PHILADELPHIA — A brotherhood years in the making fell short of its ultimate goal of a PIAA Class 3A football state championship Saturday afternoon at the Germantown Super Site as Wyomissing fell to Neumann-Goretti 20-17 in heartbreaking fashion on a touchdown with eight seconds left.
Having numerous seniors looking to win their first state title after reaching the championship game the last two seasons, the disappointment from the Spartans was palpable.
“It’s a brotherhood through and through,” running back Charlie McIntyre said. “Most of us have been here for 10 or 12 years; two-thirds of our life. So we didn’t end up like how we wanted to and we didn’t reach that final goal in our careers. It was a hell of a ride, you can’t say more. Most kids don’t get the opportunity we get and I’m just grateful for everything I’ve gotten here in this program.”
In the end, a close game came down to the final two minutes, and for a few minutes Wyomissing looked to be heading to its third straight title game.
Trailing 14-10 with 2:01 to go, the Spartans took over at their 20. Though his number was not often called in the Wyomissing’s patented Wing-T offense, quarterback Ben Zechman led the drive of his career to keep the Spartans’ season alive.
On the ninth play of an 80-yard drive, Zechman connected with McIntyre for a 10-yard touchdown pass that gave the Spartans (13-1) a 17-14 lead. Zechman finished the game 9-of-18 with 115 yards.
The Saints took over on their final drive with 34 seconds at their 44
“It was crazy,” Wyomisisng running back Drew Eisenhower said of the chaotic ending. “I can’t even explain it. It was up and down, basically the same thing as last week (in a 21-19 win over Danville) and then we just didn’t get as lucky this time.”
With their backs against the wall, Neumann-Goretti quarterback Mehki Wharton found a wide-open Qaasim Major for a 44-yard touchdown pass to retake the lead at 20-17.
“We just got beat,” Wyomissing coach Bob Wolfrum said. “I don’t think we missed the coverage. We just got beat.
“I thought we had lucked out and had gotten that (two-minute) drive, and then they came back and did the same thing. But I thought they outplayed us all day long. They were very physical, and it’s not a lucky thing that they won the game. They outplayed us.”
Despite Wyomissing taking a 10-8 lead into halftime, Neumann-Goretti did a good job of shutting down the Spartans’ running game that came in averaging 344.2 rushing yards per game.
The Spartans finished with 147 rushing yards on 45 carries and had just two rushes longer than 10 yards in the first half.
After the game, Saints coach Albie Crosby said his team was able to stifle Wyomissing’s running game by keeping the Neumann-Goretti offense on the field as long as possible. As for the late game heroics, Crosby admitted his offense may have had a little help.
“My mom passed away on Nov. 12, so I actually think my mom helped make that play happen,” Albie said of the game-winner. “The last couple of weeks have kind of been really really difficult for me and my family. We played three games in eight days and that was during that timeframe. So it kind of kept my mind busy and the team just rocked with me, so I really appreciate this group of young men.
“But the biggest thing was trying to keep them off the field. Our coaches did a really good job of studying. We talked to some people that ran the Wing-T in our league back in the early 2000s and did a really good job. So kind of touching base with those guys gave me a little insight. I don’t know if it stopped them, but hopefully it contained them.”
Wyomissing scored on its second drive of the game with 1:15 left in the first quarter when Drew Eisenhower ran in a 6-yard sweep behind strong blocking from Penn State commit J’ven Williams and Jack Gartner. Aside from the blocking on the initial touchdown, the Spartans had trouble finding consistency with their offensive line, according to Wolfrum.
“They had an extra guy in the box, they were very physical and we couldn’t maintain blocks,” Wolfrum said. “It was just tough to run the ball. Very frustrating, because I think we had the X’s and O’s and we had enough bodies to block them, but we weren’t getting it done. Hats off to them, they just stopped the way we played.”
In the second quarter, Wyomissing decided not go for it on fourth-and-goal from the Saints 2-yard and instead capped a 13-play, 48-yard drive with a 19-yard field goal by Ian Leverling.
Down 10-0, Neumann-Goretti unleashed the Shawn Battle show as the running back ran for 121 yards in the first half and broke free for a 51-yard rushing score halfway through the second quarter. The Saints converted a two-point conversion run to make it 10-8.
Each team turned the ball over on downs twice in the first half as each side tried to keep its offense on the field as long as possible.
Battle continued his impressive play with his team trailing by two in the third. Battle racked up an additional 66 yards in the third before getting ejected for an unnecessary roughness penalty at the end of the third quarter. Battle, a Boston College cornerback commit, finished with 187 yards on 19 carries.
Kyreese Bradley gave Neumann-Goretti its first lead after scoring a 2-yard rushing touchdown with 2:01 left.
The Saints outgained the Spartans 266-147 on the ground.
For Williams, the disappointment his side feels today does not tarnish the bonds and memories the team has made.
“I would give it all to do it again,” Williams said. “I love this program, and I’ll be watching for the rest of my life.”
Source: Berkshire mont
Be First to Comment