethport from the District 9 Class A playoffs and clinches playoff berths for both Clarion-Limestone (7-1) and Kane (6-2). C-L and Kane join Curwensville (8-0) and Clarion (8-0) in the playoffs. Preliminary indications have Curwensville as the top seed, Clarion as the second seed, C-L as the third seed and Kane as the fourth seed. The top two seeds will host playoff games. The playoff start Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 with the semifinal contests. The championship game will be played Nov. 10 or Nov. 11. In Class AA, it looks liked Brockway, Port Allegany and Karns City will be in the playoffs, while in Class AAA Clearfield and Bradford look to be the contestants. HOLLIDAYSBURG TOPS DuBOIS DuBOIS -- Hollidaysburg rolled off 20 straight points to overcome a 12-7 first half deficit on its way to a 35-19 win over DuBois (3-5) in non-conference action Friday night at DuBois. Hollidaysburg took the lead for good on a 16-yard run by Brad Muth with 2:03 left in the first half and then scored the first 13 points of the second half on its way to the win. DuBois led 6-0 at the end of the first quarter thanks to a 2-yard touchdown run by Derek Marshall. After Hollidaysburg took a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter, DuBois regained the lead 12-7 on a 6-yard run by Marshall. After Hollidaysburg rallied for a 27-12 lead, DuBois cut the score to 27-19 on a 2-yard run by Chad Hoare with 11:55 left in the game, but Hollidaysburg put the game away on an 81-yard pass from Craig Abernathy to Chad Maines with 10:05 left to play. Marshall led DuBois with 166 yards rushing on 24 carries and two touchdowns, while Hoare had four rushes for 72 yards and a touchdown. FOURTH-QUARTER SCORE LEADS JOHNSONBURG OVER RIDGWAY RIDGWAY -- Jake Sprague caught a 47-yard touchdown pass from Francis Iorfido with 9:20 left in the game to lift Johnsonburg (5-3) to a 17-12 win over Ridgway (4-4) in AML South action Friday night at Ridgway. The loss was the third straight and fourth in five games for Ridgway, who started the season 3-0. The win broke a three-game losing streak for Johnsonburg, which started 4-0. The game was a back-and-forth slugfest between these two rivals. Johnsonburg took a 7-0 lead on a 70-yard pass from Iorfido to Joey Carnovale with 6:56 left in the first half. Ridgway pulled to within a point on a 1-yard run by Brandon Steger with 3:41 left in the half, but a 33-yard field goal by Carnovale as time ran out in the half gave the Rams a 10-6 halftime lead. Ridgway took its only lead in the game 12-10 on a 6-yard run by Steger with 4:59 left in the third quarter. Iorfido finished the game 5-14 for 155 yards and two touchdowns, while Sprague had four catches for 85 yards and a score. Carnovale had one catch for 70 yards and the score and six rushes for 48 yards. Dustin Dickant led Ridgway, which was held to only 182 yards total offense including just 48 in the air, with 69 yards rushing on 20 carries. KANE SQUEAKS BY ECC KANE -- Tyler Smith's 3-yard touchdown run with 4:29 left in the game kept Kane's playoff quest alive, as the Wolves (6-2)opped ECC (1-7) 19-14 in AML South play Friday night at Kane. Kane's win coupled with Smethport's loss clinched a playoff spot for the Wolves (See Story). ECC overcame a 13-0 deficit to almost pull off the upset. Kane took an early 7-0 lead on a 62-yard run by Royce Novosel-Johnson with 4:05 left in the first quarter. The Wolves then took a 13-0 lead on a25-yard pass from Smith to Adam Risinger with 5:50 left in the opening half. ECC cut Kane's lead to 13-7 with five seconds left in the first half on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Robert Pearsail to Dan Gregory. ECC then took the lead 14-13 on a 1-yard run by Rocco Tettis with 6:11 left in the third quarter. Novosel-Johsnon led Kane with 199 yards rushing on 27 carries and one catch for 10 yards. Gregory had 58 yards rushing and 34 yards receiving for ECC. CLEARFIELD HAS NO PROBLEMS WITH ST. MARYS CLEARFIELD -- Clearfield (7-1, 4-0 D9League) raced out to a 35-7 halftime lead on its way to a 48-7 win over St. Marys (3-5, 2-3) in a District 9 League match