A 'Hounds hammering

By Ed Farrell
Herald Assistant Sports Editor

NEW WILMINGTON -- At the season's outset, the question was how Wilmington High's proud football program would recover from the loss of 21 lettermen from a District 10 Class AA finalist, all the while opting to play up in classification for the coming campaign.

But midway through the 2000 slate, with the 'Hounds having outscored a handful of foes by an aggregate 233-33 margin, vanquished opponents now ruefully are asking, "Who let the dogs out? Woof ... woof, woof!''

Paced by Brandon Whiting's 7-carry, 173-yard, 4-touchdown performance, the Hounds hammered Hickory 48-0 Friday night in a Mercer County Athletic Conference Class AAA contest.

By virtue of the victory, Wilmington (3-0, 5-0) all but assured itself of a District 10 playoff berth.

The Hounds amassed 550 total yards and 21 first downs, while hammering Hickory's offense into submission, yielding only 99 total yards and seven first downs while coercing seven punts.

"It's really a tribute to these kids, because they really didn't have much starting game experience,'' explained Greyhounds' veteran mentor Terry Verrelli. "It's just a matter of them wanting to accomplish the same thing as the years before them, and they're willing to come out and work.

"I certainly couldn't have made this prediction at the beginning of the year, because you don't really know until they get out into a game,'' Verrelli admitted, noting, "then you really find out. But I couldn't be happier with the way the kids are playing.''

Whiting's father dubbed him "Boomer'' for his baseball playing talents, but the junior turned on the jets four times on Friday night en route to scoring sprints of 42, 9, 40 and 70 yards.

"The line blew them right off the ball. The whole game, they were dominating up front, between the tackles. The holes were huge, and I just ran through them,'' Whiting, blessed with 4.5 40-yard dash speed, explained. Whiting had plenty of assistance, as Jonathan Hall complemented him with an 8-carry, 83-yard rushing performance and quarterback Matt Coad tossed touchdowns of 80 and 16 yards to Matt Krawchyk and Chad Harper, respectively.

"All of our running backs are just doing a great job,'' Verrelli (148-81-3) praised. "Brandon Whiting -- what a super night he had -- and Jonathan Hall, they run hard. And even the back-ups, Craig Copper, (Brandon) Boron and (Mike) Oestreich, they're running hard and that's what it's gonna take. But I think the offensive line (Jason Lane, Clint Buckwalter, Brian Knox, among others) is a real plus. Were they going to be first-class players was a question mark, and I think they've proven themselves,'' Verrelli emphasized.

After Wilmington forced Hickory 3-and-out on its game-opening possession, Ross Trimmer seemingly kicked his club out of trouble by launching a 59-yard punt. However Coad and Krawchyk connected on a square out, then the latter picked up a block from Whiting and sprinted down the near sideline. The play set the tone, as Wilmington led 7-0 at the quarter; 27-0 at intermission, and 48-0 with 1:34 remaining in the third period as the mercy rule took effect.

"They just outplayed us in every phase of the game and I give them all the credit in the world. Other than that, there's not a whole hellava lot to say,'' summarized Hickory head coach Phil Annarella.

The bigger issue for the Hornets (1-1, 3-2), however, is if they can bounce back from the devastating setback.

"We'll find out that next week, that's what I just got done talking to them about,'' Annarella answered patiently despite the circumstances. "We've just gotta regroup and get ready to go Monday and get ready for the next game.''

Notes: Wilmington, which won four consecutive D-10 Class AA titles (1994-97), has not lost to a Mercer County Athletic Conference team -- other than arch-rival Sharon -- since a 19-7 setback to Hickory in '94, a span of 33 games. In the last five meetings between the schools, Wilmington has humbled Hickory, 48-0, 48-13, 35-0, 49-0 and 41-0. ... Copper and Whiting pilfered passes for Wilmington, which was yielding only 137.5 yards/game entering the contest. ... Harper and Mike Telesz recorded sacks of Trimmer. ... Mark McGinnis carried twice, once for a 40-yard touchdown, then for 33 yards in the waning seconds. ... Trimmer recorded an interception and Brian Necastro recovered a fumble for Hickory, and two Trimmer punts traveled 59 and 65 yards. ... Wilmington placekicker Phil McCann turned in a 6-for-7 PAT performance.

