Not many of the high school football “experts” were expecting the Greencastle-Antrim Blue Devils, a one-win team, to even hold a candle against visiting Juniata on Friday night.
It seemed like a safe pick, as the Indians were riding high on a four-game winning streak, but Devin McCauley’s Blue Devils had other ideas, as the team put together four solid quarters on its way to a lopsided 40-21 win.
Greencastle wide receiver Carter McCauley had another monster game, as he caught seven passes for 104 yards and three TDs. All three of those TDs came in the second quarter and gave the Blue Devils (2-6) a 21-14 lead at halftime.
Finishing games has been an issue for Greencastle this fall, but it wasn’t on Friday night, as the Blue Devils outscored Juniata 19-7 in the second half. Greencastle got two TD runs from Noah Shifflett in the third quarter, before Blake Reuter went off for an 81-yard run in the fourth to give his team a 40-14 lead.
Juniata (5-3) scored the final TD of the game.
In addition to McCauley, the Blue Devils were led offensively by Reuter, who totaled 163 yards on 13 carries, and also got quality rushing efforts from Lars Galinanes (9 carries, 46 yards), Sean Marshall (7-44), and Shifflett (7-21). QB Marshall completed 8 of 12 passes for 131 yards, three TDs, and one interception.
Greencastle will look to keep its momentum going on Friday, when it plays host to Boiling Springs (1-7), a team coming off a 62-27 loss to Milton Hershey.
Altoona 21, Chambersburg 14
Altoona topped Chambersburg in a game of evenly-matched teams.
With the score locked at 14-14 early in the fourth quarter, Altoona posted the go-ahead TD on a 16-yard pass from Mark Harrington to Michael Chisolm. Chambersburg (3-5, 2-5 Commonwealth) battled to the Mountain Lions’ 10-yard line and had a chance to go for the tie, but the Mountain Lions shut the Trojans down on four-straight plays to seal the win.
Altoona (1-7, 1-6 Commonwealth) got a big game from Harrington, who completed five of nine passes for 95 yards and two TDs, while also rushing for 83 yards on 23 carries. Harrington’s first TD came in the opening quarter, when he scored on a one-yard plunge to give the Mountain Lions a 7-0 lead.
The game went into a halftime tie, 7-7, after Chambersburg’s Isaiah Tasker hauled in a two-yard TD pass from Ceagan Truett. The Trojans then took the lead in the third quarter on a 41-yard TD run from Antonio Harrison.
The seesaw battle continued with Altoona posting the game-tying TD in the third quarter, before eventually putting up the game-winning score in the fourth quarter.
Chambersburg was led offensively by Truett, who completed 16 of 28 passes for 168 yards, a TD, and two interceptions. Trever Luther caught six of those passes for 68 yards. Harrison had a strong day running the ball, racking up 124 yards on 17 rushes.
The Trojans return to action on Friday, when they travel to take on Cumberland Valley (4-4, 4-3), a squad coming off a 24-21 win over Harrisburg.
Mechanicsburg 35, Waynesboro 13
Waynesboro wanted to prove that it could hang with unbeaten Mechanicsburg, and in some ways, the Tribe did just that.
Waynesboro (4-4, 3-4 Keystone) asked for the opening kickoff and moved the ball with some success, but the drive was stalled with an interception. One play later, Mechanicsburg (8-0, 7-0) rumbled 95 yards down the field for a score.
This theme continued throughout the game, where the Indians would make plays, only for the Wildcats to respond with haymakers.
Mechanicsburg QB Eli Reider scored two of his four rushing TDs in the opening half to give the Wildcats a 21-0 halftime lead.
Another rushing TD from Reider put Mechanicsburg ahead 28-0, before Waynesboro QB Rayshawn Frazer-Hewitt completed a TD pass to break up the shutout.
Reider scored again on a 59-yard TD run to put the game out of reach, before the Tribe concluded scoring with a one-run TD plunge.
Waynesboro will be looking to halt a three-game losing streak on Friday, when it hits the road to face Lower Dauphin (4-4, 4-3), a team coming off a 9-7 victory over Mifflin County.
North Hagerstown 28, Williamsport 11
James Jackson Jr. scored two late TDs — one on offense and another on defense — to help North Hagerstown pull away from Williamsport on Thursday.
With the Hubs (2-4) clinging to a 14-3 lead in the fourth quarter, Jackson broke away for a 33-yard TD run to give his team a three-score advantage. Williamsport (3-3) responded by driving to the red zone, but Jackson sealed the contest by returning an interception 101 yards for a score.
Jackson’s late-game heroics put a decisive exclamation point on what had been a tightly-contested ballgame. Williamsport held a 3-0 lead for much of the first half, but North Hagerstown took the lead before halftime with a four-yard TD pass from Logan Hoffman to Khalil Peggues. The score remained at 7-3 until the fourth quarter, when Hoffman again found Peggues, this time for a 26-yard TD strike.