Friday at Clearfield. With the win, the Bisons have clinched at least a share of the D9League title. A win over DuBois Friday night will give Clearfield the out-right title. St. Marys scored first on a 79-yard touchdown run by Bryan Babb 19 seconds into the game. Clearfield, though, tied the game on an 8-yard pass form Mike Sayers to Kyle Green with 8:08 left in the first quarter and then took the lead for goof on a 19-yard run by Matt Meckey with 2:12 left in the quarter. Clearfield then scored three more times in the second quarter on an 8-yard pass from Sayers to Brian Kaspick, a 36-yard run by Dave Richards and a 9-yard pass from Sayers to Kaspick. The Bison added 13 more points in the third quarter on runs of 23 and 18 yards by Richards. Richards finished with 99 yards rushing and three touchdowns, while Sayers was 10-20 for 184 yards and three touchdowns. Kaspick caught five passes for 142 yards and two scores. St. Marys was led by Babb who had four rushes for 103 yards.. Tony Kopp had tow interceptions for the Dutchmen. CURWENSVILLE REMAINS UNBEATEN CURWENSVILLE -- Curwensville (8-0) remained unbeaten with a 42-6 win over Cameron County (1-7) in an AML South game Friday night at Curwensville. The Golden Tide, who will play Port Allegany in the AML Title Game at 7 p.m. Saturday at Johnsonburg, raced out to a 35-0 halftime lead on its way to the win. Curwensville scored twice in the first quarter on a 37-yard run by Matt Harnish and a 5-yard pass from Matt Harnish to Joe Bennett. The Golden Tide then scored three more times in the second quarter on a 6-yard run by Brian Marino, a 16-yard run by Mark Harnish and a 9-yard run by Matt Harnish. Cameron County got its lone score on a 27-yard interception return for a TD by Steve Brant in the third quarter. A 46-yard run by Matt Harnish ended the scoring. Matt Harnish led Curwensville with five rushes for 87 yards and three touchdowns and 8-14 passing for 136 yards and a touchdown. Adam Donahue had seven catches for 131 yards. Donahue and Matt Harnish each added an interception for the Golden Tide. BROOKVILLE CAPTURES ROUTE 36 TROPHY BROOKVILLE -- For the fourth straight year Brookville (2-6) captured the Route 36 Trophy with a 13-0 win over Punxsutawney 1-7) Friday night at Brookville. The game was scoreless at halftime, but Brookville got a 4-yard touchdown run by Joe Marstellar with 1:20 left in the third quarter and then put the game away when Marstellar ran for a 14-yard TD run with 4:49 left in the game. Marstellar rushed for 44 yards, while Ryan Kesterholt rushed for 57 yards on 22 carries. Matt Meillo was 8-14 for 115 yards. Punxy was led by Kevin Porada's three catches for 45 yards. KARNS CITY ROUTS WEST SHAMOKIN RURAL VALLEY -- Billy Graham ran for 134 yards and a touchdown and Jim Belles rushed for 103 and a score to lead Karns City (6-2) to a 66-6 win over West Shamokin (0-8) in KSAC action Friday night at West Shamokin. Erik Fuhrer added three touchdown passes, and Ian Ferguson scored two defensive touchdowns to help the Gremlins to the win. Karns City scored four first quarter touchdown. Fuhrer hit Brian Trimbur for a 42-yard score, Beau Rattigan ran for a 2-yard TD, Ferguson returned an INT 19 yards for a TD and Graham ran for a 62-yard TD. In the second quarter Belles rushed for 43 yards and Fuhrer hit Rattigan from 15 yards out to give Karns City a 42-0 halftime lead. In the second half, Belles scored from 23 yards out and Fuhrer hit Greg King with a 12-yard touchdown pass to make the score 54-0. West Shamokin got on the board on a 51-yard TD pass from Ryan Van Horn to Jon Nagy. Karns City finished off the scoring on a 1-yard run by Jordan Collins and a 30-yard fumble recovery for a TD by Ferguson as time ran out.