Farrell falls in Big 8 overtime clash

By Gabe D'Angelo
Herald Writer

FARRELL -- The Farrell Steelers took an old adage turned it around and snatched "defeat from the jaws of victory" as they lost a hard fought 27-21 overtime game to the Western Beaver Golden Beavers.

What's even worse is that Farrell held at 21-12 lead with less 8:30 left in the game. "I thought we had it clinched" said Farrell coach Lou Falconi. "We're stunned, but we have to continue. Our major concern is to get the kids up for next week and the rest of the season. Every game is going to be a must win. But, we've been in that situation before, and last yerar was no exception.

The Beavers were led by D.J. Fry who rushed for 162 yards on 51 attempts. "That kid is a hell of a back" said Falconi. I thought we could stop him. He just never stopped."

It looked as though this would be a shoot-out, as both teams scored on their first drive. Western Beaver took the opening kick-off and return it to the Farrell 24. Two running gained 2 yards, but on 3rd and eight, Western Beaver QB Brenton Colbert hit Curt Kovalesky for an 11 yard gain and a first down.

The pass seemed to loosen up the Farrell defense and the Golden Beavers used the run and the pass to keep the chains moving. Frye gained 10 yards and two carries, and once again Colbert found Kovalesky for a 24-yard gain the Western Beaver was in business at the Farrell 28. A series of runs got the ball to the Farrell two, and with 3:15 left in the first quarter, Colbert skirted around the left end for the Golden Beaver's first score. The kick was no good, and Western Beaver held a 6-0 lead.

During that drive, Frye carried the ball 13 times for 39 yards.

But, Farrell came right back. An illegal block on the kick-off put the Steelers at their own 10. Runs by Claiborne and Odem netted 17 yards, and then Kennard Davis broke loose for a 43 yard gain that moved the ball to the Golden Beaver 23. Davis got 15 more to the eight, and on the second play of the second quarter, Claiborne went over the top from the one. Claiborne booted the extra-point, and Farrell took a 7-6 lead. It remained that at the half.

Farrell returned the second half kick-off to their own 34 and moved to the Western Beaver 31. However, the Steelers fumbled and the Golden Beavers recovered at their own 36.

Once again, the Golden Beavers called on Frye, and once again he responded. Two runs moved the ball to the Farrell 38 and a pass completion from Colbert to Bill Hall netted a 1st down at the Farrell 26.

However, a great series of defensive plays by the Steelers put Western Beaver in a third and 27 situation. But, Frye responded with a 25 yard run and the Golden Beavers were faced with a fourth and two at the Farrell 18. Frye picked up the first down and four plays later, scored on a 3-yard run. The two point conversion failed, and the Golden Beavers held a 12-7 third quarter lead.

Western Beaver attempted a squib kick and Farrell ended up with great field position at their own 49.

The Steelers moved to the Western Beaver 45 and then Claiborne made a dazzling run. He started inside, found it jammed up and then bounced outside and broke a number of tackles for a 45-yard TD run. The kick failed and the Steelers held a 13-12 lead.

Things looked as though they were going Farrell's way. The kick-off went out of the end zone and the Golden Beavers took over at their own 20. They managed a first down, but Frye was stripped of the ball by Claiborne, and the Steelers took over at the Western Beaver 30.

A pop pass from Craig to Manilla gained 14 yards and a personal foul penalty moved the ball to the Western Beaver 8. On the next play Claiborne scored, and when Craig hit Davis on a two-point conversion pass, the Steelers took what looked like a commanding 21-12 lead.

