It was a beautiful night for Friday night football in Shillington.
But for Gov. Mifflin, it turned out to be a tough one, as the Mustangs struggled from start to finish.
The Mustangs fell 45-13 to Perkiomen Valley in a non-league matchup during Week 2.
Gov. Mifflin (1-1) had a chance to start 2-0 for the first time since 2021, but a breakdown on defense proved costly. The Mustangs were outgained 512 to 237 in total yards of offense.
“They’re so talented and so well coached,” Mustangs coach Nick Morrissey said of Perkiomen Valley. “They got fast, talented kids. To be honest, in that first half, I was really proud of our group to hang around and battle, and do some nice things offensively.”
The Mustangs actually got off to a strong start on their opening drive.
Patrick Steuer led the charge with runs of 28 and 7 yards, helping march the offense down to the six-yard line.
But that’s when the momentum shifted.
LeBron Leaf pitched the ball to the right, but Steuer couldn’t get a clean handle on it, resulting in a fumble and turnover.
“Killer.” Morrissey said of the fumble. “Against teams like this, you cannot make any mistakes like that. You cannot turn the ball over. If we were going to have a chance to be in this game we had to play mistake free football.”
That’s when the Vikings (1-1) took control.
Colin Sturges sparked the drive with runs of 18 and 7 yards, setting Perkiomen Valley up at their own 27-yard line.
Quarterback Aiden Messatzzia dropped back and hit Joey Keough on a perfectly placed corner route. The senior made an over-the-shoulder catch and raced untouched down the Mifflin sideline for six.
Mifflin’s offense continued to grind, stringing together a 14-play drive marked by small gains and a cloud of dust.
They reached the 2-yard line but had to settle for a 19-yard field goal from Lance Koenig, cutting the deficit to 7-3 early in the second quarter.
The Vikings’ offense responded, and quickly.
Aiden Messatzzia completed passes of 21 and 16 yards on a smoke screen and a quick shovel pass, setting the stage for Colin Sturges to finish the job.
He caught a pitch in the backfield surrounded by Mustangs, made a quick move to make a man miss, and in a blink of an eye, he was sprinting down the middle of the field, jogging into the end zone.
On the next possession, Mifflin finally scored their first touchdown of the season at home in Shillington.
On the tenth play of the drive, Leaf rolled to his left, faded back, and released a pass off his back foot.
What is a highly criticized pass in football turned into six points when Steuer dove to haul it in for a touchdown.
With the score now 14-10, the Mustangs were right back in the game.
But Perkiomen Valley’s electric offense wasted no time responding, quickly finding the end zone once again.
On the second play of the drive, Sturges took a delayed handoff out of the shotgun and shot up the middle like a bullet.
He was finally hawked down at the one-yard line by a Mifflin defensive back.
After Messatzzia was stuffed on two consecutive QB sneaks, Julian Corropolese took a direct snap from the shotgun and punched it in with three minutes left in the half.
With time working against them and unable to run the play clock down to one second like they had been on offense, Mifflin faced a tough challenge in their two-minute drill.
After three straight running plays, they were forced to punt.
The Vikings started their drive at their own 37-yard line with 54 seconds remaining, and they made the Mustangs pay with the time they allowed them.
Messatzzia connected with Keough over the middle on a seam route, taking the ball into the red zone with just 14 seconds left.
One play later, the Vikings ran a halfback screen that Isamael Cox took 19 yards untouched, extending the lead to 28-10 going into halftime.
The Mustangs rushed for 110 yards on 27 carries but gave up 154 rushing yards and 157 passing yards to the Vikings.
“It was a tough time tackling No. 26 (Sturges) and it was a tough time trying to keep up with No. 6 (Knough), but credit to our kids for fighting in the first half,” Morrissey said. “I’m proud of them, and we’ll get better from this.”
Holding a big lead and starting with the ball in the second half, the Vikings didn’t let up, looking to bury the Mustangs’ comeback hopes.
Sturges broke free on a 41-yard touchdown run down the right sideline.
About six minutes later, on their second possession, Lance Koenig knocked down a 41-yard field goal to cut the lead to 35-13.
But that would be the Mustangs’ last points of the game, as Perkiomen Valley celebrated another touchdown in the third quarter.
Messatzzia connected with Keough for their second touchdown of the game on a bubble screen, which Keough took 65 yards all the way to the house.
The Vikings’ senior quarterback finished 9-for-11 for 247 yards and three touchdowns.
Keough hauled in five receptions for 188 yards, while Sturges rushed five times for 181 yards, highlighting an all-around offensive dominance.
For the Mustangs, LeBron Leaf completed 11 of 22 passes for 118 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Steuer totaled 78 yards and scored one touchdown.
Heading into Week 3, Morrissey acknowledged the positives from this loss and is focused on moving forward.
“I love the fact that my kids stayed together, they kept their composure, and kept their body language. We stayed together as a team. We didn’t fold.”
Source: Berkshire mont