To say Chambersburg and Cumberland Valley’s football teams were coming from different places leading into Friday’s game at Chapman Field would be an understatement.
The Trojans had just suffered a disappointing loss to Altoona, the last-place team in the Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division. The Eagles, on the other hand, were riding high off one of the biggest upsets of the season with a win over Harrisburg.
Not surprisingly, Cumberland Valley was the odds-on favorite for Friday’s game, but it was Chambersburg that pulled off the upset victory, with the Trojans defense forcing four turnovers in a 17-10 win over the Eagles.
The defensive-minded contest began with an offensive flourish. Cumberland Valley (4-5, 4-4 Commonwealth) drew first blood in the opening quarter with a 23-yard TD pass from Grant Shepley to Elijah Sherman. Chambersburg (4-5, 3-5) evened the score at 7-7 when QB Ceagan Truett connected with Evan Brown for a 78-yard strike.
The game remained locked at 7-all in the second quarter when Chambersburg’s defense stripped the ball, leading to a 33-yard fumble return from linebacker Stanley Lozius. The play led to a 20-yard field goal from Trever Luther to put the Trojans ahead 10-7.
Cumberland Valley was eager to get on the scoreboard before halftime, but Chambersburg’s Corvin Edwards saved the day by pulling in an interception on the 1-yard line.
The second half was another defensive battle, with CV using a 25-yard field goal from Andrew Rice to knot the game at 10-10 after three quarters.
Chambersburg was driving for the winning score in the fourth quarter, but the Trojans were foiled when the Eagles’ Ke’Aune Green stopped the drive with an interception. One play later, however, the Trojans’ Brycen Murray made a diving interception of his own — his second of the game — to get the ball right back.
This time, Chambersburg capitalized on its offensive possession, cashing in with a one-yard TD run from Antonio Harrison with 1:36 remaining in regulation. The Trojans held on beat Cumberland Valley for the first time since the 2020 season.
Brown finished with four catches for 109 yards, while Luther hauled in seven passes for 48 yards. Truett completed 11 of 15 passes for 157 yards, a TD, and three interceptions. Harrison finished with 33 rushing yards on 18 carries.
Jason Chambers recorded an interception for Chambersburg’s defense.
The Trojans, who check in at No. 10 in the latest District 3-6A power rankings, wrap up their season on Friday with a home game against Central Dauphin (2-7, 2-6), a team coming off a 27-7 loss to Harrisburg.
Lower Dauphin 31, Waynesboro 0
Lower Dauphin’s Gerald Sanders ran for three TDs — and was named Homecoming King at halftime — as the Falcons handed Waynesboro its fourth-straight loss on Friday.
Lower Dauphin (5-4, 5-3 Keystone) picked off five passes and held the Tribe scoreless for the first time this season.
Carrying a 3-0 lead after one quarter, the Falcons got a pair of rushing TDs from Sanders to take a 17-0 advantage into halftime. Lower Dauphin added TDs in the third and fourth quarters to seal the deal.
Waynesboro (4-5, 3-5) wraps up its season on Friday with a home game against Hershey (6-3, 5-3), a squad coming off a 42-21 loss to Mechanicsburg.
Boiling Springs 15, Greencastle-Antrim 13
Carter McCauley caught seven passes for 136 yards and two TDs, but Greencastle-Antrim couldn’t capitalize on enough of its opportunities to take out the homestanding Bubblers.
The Blue Devils (2-7 overall, 1-6 Colonial) opened scoring in the first quarter when McCauley hauled in a 43-yard TD pass from Sean Marshall. The Bubblers responded with a seven-yard TD run from Sawyer Young, but missed the extra point, and trailed Greencastle 7-6 after one quarter.
The Blue Devils defense turned in a steady effort throughout the first half, but the offense could not cash in on these efforts, losing a fumble, an interception, and then getting tackled in their own end zone for a safety to give Boiling Springs an 8-7 lead.
