LEWISTOWN – When the Waynesboro Area Senior High School varsity football team studies the film of its 20-14 Mid-Penn Keystone Division loss to Mifflin County High School, they’ll point out multiple missed opportunities, the same story as the Indians’ 30-27 defeat against Northern York High School.
But thinking too much about back-so-back losses won’t be good for the soul, leaving the team and the coaching staff (with two sets of brothers serving as assistant coaches) to learn from mistakes so Waynesboro doesn’t slip up this week against a very competitive Mechanicsburg High School team on Friday in Mechanicsburg. The Wildcats (7-0) bring a 10-game win streak to the game.
It was Waynesboro’s third road contest of the season and by far the longest. Lewistown is 29 miles from Penn State University, and the traffic along Route 22 West was roaring with cars containing people headed to State College for Penn State’s home game against UCLA on Saturday, Oct. 5.
If only the game ended the way it started.
Waynesboro drove down the field on the game’s first possession, and Tank Benedict virtually walked into the end zone from a yard out, untouched as he ran around the left side of the offensive line and Alex Torbica kicked the extra point to give the Tribe (4-3) a 7-0 lead. A good chunk of the 14-play, 79-yard march to paydirt. Quarterback Rayshawn Frazer-Hewitt completed an 18-yard pass to Haden Nolan, a 7-yard strike to Calvin Myers, then a 27-yard completion to Ethan Alldredge and another 23 yards to Nolan.
Unfortunately, the opening drive was Frazer-Hewitt’s best quarter of the game. He struggled in the pocket with a steady pass rush by the Huskies. Mifflin County had some big linemen on both sides of the ball. If only Waynesboro’s Nathan Nolan didn’t perform an encore following his remarkable 78-yard touchdown run that gave the Tribe a 14-7 lead with 8:52 left to play in the third quarter.
But the Huskies, playing their final home game at Mitchell Field, answered blow for blow. Mifflin County put together its scoring drive that started on its 30 and ended in the end zone.
Ditto for Waynesboro’s second touchdown. Mifflin County responded with a touchdown to tie the game. Were it not for a roughing the passer penalty on the Indians that occurred after Gavin Starkey intercepted a third-down pass. The Huskies scored on the next play.
Then, after the two teams traded punts, the game changed in a moment. Waynesboro fumbled the ball inside its 15-yard line, and Mifflin County converted the turnovers into a touchdown at the two-minute mark of the fourth quarter.
The Indians had one last chance to score with time running out. Waynesboro got as far as the 46-yard line before the Huskies sealed the with a second-down interception.
If Waynesboro had won the game, and it certainly easily could have, Owen Shockey might well be a strong candidate for the game’s most valuable player. Shockey recovered two muffed Tribe punts to give Waynesboro possession and a chance to mount productive drives. It was Shockey’s recovery of a loose ball that made Nathan Nolan’s long touchdown run possible.
If only Waynesboro’s front four of five enjoyed plenty of success in neutralizing the opponent’s passing game as Mifflin County achieved. Lack of a pass rush
Nathan Nolan finished with 95 yards rushing on 11 carries. His brother, Hayden, caught four passes for 52 yards.
Torbica missed a 42-yard field goal to end the second quarter with the score tied at 7.
