Undefeated West Perry was the favored football squad when it visited Greencastle-Antrim for the Blue Devils’ Homecoming and Alumni Night on Friday.
Coach Jason Thurston’s Greencastle squad wasn’t intimidated. The Blue Devils went step-for-step with their Mid-Penn Colonial Division opponents, took the lead late in the fourth quarter, and used a late defensive stand to hang on for a 28-21 win over the Mustangs.
Greencastle (4-2, 2-1) got a monster performance on the ground from Spencer Long, who logged 19 carries for 192 yards and three TDs. Zach Russell registered two sacks for the Blue Devils, while Dominic Angelini posted seven tackles and picked off a pass.
Greencastle took a 28-21 lead with 54 seconds remaining in regulation when Long sprung loose 18 yards into the end zone, but the Mustangs (5-1, 2-1) weren’t finished. West Perry drove from its own 30-yard line to the Blue Devils’ 13. The Mustangs had one more shot to gun for a TD, but West Perry QB Hayden Fleisher was brought down by Wyatt Hull as the final 1.9 seconds ticked off the clock.
The Blue Devils went ahead 14-7 at halftime on the strength of a 57-yard scoring run from Long and a 13-yard TD strike from Gavin Logsdon to Hull. The teams exchanged scores in the third quarter, before West Perry pulled into a 21-21 tie with 5:22 remaining in the fourth. The Mustangs were driving for the go-ahead score late, when they fumbled, allowing Greencastle to instead score the game’s decisive score.
The Blue Devils will be shooting for their third straight win on Friday, when they play host to Milton Hershey (2-4, 2-1), a squad coming off a 35-0 win over Boiling Springs.
Altoona 19, Chambersburg 14
Employing a prolific rushing attack that just got stronger as the game rolled on, Altoona surged to a come-from-behind victory over Chambersburg in Friday’s Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division contest.
The Mountain Lions (4-2, 4-1) piled up 254 ground yards on 40 carries, most of which came in the second half. Trailing 7-6 at halftime, Altoona turned to its rushing attack and twice plowed into the end zone to build a 19-7 lead with 2:33 remaining in regulation. Chambersburg (1-4, 1-3) responded with a 32-yard TD pass from Justin Deneen to Jashaun Palmer, but that was all the closer the Trojans would get.
Deneen led Chambersburg, completing 16 of 27 passes for 200 yards and two TDs. His 56-yard scoring pass to Isaiah Ferguson helped give the Trojans a halftime lead. Malachi Tasker led all Chambersburg rushers with 70 yards on 13 carries.
The Trojans will be looking to get back on track on Friday, when they host Carlisle (1-5, 1-4), a team coming off a 70-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Mifflin County 35, Waynesboro 24
Waynesboro was competitive with Mifflin County in Friday night’s Mid-Penn Keystone Division contest, but the Huskies returned two interceptions for TDs to spoil Homecoming Night.
The Indians (0-6, 0-5) got a one-yard TD plunge from Ronan Mencia and a field goal from Nick Carbaugh to stick with Mifflin County, 14-10, at halftime. The Huskies (2-4, 1-4) scored their second TD on an interception that was taken to paydirt by Landon Bowen.
Mifflin County (2-4, 1-4) scored immediately on its opening drive in the second half, before cashing in on a bad punt snap on the ensuing Waynesboro possession to expand its lead to 28-10. The Huskies posted their final TD on a 25-yard interception return for a score.
Waynesboro continued to battle and scored the game’s final 14 points on TD passes from Brayden Heimbuch to Brantley Phebus (6 yards) and Dwayne Robinson (30).
The Tribe will be looking for their first win on Friday, when they hit the road to take on Hershey (5-1, 4-1), a group coming off a 38-31 win over Red Land.
Smithsburg 63, Poolesville 0
Smithsburg scored nine TDs — six on the ground and three through the air — to blow out Poolesville on Friday and run its record to 5-0 for the first time since 2008.
Deploying a full arsenal of runners, the Leopards piled up 195 rushing yards on 26 carries and got TDs from Nicolas Roncone (2), Riley Carr (2), Jack Rawlett, and Zach Linn. Smithsburg QB Luke Scott connected on two TD passes, while Rawlett threw for another. Those scoring passes were hauled in by Dakota Sowers (2) and Linn.
It was the first shutout of the season for the Leopards, who got interceptions from Kam Hewlin, Cole Cavell, and Rawlett. The Falcons fell to 2-3.
Williamsport 27, Boonsboro 7
Williamsport built a 14-0 lead after one quarter and used a ball-hawking defense to finish the job over Boonsboro on Friday.
The Wildcats (4-1) got two rushing TDs apiece from QB Colten Hahn and Tae’myj Boyce-Brown, and scooped up four turnovers to keep the Warriors an arm’s length away. Boonsboro (3-2) collected its lone score on a 12-yard TD pass from Blake Main to Landen Sellerson.
The Warriors will be aiming to bounce back on Friday, when they play host to Musselman (1-4), a West Virginia team coming off a 61-0 loss to Martinsburg.
North Hagerstown 17, Century 7
The Hubs pieced together a masterful second half to blast off for their third win in a row on Friday.
North Hagerstown (3-2) trailed 7-0 at halftime but came out for the third quarter firing on all cylinders. The Hubs produced scores on each of their first three drives to build up to the eventual 17-7 final score with 9:34 remaining in regulation.
North began its comeback drive with a clutch 24-yard TD pass from Ronnie Savage to Carter Croft that came on a fourth-and-11 play. The Hubs went ahead 10-7 with a 35-yard field goal from Chase Garver, before a 30-yard interception from Antonio Rivera-Herrera set up North’s third score, a one-yard TD plunge from Michael Stewart.
Stewart finished with 110 rushing yards on 23 carries and Croft hauled in two catches for 59 yards, but the biggest standouts from the game might have been on the defensive side of the ball. Donald Rivers had a monster game, rolling up 12 tackles, including five tackles for loss and four sacks. The four sacks were the second most in a single game in Hubs program history. Rivera-Herrera (2 tackles for loss, sack), Liam Kline (2 tackles for loss, sack, forced fumble), Mykai Bostic (sack), and Sydney Smith (8 tackles) also contributed to North’s strongest defensive performance of the season.
It was the second loss in three games for Century, which fell to 3-2.
The Hubs will be looking to extend their winning streak on Friday when they visit Williamsport (4-1), a squad that toppled Boonsboro by a 27-7 score.
South Hagerstown 34, Catoctin 14
The Rebels had their best offensive outing of the season, rolling up five TDs on Friday to distance themselves from winless Catoctin.
It was the second win in a row for South Hagerstown (2-3), which got three of its TDs through the air from Lucas Semler and Cole Stockman. Semler delivered scoring strikes to Percell Clay III (20 yards) and Nygil Jefferies (43), while Stockman connected on a 30-yard TD pass to Sirage Delaney. Jeff Garcon and Damion Campbell provided TD runs of 15 and 20 yards, respectively.
The Cougars fell to 0-5.
South returns to the field on Friday, when it ventures out to West Virginia to take on Washington (1-4), a squad coming off a 48-28 loss to Spring Mills.
