WAYNESBORO – It wasn’t the encore the Waynesboro Indians varsity football team was hoping for.
A week after defeating Spring Grove 21-3 in the 2023 season opener, head coach Mark Saunders and Company hosted Hershey in Week 2 on a warm and clear Friday night at Buchanan Automotive Stadium.
Any hopes of another dominant defensive performance on Red, White and Blue Night were dashed on the Trojans’ first offensive possession. Hershey drove methodically down the field, covering 65 yards on seven plays and punctuated by a five-yard touchdown run by Angel Cabrera for a 7-0 lead.
Waynesboro punched in a touchdown near the end of the first quarter but Hershey then scored 21 straight points before giving up a late touchdown during a 35-14 non-league victory.
Chalk it up to growing pains for a Tribe team that has only seven seniors on the roster. Waynesboro also played without Bryan Benedict, a two-way starter at fullback and defensive back.
It was like looking in the mirror, as Hershey presented a lot on offense for Waynesboro to pay attention to. The Trojans used motion and misdirection, and much of their yardage came before much contact was made and giving the likes of Cabrera, Derek Guzman and Carter Klein relatively easy gains that kept moving the chains and frustrating a defense that never really made effective adjustments to counter its opponents’ game plan.
Hershey’s first possession set the tone for the game. Runs of seven and five yards were followed by a 36-yard gain by Guzman on a pitch play. A hard-nosed stop by Parker Null on Klein after a one-yard run injected some life into the defense. But on the next play, Cabrera picked up eight yards and a three-yard rush by Cabrera gave the Trojans a first-and-goal at the five yard line. Cabrera finished off the drive.
Waynesboro had a promising start to its first possession of the game when Nathan Nolan broke loose on a 16-yard run. But the next three plays yielded just five yards and the Indians were forced to punt.
Hershey wasted no time making it 14-0 when quarterback Marcus Sweeney tossed a screen to Guzman on the left sideline. Guzman raced untouched for a 40-yard touchdown.
The Indians didn’t give up on themselves, however.
After taking over at its 20, Waynesboro marched 80 yards capped by a nine-yard quarterback run by Frazer-Hewitt. Hewitt ran around the left side of the Hershey defense and reached the end zone before he could be tackled. Andrew Soffe made the extra point for a 14-7 score, and it was a game again.
The drive featured a fourth-down conversion at midfield, complements of a 17-yard completion from Frazer-Hewitt to Ethan Alldredge. Nolan advanced the ball 28 yards that resulted in a first-and-goal at the nine. Back-to-back plays with no gain were followed by Frazer-Hewitt’s rushing score on third down.
Hershey (2-0) answered with a morale-deflating touchdown made possible by a 44-yard run by Guzman. A short gain by Cabrera put the ball at the 18 of Waynesboro, and a 22-yard loss on a botched shotgun snap set up the possibility of a defensive stand deep in Tribe territory. Facing third down at the 40, Hershey got 12 yards back on a pass from Sweeney to Isaiah Danner.
Then, on fourth-and-18, Sweeney threw down the middle to a wide-open Danner, who ran the final five yards for the touchdown.
Waynesboro drove down field to the Hershey 31 but failed to convert a fourth down. The Trojans capitalized on another offensive series as they used six plays to cover 69 yards to take a 28-7 lead on Cabrera’s second TD run.
Danner scored a defensive touchdown when he intercepted a pass and returned it 10 yards for the score and a 35-7 lead.
Waynesboro scored with 1:30 left to play in the game. Andrew Florek ran for identical gains of nine yards to start the 76-yard scoring drive. Calvin Myers gathered in a 16-yard reception, and Cody Morgan caught a 28-yard pass to the Hershey 14.
Frazer-Hewitt ran for the final 14 yards. He wanted to pass but tucked in the ball and threaded his way between defenders before diving into the end zone.
NEXT: Waynesboro (1-1) travels to play Chambersburg on Friday, Sept. 8 in a non-league game.