Boiling Springs (2-7, 1-7) led 15-7 at halftime on a 22-yard TD run from Javier Rosario.
Greencastle surged back into the game in the fourth quarter with a 21-yard TD strike from Marshall to McCauley, but missed the two-point conversion, and trailed 15-13. The Blue Devils had one last chance to push up the field late when they got the ball with 1:41 remaining, but ran out of time before they could take a shot at the end zone.
In addition to McCauley, Greencastle was led offensively by Blake Reuter, who registered 10 carries for 87 yards. Marshall added 42 rushing yards of his own while also completing 9 of 19 passes for 155 yards, two TDs, and an interception.
The Blue Devils are set to wrap up their season on Friday with a road game at West Perry (4-5, 2-5), a team coming off a 58-37 loss to Milton Hershey.
North Hagerstown 28, Brunswick 24
Amauri Murray broke a 48-year-old record while leading North Hagerstown to a come-from-behind win over Brunswick on Friday.
With the Hubs trailing 24-14 in the third quarter, Murray fielded a kickoff from his own 6 and returned it 94 yards for a TD. It was the longest kickoff return in school history, breaking the record of 92 yards set by Chris Dattilio in 1976.
Murray’s heroics continued on in the fourth quarter, when he scored on an eight-yard run to give North Hagerstown its only lead of the night, an advantage the Hubs were able to maintain as the final seconds ticked away.
It was a stunning ending to a game that had been under the control of Brunswick (5-3) for much of the night. The Railroaders raced ahead to a 14-0 lead in the second quarter on a pair of TD passes from QB Ethan Houck to Jacob Genos.
North Hagerstown (4-4) broke up the shutout with a two-yard TD rush from Ty’Qwell Fauntleroy, but Brunswick took a 17-7 lead into halftime following a 34-yard field from Sam Verosto.
The Hubs cut that advantage to just three points, 17-14, in the third quarter when Germanus Abonge broke loose for a 12-yard TD run. Brunswick, however, responded with a five-yard TD run from Nathan Borawski to once again make the game a two-score contest.
That’s when Murray made his impact with the seventh-longest kickoff return in Washington County football history to give North Hagerstown the momentum to stage a rally.
Murray finished with 32 yards on six carries to pace a stable of rushers that included Fauntleroy (15-81), Abonge (14-79), and Javoun Frith (2-20). Hubs QB Logan Hoffman completed 7 of 9 passes for 115 yards, with those passes going to Khalil Peggues (3-37), Murray (2-18), Fauntleroy (1-33), and Garett Forrest (1-27).
Defensively, North Hagerstown got an interception from James Jackson Jr. and a fumble recovery from Jovanni Lawson.
The Hubs will put their three-game winning streak on the line on Friday, when they host Boonsboro (6-1), a team coming off a 54-22 win over Southern.
Catoctin 43, Smithsburg 0
Smithsburg’s defense forced three turnovers — two fumbles and an interception — but could not find the end zone in Friday’s loss to Catoctin.
The Cougars (3-4) received the opening kick and drove into the red zone, but Smithsburg (0-7) shut down the drive by picking off a pass in the end zone. The Leopards couldn’t capitalize on the turnover, and by the end of the first quarter Smithsburg was trailing 14-0 after giving up a couple of rushing TDs to Catoctin’s Jacob Bell.
A 20-yard TD scamper from Quintin Johnson and an interception return for a score from Urban Moore had the Cougars leading 28-0 at halftime.
Catoctin then put the game away in the third quarter with two rushing TDs from Jonas Clausen.
The Leopards were highlighted by Noah Hegbe, who rushed 12 times for 61 yards, while receiver Ayden Weakfall caught two passes for 66 yards. Smithsburg QB Lucas McFarland completed 9 of 31 passes for 114 yards and three interceptions.