But, the Golden Beavers came right back. They returned the kick-off to their own 33 and mixed the pass and the run ( 4 passes and 6 runs) to move to the Farrell one. Once again, Frye took it in and when Rupnik blocked the extra-point, and with just 1:57 left in the game, the Steelers held a 21-18 lead.

Western Beaver tried on on-side kick, but the Steelers fell on it at their own 42. Three running plays gained four yards and Farrell was forced to punt.

The Golden Beavers put a great rush on Malloy and Chad White managed to block the punt. It rolled to the Farrell 23 and with 50 seconds left in the game, Western Beaver had the ball at the Farrell 23.

The Golden Beavers tried two passes to the end zone, and on third down opted for the field goal. With 15 seconds left in the game, Mark Haluska hit a 34 yard field goal to tie the game at 21-21.

Farrell took the kick-off and ran out the clock to force overtime.

Farrell won the overtime toss and opted to take the ball. Three runs by Claiborne got the ball to the two. However, on fourth down, the Steelers fumbled and the Golden Beavers recovered.

It didn't take them long. On the first play, Frye went 10 yards for the score and Western Beaver came away with the win.

Trojans, Big Reds move to 5-0; Tigers roll Mercer

Herald staff reports

Pre-season prognosticators would not be surprised that Greenville has run roughshod over its first five foes, but not too many could have predicted West Middlesex also would boast an unblemished mark at the season's midway point.

Both clubs improved to 5-0 following Friday night blowout victories, as Greenville garnered a 42-21 win at Erie-East, while West Middlesex mauled Conneaut Valley, 48-6.

It is the first time in school standards, at least since the program was re-started in 1964, that a Big Reds grid contingent has started a season with five straight wins.

• Greenville 42, Erie East 21 -- The Trojans (4-0, 5-0) triumphed in another Northwest Conference conquest, assuming a 42-0 margin before East posted three fourth-quarter scores.

  Erik Adams posted a 16-carry, 108-yard, 2-touchdown performance, and quarterback Sammy Young complemented him with an 8-for-12, 217-yard passing performance that included scoring strikes of 27 yards to Wes Baird and 46 yards to Gio Vendemia.

  Thus far this season, Greenville has outscored a handful of foes by a composite 207-34 margin.

  Greenville garnered 414 totals, compared with 213 for East (1-3, 1-4), which did not score until the fourth frame when Joe Slomski tossed TDs of 13 yards to Nick Gorton and 81 yards to Arsenio McAdory.

• Sharon 63, Mercer 0 -- At Mercer, even before Carmone Parchman ran back the opening kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown this matchup seemed like more of a mismatch, considering the two squads' respective stats.

  The Mustangs (0-2, 0-5) continued their offensive drought registering minus-23 net yards against the Tigers (2-0, 4-1) and failing to reach the end zone for the fifth straight week.

  Against the Tigers, Mercer couldn't cross the 50-yard line, let alone the goal line, and went the entire game without earning a first down. Running back David Knechtel recorded the Mustangs' only positive numbers with seven rushes for eight yards.

  Sharon, meanwhile, was paced by Parchman, who finished with 93 rushing yards and six touchdowns which included a 55-yard punt return following a Mustangs' 3-and-out series.

  Parchman's 20-yard scoring dash gave Sharon a 56-0 halftime edge and his 4-yard trot and another 11-yarder ended the scoring in the third.

  Mike Schneider connected with Marlin Jackson on a 52-yard bomb to start the third. Schneider threw two touchdowns, the on to Jackson and a 25-yard shot to Terrance Phillips, and ended the night with 163 passing yards on five completetions. Phillips scored a pair of TDs. He also brought a punt back for 60 yards for the Tigers' fourth TD, while Jim Morocco was a perfect 6-for-6 in conversion kicks.