Hoffman completed eight of 12 passes for 114 yards and two TDs, with most of those completions going to Peggues (7 catches, 106 yards). Germanus Abonge led North Hagerstown in the ground game with 12 carries for 66 yards, with Ty’Qwell Fauntleroy (10-40), Jackson (3-39), and Javoun Frith (4-22) also turning in productive efforts.
Defensively, the Hubs were led by Damean Thomas (16 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss), Blake Custer (14 tackles), and Benjamin Distefano (8 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, sack).
North Hagerstown kicker Sergio Melendez-Urizer converted all four of his PAT attempts.
The Hubs return to the field on Friday, Oct. 19, when they host Brunswick (5-1), a team coming off a 27-26 win over Walkersville.
Clear Spring 42, Smithsburg 6
Clear Spring snapped a two-game losing streak with Thursday’s win over Smithsburg.
The Blazers (4-2) got a stellar effort from their defense, which swallowed up the Leopards for negative-21 rushing yards. Smithsburg (0-6) had to lean on its passing game, and QB Carter Nesbitt completed 14 of 29 passes for 175 yards, including a TD pass to Chase Hill. Nesbitt also completed passes to Alex Bachtell (3 catches, 69 yards), Ayden Weakfall (6-64), and Zac Smith (3-27).
Defensively, the Leopards were led by Zac Smith (12 tackles), Mihka Stull (7 tackles), and Hill (5 tackles, sack).
Smithsburg will be gunning for its first win on Friday, when it travels to face Catoctin (2-4), a squad coming off a 43-6 loss to Middletown.
Jefferson 48, South Hagerstown 14
Jefferson scored 34 unanswered points to break away from a 14-14 tie and cruise to victory over South Hagerstown.
The Cougars (3-3) raced ahead to a 14-0 lead, but the Rebels (1-5) bounced back to pull even.
Jefferson then shifted to another gear, dominating the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.
South Hagerstown will try to snap a five-game losing streak on Friday, when it hosts Williamsport (3-3), a team coming off a 28-11 loss to North Hagestown.
Standings
Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division: 1. CD East (7-1 overall, 6-1 division), 1. Harrisburg (6-2, 6-1), 1. State College (7-1, 6-1), 1. Bishop McDevitt (7-1, 6-1), 5. Cumberland Valley (4-4, 4-3), 6. Central Dauphin (2-6, 2-5), 6. Chambersburg (3-5, 2-5), 6. Cedar Cliff (3-5, 2-5), 9. Altoona (1-7, 1-6), 10. Carlisle (0-8, 0-7).
Mid-Penn Keystone Division: 1. Mechanicsburg (8-0 overall, 7-0 division), 1. Shippensburg (8-0, 7-0), 3. Hershey (6-2, 5-2), 4. Lower Dauphin (4-4, 4-3), 5. Waynesboro (4-4, 3-4), 5. Northern (3-5, 3-4), 5. Gettysburg (3-5, 3-4), 8. Mifflin County (3-5, 2-5), 9. Red Land (1-7, 1-6), 10. Palmyra (1-7, 0-7).
Mid-Penn Colonial Division: 1. Trinity (7-1 overall, 6-0 division), 2. Susquehanna Township (7-1, 5-1), 3. East Pennsboro (5-3, 5-2), 4. Milton Hershey (4-4, 4-2), 5. Big Spring (3-5, 3-3), 6. West Perry (4-4, 2-4), 6. Middletown (3-5, 2-4), 8. Greencastle-Antrim (2-6, 1-5), 9. Boiling Springs (1-7, 0-7).
Mid-Penn Capital Division: 1. Line Mountain (6-2 overall, 5-1 division), 1. Juniata (5-3, 5-1), 1. Steelton-Highspire (6-2, 5-1), 4. Upper Dauphin (4-4, 4-2), 5. Camp Hill (4-4, 3-3), 6. James Buchanan (4-4 overall, 3-4 division), 7. Susquenita (2-6, 2-4), 8. Newport (2-6, 1-5), 9. Halifax (0-8, 0-7).
Washington County: 1. Boonsboro (5-1), 2. Clear Spring (4-2), 3. Saint James (4-3), 4. Williamsport (3-3), 5. North Hagerstown (2-4), 5. Hancock (2-4), 7. South Hagerstown (1-4), 8. Smithsburg (0-6).
Scores
Thursday, Oct. 10
North Hagerstown 28, Williamsport 11
Clear Spring 42, Smithsburg 6
Friday, Oct. 11
Mechanicsburg 35, Waynesboro 13
Greencastle-Antrim 40, Juniata 21
Altoona 21, Chambersburg 14
Jefferson 48, South Hagerstown 14