BRADFORD DEFENSE STYMIES TITUSVILLE IN OWLS' WIN BRADFORD- Defense prevailed in a non-conference match-up of teams with high-powered offenses, as Bradford's defensive performance lifted the Owls to a 13-7 win over D-10 opponent Titusville Friday night. Bradford (6-2) held Titusville, who had been averaging over 40 points a game, to one touchdown and 109 total yards. It was the Owls' sixth-straight win. Titusville running back Jamie Sye, averaging over 170 yards a game, was held to 26 yards on 19 carries. The Bradford offense gained 248 total yards, over twice as much as Titusville's total. Titusville had a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter before Bradford responded with a touchdown with 3:44 left in the half. Mike Fair scored on a 7-yard run and Ken Ciolek nailed the PAT to make the game 7-7. The Owls got the game-winning touchdown when Kevin Rose hit Jason Casey on a screen pass that went 48 yards into the end zone with 4:30 left in the game. Bradford will travel to Warren in a non-conference contest Friday. MERWIN PASSES REDBANK VALLEY TO VICTORY RIMERSBURG- For the second straight game, Chris Merwin threw four touchdowns passes as Redbank Valley defeated Union 28-6 in Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference action. The Bulldogs (4-4 overall, 3-4 KSAC) have won four of their last five games, as Merwin went 5-of-13 passing for 116 yards. Ron Geist led the Bulldogs running game with 120 yards on 23 carries. Redbank ended up with 278 total yards. Redbank got on the board in the third quarter when Merwin found Dustin Kahle for a 66-yard touchdown. Dustin Shaffer converted the point after to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead with 8:58 left in the half. The Bulldogs got on the board again when Merwin found Scott Smith on a 3-yard touchdown pass with 1:14 left. On the final play of the third quarter, Union (3-5, 2-5) cut its deficit to eight points at 14-6 when Seth Stewart scored from seven yards out. The Bulldogs responded as Merwin found Shealy on a 27-yard touchdown and connected with Kahle on a 25-yard score in the fourth quarter. Kahle had three catches for 86 yards and the touchdown. Stewart led Union with 43 yards rushing, while Lipps 8-12 for 103 yards passing. Josh Carmichael had two interceptions for the Golden Knights. The Bulldogs will host West Shamokin on Friday, as Union will travel to Keystone Friday. CANTAFIO GOES OVER 4,000 YARDS IN BROCKWAY WIN By Rich Rhoades BROCKWAY - Two quarters after celebrating Aaron Cantafio reaching the BIG SECOND QUARTER LEADS CLARION TO WIN By Chris Rossetti CLARION – Clarion exploded for 48-second quarter points on its way to a 62-0 demolishing of Keystone in a KSAC game Friday night at Clarion. The win clinched Clarion’s second straight undefeated KSAC season and gave the Bobcats (8-0) their 17th straight regular-season win. "What a year," Clarion coach Larry Wiser said. But despite the final score, it wasn’t easy. Keystone (2-6, 2-5 KSAC) came out firing on all cylinders on defense and held Clarion to zero points in the first quarter. "We didn’t come over here just to show up," Keystone coach Dan Reed said. "We came over here to win the game, and our kids believed we could win the game. But that is a great team. I give them credit. They are first class right from the coaches down to the players. They have great athletes every where. They break a run and they are gone." "We didn’t have a good offense practice this week," Wiser said. "It is so hard to stay focused every week. I thought for the first time all season we had trouble focusing on offense." The Bobcats more than made up for the lackadaisical first quarter with one of the best quarters of football any Clarion team might have ever played. Clarion’s offense kicked started itself on the first play of the second quarter when Kyle Cathcart, who would finish the night with 98 yards rushing on eight carries, scored the first of his three touchdown on a 53-yard run giving Clarion a 7-0 lead. Cathcart then turned in a big special teams play blocking a Barry Swartzfager punt. Nick Niznick recovered the block at the Keystone 20-yard line. On the Bobcats first play after the block, Niznick raced into the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown giving Clarion a 14-0 lead with 9:34 left in the first half. More bad special teams play hurt Keystone, as Swartzfager shanked a negative 2-yard punt to set Clarion up at the Keystone 37-yard line two minutes latter. The Bobcats took advantage of the good field