Defensively, the Leopards were highlighted by Mikha Stull, who stacked up 14 tackles, including four tackles for loss. Zac Smith recorded 13 tackles and caused a fumble, while other standouts from the defense include Weakfall (interception), Tyler Ward (9 tackles), and Rittenhosue Shuster (5 tackles, sack, fumble recovery).
Smithsburg returns to action on Friday, when it hosts Fort Hill (6-2), a team coming off a 52-0 win over East/World of Inquiry.
Williamsport 20, South Hagerstown 13
Michael Owens Jr. threw for a TD and ran for another, but South Hagerstown’s rally fell just short against Williamsport.
The Wildcats (4-3) used a one-yard TD run from Landen McAllister to go ahead 6-0 in the first quarter. Williamsport then used two TD passes from Gabe Parker to go ahead 20-0 at halftime.
The second half belonged to the Rebels (1-6), who broke up the shutout in the third quarter with a 29-yard TD pass from Owens to Josiah Davis. Owens found the end zone again in the fourth quarter, this time on a four-yard run, to pull his team within one score of Williamsport, 20-13.
The Wildcats hung on for the win to snap a three-game losing streak.
South Hagerstown will be looking to get back on track on Friday, when it hosts Francis Scott Key (4-3), a team coming off a 28-21 loss to Manchester Valley.
Standings
Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division: 1. Harrisburg (7-2 overall, 7-1 division), 1. State College (8-1, 7-1), 1. Bishop McDevitt (8-1, 7-1), 4. CD East (7-2, 6-2), 5. Cumberland Valley (4-5, 4-4), 6. Chambersburg (4-5, 3-5), 6. Cedar Cliff (4-5, 3-5), 8. Central Dauphin (2-7, 2-6), 9. Altoona (1-8, 1-7), 10. Carlisle (0-9, 0-8).
Mid-Penn Keystone Division: 1. Mechanicsburg (9-0 overall, 8-0 division), 1. Shippensburg (9-0, 8-0), 3. Hershey (6-3, 5-3), 4. Lower Dauphin (5-4, 5-3), 5. Waynesboro (4-5, 3-5), 5. Northern (3-6, 3-5), 5. Gettysburg (4-5, 4-4), 8. Mifflin County (3-6, 2-6), 9. Red Land (2-7, 2-6), 10. Palmyra (1-8, 0-8).
Mid-Penn Colonial Division: 1. Trinity (7-2 overall, 6-1 division), 1. Susquehanna Township (8-1, 6-1), 3. East Pennsboro (6-3, 5-2), 3. Milton Hershey (5-4, 5-2), 5. Big Spring (4-5, 4-3), 6. West Perry (4-5, 2-5), 6. Middletown (3-6, 2-5), 8. Greencastle-Antrim (2-7, 1-6), 8. Boiling Springs (2-7, 1-7).
Mid-Penn Capital Division: 1. Line Mountain (6-3 overall, 5-2 division), 1. Juniata (6-3, 6-1), 1. Steelton-Highspire (7-2, 6-1), 4. Upper Dauphin (5-4, 5-2), 5. Camp Hill (5-4, 4-3), 6. James Buchanan (4-5 overall, 3-5 division), 7. Susquenita (2-7, 2-5), 8. Newport (2-7, 1-6), 9. Halifax (0-9, 0-8).
Washington County: 1. Boonsboro (6-1), 2. Saint James (5-3), 3. Clear Spring (4-3), 3. Williamsport (4-3), 5. North Hagerstown (3-4), 6. Hancock (2-5), 7. South Hagerstown (1-6), 8. Smithsburg (0-7).
Scores
Friday, Oct. 18
Lower Dauphin 31, Waynesboro 0
Boiling Springs 15, Greencastle-Antrim 13
North Hagerstown 28, Brunswick 24
Catoctin 43, Smithsburg 0
Chambersburg 17, Cumberland Valley 10
Williamsport 20, South Hagerstown 13
