By Bill Engelhardt
York-Adams County District 3 Playoff action:
The undefeated and third seeded Panthers of Central York (11-0 overall, 6-0 YAIAA Division I) bested the sixth seeded Thundering Herd of Carlisle (8-3 overall, 6-2 Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division) 23-7 in class AAAA quarterfinal action. Derrick Bender, with 34-yards, Eric Schwartz, with 28-yards (including a 22-yard touchdown jaunt), and Matt Nugent, with 25-yards, led the Panthers rushing attack. Quarterback Schwartz also completed 12 passes for 182-yards, including a 20-yard touchdown to Ryan Ortyl (who caught 2 passes for28-yards) and a 36-yard touchdown to Anjelo Kellum (who caught 4 passes for 61-yards), and Alex Kelly kicked a 29-yard field goal and 2 extra points for the Panthers. Caron Johnson caught 2 passes for 43-yards, Jon Shuff caught 2 for 25-yards, LeRoy Calhoun caught 1 for 16-yards, and Shane Gilbert caught 1 for 9-yards for the Panthers. Quarterback Clem Johnson, with 68-yards, and Tyreese Marshall, with 28-yards, led the Thundering Herds rushing attack. Johnson also completed 15 passes for 185-yards, including a 13-yard touchdown to Tyrell Shaffer, as he accounted for 253 of the Thundering Herds 290-yards of offense. Tyreese Marshall caught 4 passes for 52-yards, Ken Anderson caught 2 for 55-yards, Dukes caught 3 for 35-yards, Steven Hoadley caught 1 for 27-yards, Tyrell Shaffer caught 2 for 15-yards, and Ben Thorson caught 3 for 1-yard for the Thundering Herd. The Panthers will host the Little Lions of State College (8-3 overall, 5-3 Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division) in the semifinal round of the district playoffs.
The seventh seeded Warriors of Gettysburg (10-2 overall, 4-2 Mid-Penn Keystone Division) upended the previously undefeated and second seeded Warriors of Susquehannock (10-1 overall, 6-0 YAIAA Division II) 31-15 in class AAA quarterfinal action. R. J. VanBrackle led the Gettysburg rushing attack with 155-yards, including a 10-yard touchdown, followed by all everything Terrill Barnes with 52-yards, including a 3-yard touchdown. Barnes also caught 4 passes for 49-yards, a slow night for him, and had a pivotal interception at the Gettysburg 9-yard line to thwart a Susquehannock drive. Sophomore quarterback sensation Evan Lewis rushed for 23-yards, completed 9 passes for 99-yards and kicked a 21-yard field goal to open the scoring for Gettysburg. Curtis Corbin rushed for 26-yards, including a 12-yard touchdown, and Paul Krenzer closed out the scoring with a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown for Gettysburg. Chaz Powell led the Susquehannock rushing attack with 74-yards and he caught 4 passes for 97-yards, including a 31-yard touchdown strike from Andy McCoy. McCoy completed 11 passes for 221-yards, including 3 for 49-yards to Ian Childers, 3 for 35-yards to Justin Markel and one for 40-yards to Josh Winemiller. Caleb Walls kicked a 25-yard field goal for Susquehannock. Markel rushed for 28-yards, including a 1-yard touchdown to open the scoring for Susquehannock. The Warriors of Gettysburg will face the Muhls of Muhlenberg (9-2 overall, 3-1 Berks Inter-County Section 1), 35-28 victors over York Suburban, in the semifinal round of the district playoffs.
The third seeded Muhls of Muhlenberg (9-2 overall, 3-1 Berks Inter-County Section 1) outlasted the sixth seeded Trojans of York Suburban (9-2 overall, 5-1 YAIAA Division II) for a 35-28 victory in class AAA quarterfinal action. Jantzen Linn led the Muhls with 121-yards rushing, including a 1-yard touchdown, and Jordan Kipp completed 8 passes for 167-yards, including touchdown passes of 12 and 36-yards to Brandon Fox and 32-yards to Michael Stewart. Fox also returned a punt 93-yards for a touchdown. Safety Jaime Zackowski blocked a Trojans punt and intercepted a pass with 1:26 left in the half to set up Fox’s 12-yard touchdown reception. Brandon Snyder led the Trojans rushing attack with 91-yards, including touchdowns of 3, 30 and 7-yards. Quarterback Marc Bower also scored on a 1-yard run and completed 14 passes for 319-yards, including 6 for 158-yards to Derrick Bass and 4 for 104-yards to Zach Reider, for the Trojans. The Muhls will face the Warriors of Gettysburg (9-2 overall, 4-2 Mid-Penn Keystone Division), 31-15 victors over Susquehannock, in the semifinal round of the district playoffs.
The eighth seeded Polar Bears of Northern York (9-2 overall, 6-0 Mid-Penn Colonial Division) upset the first seeded Falcons of Lower Dauphin (9-2 overall, 6-0 Mid-Penn Keystone Division) 23-7 in class AAA quarterfinal action. Mike Romagnoli led the Polar Bears rushing attack with 71-yards but it was the passing arm of Colby Betz that sealed the deal. He completed 9 passes for 194-yards, including touchdowns of 27-yards to twin brother Corey (who caught 4 passes for 83-yards), 23-yards to Ryan Stephenson and 35-yards to Steve Morret. Brent Brockman added a 34-yard field goal for the final Polar Bears score. Tucker Berry led the Falcons with 152-yards rushing, including a 3-yard touchdown. He was the only runner besides quarterback Zach Umberger, who registered minus yardage. Umberger completed 10 passes for 115-yards, including 4 for 56-yards to Matt Coyne and 3 for 36-yards to Berry. The Falcons turned the ball over on fumbles six times to thwart any serious offensive threat. The Polar Bears will face the Barons of Manheim Central (10-1 overall, 7-0 Lancaster-Lebanon 2), 28-6 victors over Cocalico, in the semifinal round of the district playoffs.
The third seeded Thunderbolts of Littlestown (10-1 overall, 6-0 YAIAA Division III) roared to a 33-12 lead early in the third quarter and held on to register a thrilling 36-33 win over the second seeded Bubblers of Boiling Springs (10-1 overall, 7-0 Mid-Penn Capital Division) in class AA semifinal action. Nate Rolon rushed for 268-yards, including touchdowns of 54 and 62-yards, and intercepted 2 passes, including one that sealed the victory. Quarterback Zach Beaver scored on a 35-yard run and threw a 32-yard touchdown to Tim Lookingbill, Brian Zelanko returned a kickoff 82-yards for a touchdown, and Charlie Hunt nailed a 26-yard field goal for the Thunderbolts. Quarterback Joel Bliss rushed for 23-yards and completed 9 passes for 188-yards, including touchdown passes of 55-yards to Jeff Swope, 13 and 8-yards to Eric Bonshock and 16-yards to Anthony Weiland, for the Bubblers. Swope also led the Bubblers rushing attack with 126-yards, including a 46-yard touchdown. Swope caught 5 passes for 93-yards, Weiland caught 3 for 47-yards and Bonshock caught 3 for 39-yards. The Thunderbolts will face the Crusaders of Lancaster Catholic (11-0 overall, 7-0 Lancaster-Lebanon Section 3), 21-17 victors over Milton Hershey, in the final round of the district playoffs.