position and added to their lead when Cathcart scored from seven yards out making the score 21-0 with 6:19 left in the half. Clarion wasn’t down yet. After a Keystone punt but the ball at the Keystone 46, Mario Bernardi tried a deep pass down the far sideline. Keystone was called for interference giving Clarion the ball at the 31-yard line. Cathcart then scored his third touchdown of the night on a 31-yard run with 3:47 left in the half to increase the Bobcat lead to 28-0. Clarion’s defense then came up big on Keystone’s next possession. The Panthers were facing a fourth-and-one at their own 24-yard line. Reed decided to go for it, and the Bobcats stopped Adam Black for no gain on a quarterback sneak. On first down, Bernardi had a wide-open Dan Patton in the end zone, but Patton dropped the ball. Patton, though, came right back and caught a 16-yard pass that put Clarion at the Keystone 7-yard line. From there, Bernardi found Taylor Sessions in the end zone for Clarion’s fifth touchdown. Dan Kaufman’s extra point made the score 35-0 with 2:24 left to play. After Clarion’s defense held Keystone again forcing a Panther punt, the Bobcats’ special teams came up with another big play. This time Mechling returned Swartzfager’s punt 37 yards for a touchdown giving Clarion a 41-0 lead with 58 seconds left in the half. "Special teams and as a result field position killed us tonight," Reed said. "We also had some costly penalties and some dropped passes. In this offense we can’t afford that this year." The Bobcats weren’t quite down scoring. Brock Luke intercepted a Black pass at the Clarion 45-yard line and returned it 45 yards to the Keystone 10 with 11 seconds to play. Bernardi then hit Mechling in the end zone with five seconds left in the half to give the Bobcats a 48-0 lead at halftime. "I love stepping up to the challenge," Bernardi said. "I have always wanted to throw the ball more in the game, and we got a chance to do that tonight. I think we did a pretty good job. They were blitzing a lot in the first quarter, which we didn’t see. In the second quarter we just tried to stay more focused." When the third quarter started, the mercy rule took effect and the two teams combined to run just 17 plays in a scoreless quarter. Clarion got back into the scoring act early in the fourth quarter when J.D. Hughes rumbled in from three yards out to give the Bobcats a 55-0 lead with 11:02 left in the game. Clarion then tacked on one more score, as Matt Watterson found pay dirt on a 27-yard run with 7:26 left in the game making the score 62-0. With 3:51 left in the game, there was a scary moment as Joel McNeil went down with an arm injury. McNeil was motionless on the ground for several minuets as trainers hovered over him. McNeil was taken to Clarion Hospital by ambulance with the initial diagnosis being a separated elbow. "We are going to miss Joel," Wiser said. "He has started on special teams for us all season." Bernardi finished the game 5-of-12 for 99 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw an interception. Mechling caught two passes for 43 yards and a score, while Sessions had two catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. Keystone’s Justin Bell ran the ball15 times for 90 yards, but the rest of the Panthers running game was held to negative 37 yards. "Justin is a very hard runner," Reed said. "The offensive line has been blocking well lately."
ALDERTON LEADS C-L TO WIN By Jonathan Shaffer CLARION TWP.- Dan Alderton rushed for 185 yards on 24 carries, scoring two touchdowns and a two-point conversion to lead Clarion-Limestone to a 35-0 win over A-C Valley in Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference action Friday, Oct. 20. The win coupled with Smethport's loss Saturday clinched a playoff spot for the Lions (See story). The Lions (7-1 overall, 6-1 KSAC) gained 332 rushing yards on 46 carries (7.2 avg.) in the win. C-L outgained A-C Valley (3-5 overall, 2-5 KSAC) 372-148 and held Chris Gilman to 88 yards on 13 carries. The Falcons only gained 24 total yards in the second half. "We gave up a lot of yards, but we contained them pretty well," Clyde