Area football teams found several different ways to win Friday night.
Chambersburg and South Hagerstown both earned their first victories of the season with touchdowns in the final two minutes, while North Hagerstown overcame a 14-point deficit despite being heavily outgained. Smithsburg remained unbeaten, Boonsboro won its third straight and Greencastle-Antrim rolled to a 45-7 victory, while Waynesboro remained in search of its first win.
Here’s a look at how the seven area teams fared:
Chambersburg 19, Central Dauphin 14
Chambersburg broke into the win column in dramatic fashion.
Isaiah Ferguson scored on a 58-yard pass from Justin Deneen with 1:55 remaining as the Trojans rallied past Central Dauphin.
Deneen completed 23 of 36 passes for 295 yards and three touchdowns, including scoring throws to Ferguson, Lucas Ocker and Colton Horst. Ferguson finished with five catches for 88 yards.
Chambersburg (1-4) trailed 14-13 before Ferguson’s winning score. The victory was the Trojans’ first over Central Dauphin since 2013.
Chambersburg travels to Altoona (3-2) on Friday for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
South Hagerstown 19, Thomas Johnson 16
South Hagerstown also picked a dramatic way to earn its first victory of the season.
Lucas Semler connected with Percell Clay III for a 12-yard touchdown with 51.9 seconds remaining as the Rebels rallied past Thomas Johnson at School Stadium.
South (1-3) had taken a 13-9 lead early in the fourth quarter on Jeffrey Garcon’s 10-yard touchdown run, but the Patriots regained the lead with 2:01 remaining.
Semler also scored on a 1-yard run for the Rebels, while Teon Spruce had two interceptions and Nygil Jefferies forced a fumble.
South returns home Friday to face Catoctin (0-4) at 6 p.m.
North Hagerstown 28, Central (Va.) 21
The numbers from North Hagerstown’s victory at Central were almost as remarkable as the comeback itself.
The Hubs (2-2) erased a 21-7 halftime deficit despite being outgained 297-113 and running only 32 offensive plays to Central’s 61. Central possessed the ball for 35:23, compared with just 12:37 for North.
Michael Stewart, who did not play in the first half, helped turn the game around with a 46-yard punt return that set up Ronnie Savage’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Ryder Fox. Sydney Smith then recovered a fumble at the Central 21, and Stewart scored on a 4-yard run to give North the lead with 7:10 remaining.
The Hubs’ defense finished with 119 tackles, the second-highest total in school history. Donald Rivers had 20, Carter Hillegas 16 and Smith 14, marking the first time North has had three players record at least 14 tackles in the same game.
North’s 14-point comeback was its largest since rallying from 20 down to beat Boonsboro 48-47 in 2019. The 113 yards of offense were the fewest for the Hubs in a victory since they had 109 in a 3-0 win over Frederick in 1984.
The victory also was North’s first in the state of Virginia. The Hubs had beaten a Virginia opponent for the first time last season, defeating Central 18-7 at home.
North hosts Century (3-1) on Friday at 6 p.m.
Boonsboro 55, Catoctin 7
Boonsboro won its third straight game with an offensive outburst against Catoctin.
Jadon King rushed for 139 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries, while Landon French scored three times with two rushing touchdowns and a touchdown reception. Blake Main completed 8 of 11 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for a score.
Jayden Paugh caught three passes for 130 yards, including a 70-yard touchdown, as the Warriors finished with 436 yards of offense.
Boonsboro improved to 3-1 and travels to Williamsport (3-1) on Friday for a 6 p.m. game.
Greencastle-Antrim 45, Boiling Springs 7
Greencastle-Antrim wasted little time taking control against Boiling Springs, scoring 27 points in the first quarter on the way to the lopsided victory.
Spencer Long scored twice on the ground in the opening quarter, while Luke Hull returned an interception 39 yards for a touchdown and Wyatt Hull caught a 34-yard scoring pass from Gavin Logsdon.
The Blue Devils (3-2) also got a 6-yard touchdown run from Landon Kagarise and a 12-yard fumble return for a score from Ryan Schick. Kagarise led Greencastle with 83 rushing yards on six carries.
Greencastle hosts unbeaten West Perry (5-0) on Friday at 7 p.m.
Smithsburg 28, Brunswick 6
Smithsburg continued its unbeaten start by leaning heavily on its running game against Brunswick.
Nicolas Roncone rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries, while Noah Hegbe had 67 yards on four carries, including a 52-yard touchdown, and Zach Linn added 55 yards and a score.
The Leopards piled up 292 rushing yards on 46 carries and finished with 352 yards of offense. Defensively, Riley Carr led Smithsburg with 11 tackles, while Jax Dodson had an interception.
Smithsburg improved to 4-0 for the first time since 2008 and hosts Poolesville (2-2) on Friday at 7 p.m.
Palmyra 26, Waynesboro 0
Waynesboro remained winless with a road loss to Palmyra.
The Cougars scored 13 points in the first quarter and led 19-0 at halftime before adding the final touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Waynesboro fell to 0-5 and will return home Friday to face Mifflin County (1-4) at 7 p.m.