  "It's pretty tough to evaluate your performance when your special teams score four touchdowns," said Sharon head coach Jim Wildman (191-73-6). "Everybody that practiced got to play, so that's an advantage. And nobody got hurt."

  "They're bigger, stronger, and faster," said Mercer first-year head coach Tom Phillips. "I give Coach Wildman credit. He has a quality program and I respect him and his team." (By Herald writer Pete Chiodo.)

• West Middlesex 48, Conneaut Valley 6 -- Coach Rick Resatar's Big Reds jumped to a 5-0 start for the first time in school history and they did so in style.

  "It's the best game we played all year, on both sides of the ball," said Resatar. "The first four times we had the ball we scored.

  "This game really puts us over the hump. If we continue to play like this the rest of the season ... I'm looking forward to playing Kennedy Christian and Sharpsville, they are two great programs with lots of tradition. I want to see what we can do."

  They did anything they wanted against Conneaut Valley. Chad Fette scored four touchdowns on runs of 6, 1, 11 and 6 yards, and Jeremy Baker had two TDs on a 59-yard pass reception from Jake Buzard and a 55-yard run. John Derry tallied on a 37-yard pass from Buzard.

  Conneaut Valley's only score came in the final quarter at "mop-up time" on a 10-yard pass.

  Fette had 123 yards rushing on 19 totes, while Baker added 121 on only four carries. Buzard passed for 171 yards.

  "The kids are stepping it up," said Resatar, especially thrilled with three defensive interceptions by John Lark and Jason and Joe Habarka.

  "Our schedule is very nice, we play some single-A teams now," continued Resatar, "These are teams that were beating us before."

• Sharpsville 27, Reynolds 15 -- At McCracken Field, the Sharpsville gridders were the beneficiaries of a few costly turnovers and the hero of the game was a kicker.

  Ray Rotell scored two touchdowns, one on a 43-yard interception return and another on a 15-yard fumble return, as well as making 3-of-4 extra points.

  Both teams were hurt by turnovers, but the Blue Devils turned two of the Raiders' five miscues into immediate scores.

  "In the first half, one of their big tackles was killing us to our strong side," explained Sharpsville coach Paul Piccirilli. "In the second half, we flipped our power over and they never made the adjustment."

  Reynolds dominated all the statistics in the first half, but Sharpsville was able to hang around thanks to the Rotell interception return. Another blow to the Raiders in the first half was the loss of their feature back, Deacon Jones, to a hip injury.

  Rotell snagged a Tom McEntire pass at the Raiders' 43 when McEntire's receiver fell down and Rotell breezed downfield for the score with 7:54 left in the half. Reynolds tied on the next possession as they drove 71 yards in 4:12 and the score was 7-7 after a 1-yard run by Keith Marshall going into the locker room.

  Sharpsville took the second half kickoff and drove to the Raider 30, where the drive stalled. Rotell attempted a 47-yard field goal, but it was short and wide left. After two Reynolds punts sandwiching a Blue Devil fumble, Sharpsville drove 63 yards, culminating with a Ronnie Haywood 14-yard scoring run.

  Reynolds ran five plays in their next series and punted, then Sharpsville ground out an 11-play drive ending with a 3-yard Bill Stiger scoring run. Sharpsville forced a touchback, and on their first play, Tom McEntire scrambled and was stripped of the ball, which Rotell picked up and ran into the end zone from 15 yards out for the Blue Devils' final score.

  Reynolds added a late score on a quick drive, ending with another Marshall end zone plunge.

  "If we wouldn't have made mistakes in the first half," said Reynolds coach Roger Shoaff, "we might have been able to secure this football game." -- By Herald writer Scott DeJulia.

• Brookville 32, Grove CIty 15 -- At Grove City's Forker Field, a slow first-half start doomed the winless Eagles on homecoming.