Conti said. "We missed some tackles, but all those kids that missed tackles are the same guys that have seven wins for us. They are the ones who put us in the position we are in. "All these kids play together as a team. This reminds me of football from 30 or 40 years ago, there are no yuppies on this football team." A-C Valley picked up only 97 yards on 31 carries (3.1 avg.), as the teams combined for 77 carries. "We were able to move the ball adequately," A-C Valley coach Ray Gilman said, "but on every play, we had one or two players who didn’t execute. C-L ran every play we practiced against this week, and we just didn’t execute. The scoreboard speaks for itself." For the Lions, it was their fourth victory in a row, while the Falcons suffered their fifth-straight defeat after starting the season 3-0. "I think this (losing streak) is really starting to hit the kids and sink in," Ray Gilman said. "If we can play mistake-free ball, we can move the ball against anybody. But after eight games, there is no excuse for making the mistakes we have made." A-C Valley had the opening possession of the game and drove the ball from its own 20-yard line to the C-L 37. The Lions were undaunted, though, ended the drive when Jordan Johnston recovered a fumble at the C-L 39. C-L was able to turn the takeaway into seven points three plays later, when Alderton took off on the first of his two scores, sprinting 50 yards into the end zone. The Lions held a 7-0 lead with 6:32 left in the first quarter. "Danny is the best athlete I have had," Clyde Conti said. "He is a team athlete." The C-L defense also came through on A-C Valley’s next possession. On the third play of the possession, Cory Jackson was picked off by Ryan Smith, his first of two interceptions, at the Lions 41. With 5:04 on the clock, C-L went on a six-play, 51-yard drive that took up only 2:27. Alderton rushed the ball four times for 35 yards to set up in the drive, which ended on a 13-yard touchdown run by Ben Brooks, as the Lions had a 14-0 advantage at the 2:37 mark. The Falcons were able to drive the ball on their next possession but was unable to score. On fourth-and-10 at the C-L 33, Dan Leach was handed the ball and attempted a halfback pass, but was rushed and fell for a nine-yard loss, snuffing out the series. C-L took advantage of that mistake as well, scoring on the ensuing possession. After a penalty pushed the Lions back to their own 37-yard line, Chad Conti broke loose down the sideline for a 51-yard run. Two plays later, Brooks scored his second touchdown of the night, running into the end zone from seven yards out and giving C-L a 20-0 lead with 10:55 left in the half. The Lions did not score again until the third quarter, starting its scoring drive with good field position at the Falcons 30. On the fourth play of the drive, Alderton scored his second tally with a 17-yard run with 15 seconds left. Alderton caught a pass from J.J. Ferguson and hit paydirt on the two-point attempt, giving the Lions a 28-0 lead. The Lions lit up the scoreboard on their next possession as well, driving 49 yards on seven plays. The big play of the drive, which also ended the series, was a 30-yard touchdown pass from Ferguson to Smith, as C-L took the 35-0 lead with 7:01 left. SOUTHINGTON BEATS MONITEAU WEST SUNBURY -- Southington-Chalker from Ohio topped Moniteau 34-26 at Moniteau Friday night. No other details were reported. To send us information, E-mail us at d9sportscom@hotmail.com. EISENHOWER TOPS SHEFFIELD RUSSELL -- Eisenhower topped Sheffield 14-12 Friday night at Eisenhower. No other details were reported. To report more details, E-mail us at d9sportscom@hotmail.com. YOUNGSVILLE TOPS OTTO-ELDRED YOUNGSVILLE -- Dan Ringer scored four touchdowns to lead Youngsville to a 40-7 win over Otto-Eldred Friday night at Youngsville. Ringer scored on runs of 3, 41, 61 and 77 yards, as the Eagles rolled up 465 yards of total offense. Otto-Eldred's touchdown came from Kyle Milliron on a 3-yard run that tied the score at seven, but Youngsville rolled off 33 unanswered points to get the win. |
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