  Brookville (1-4) assumed a 7-0 lead just four plays into the game as quarterback Matt Melillo scored on a 43-yard run. Midway through the second quarter, Melillo connected with Keith Richards on an 8-yard touchdown pass. The lead swelled to 20-0 with 2:13 left in the half as Ryan Kesterholt bulled in from the 3.

  After accumulating minus-8 yards of offense in the first 24 minutes, the Eagles (0-5) bounced back with a 7-play, 52-yard drive that culminated in a 13-yard run by sophomore quarterback Mike Bashline.

  Trailing 26-7 with 5:50 left, Grove City slashed the deficit to 11 as sophomore Justin Robinson raced 47 yards to the end zone on a toss sweep. Bashline then squeezed in for the 2-point conversion.

  "The plays we ran in the first half, we don't do anything with," Grove City head coach Jeff Bell said. "We come out in the second half and they're great plays. Right now, it's just a matter of confidence."

  However, Kesterholt finished off the Eagles with a 62-yard scoring trip. Kesterholt led the Raiders with 145 yards on 25 carries. Brookville converted six of eight fourth-down opportunities. On three of those occasions, the Raiders scored.

  "That's the frustrating part about it," Bell said. "Defensively, we played some great defense tonight, but some big plays (hurt). It just seems like we have a breakdown and boom! Big play. We hold them, get them in third-and-long and boom! Big play."

  Sophomore Josh Pratt led Grove City with 51 yards rushing. Bashline, in his first start, completed two of five attempts for 12 yards.

  "Some of these kids are just learning," Bell said. "We've got some young kids out there who've never been in a varsity game. I think they're doing everything they can, but they're learning the game as they go." -- By Ryan Briggs, Herald writer

• Cambridge Springs 34, Lakeview 21 -- At Stoneboro, the Sailors got off to a slow start, falling behind 21-0 at half, and couldn't catch up despite a fine second-half rally in the French Creek Valley Conference clash.

  Deke Ison scored a pair of touchdowns for the Sailors (0-4, 0-5) on runs of 23 and 1 yards, while Alan Law scored on an 8-yard pass from Mitch McAfoose, who also converted all three PAT kicks.

  Ison had 185 yards rushing on 34 carries to spark the offense.

• Newton Falls 28, Brookfield 20 -- At Newton Falls, the Tigers' Marty Hutchinson traversed 191 yards on 36 carries with two TDs, while teammate Josh Langley scored one and legged out 105 yards on 13 carries to push the Tigers past Brookfield (1-4).

  Newton Falls amassed 310 yards on the ground.

  Brookfield's Julian Hayes tried to retaliate with a pair of touchdowns of his own. Back-up QB Jeff Nasci connected a 15-yard toss with Hayes in the second stanza; then in the third Hayes went 25 yards to knot the score at 14.

  The Falls' Hutchinson leaped a yard to give his team the lead and was followed by Scott Wilson's 1-yard dive, making the count 28-14.

  Brookfield's Scott Stofan took a blocked punt into the end zone late in the fourth frame, bring Brookfield within a touchdown, but it was too little, too late.

  Nasci was the most productive member of Brookfield's offense, passing for 95 yards on six completions, while Hayes chipped in 60 yards on 11 carries and David Eliser caught three passes for 53 yards.

• Slippery Rock 41, Youngstown Rayen 28 -- At Slippery Rock, Josh Kneiss had another great night, rushing for 270 yards and four touchdowns on 48 carries, good enough for ninth best on the Herald all-time single-game rushing performances, including the most carries on the Top 10 list. Earlier this year against Hickory, he had 318 yards on 37 carries, which is Number 5 on the list.

  Kneiss scored in every quarter, with Luke McCaffrey adding two scores of his own. The offense rolled up 453 total yards offense, including 312 yards on the ground.

  Tyrone Lindsey, Abdul Jordan, Jason Young and Terran Holland each scored in each quarter in that order for Rayen.

George's 2nd banner game paces Kennedy