Lancers turn miscues into big win
Neshannock (48) vs. Vincentian Academy (0)
Written: Oct 10, 2015
By John D'Abruzzo
New Castle News
McCANDLESS TWP. — With every mistake made last night by the Vincentian Academy football team, Neshannock reaped the benefits.
The Lancers took advantage of two penalties and three turnovers during the first half of their WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference matchup against the Royals and parlayed those miscues into a walk-away 48-0 victory.
“It was a good win,” Neshannock coach Fred Mozzocio said. “We wanted to continue our positive momentum and show our dominance right off the bat. We did that. There was no nonsense. We came out workman-like and took what they gave us.”
Neshannock (5-1 overall, 4-1 conference) picked up its fourth consecutive win with ease during the mercy-ruled contest at Lt. J.C. Stone Field in North Park. The Lancers outgained the Royals in total yards, 402-62.
“Our defense played stellar,” Mozzocio said. “I’m proud of those guys. They’ve been making great strides every week. Moving forward as we get closer to the playoffs, we’re getting better and better on each side of the football.”
The Lancers, who lead the conference with 44.8 points per game, jumped out to an early 7-0 lead when they took advantage of a face-mask penalty and followed up with a 24-yard touchdown run by Chris Scott on the game’s first drive. Danny Welker’s two-yard touchdown run capped off an 11-play drive on the ensuing series.
Following Welker’s touchdown, the Royals fumbled the ball on the first play of the very next series. That gave Neshannock perfect field position to capitalize with a two-yard touchdown run by Jonah Vitale and put the Lancers up 21-0 after the first quarter.
“We kept a positive attitude all week in practice and wanted to have a lot of energy on defense and on offense,” Neshannock quarterback Frank Antuono said. “Our defense played great. Our offensive line played great today. Our wide receivers worked down the field great. It was just a great all-around game for us.”
Antuono finished the game completing 10 of 16 passes for 91 yards and a touchdown. He added 73 yards on the ground, including a 24-yard score with less than three minutes remaining in the second quarter.
Vincentian struggled on both sides of the ball all night and lost three of five fumbles in the game. Following Antuono’s score, the Royals fumbled the ensuing kickoff. Robert Lindsey capped a five-play drive with a two-yard touchdown run that gave Neshannock a 35-0 lead at the half. Lindsey finished the game with 56 yards and a touchdown on nine carries, along with three receptions.
“We worked hard on our defense all week,” Antuono said. “We wanted to swarm to the ball. Our motto is, ‘Sharks in a frenzy.’ That’s what we tried to do. We were sharks trying to smell the blood and get to the ball.”
With the mercy rule in motion at the start of the third quarter, Neshannock opened the second half with a 10-play, 51-yard drive that ended with a five-yard touchdown reception caught by Ty Sears.
“We talked at the half that we wanted to come out the first drive of the second half just like it was a scoreless ballgame,” Mozzocio said. “We wanted to see if we could get one in the end zone and see if we could continue to execute. We did exactly that.”
Late in the fourth quarter, Anthony Dividio became the seventh Neshannock player to score a touchdown with a four-yard run.
“We have a really good football team coming in with some momentum with Rochester next week,” Mozzocio said. “That’s always the most physical game in the Big Seven. Any time we play Rochester, it’s just smash-mouth football.
“We’ll have to be geared up and ready to go next week, but I know our kids are looking forward to the challenge.”
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com)
NESHANNOCK VINCENTIAN
22 First downs 4
315 Yards Rushing 73
4 Yards Lost 11
311 Net Rushing 62
16 Passes Attempted 2
10 Passes Completed 0
0 Passes Intercepted 1
91 Yards Passing 0
402 Total Yards 62
2-1 Fumbles-Lost 5-3
0-0 Punts-Average 4-24
3-15 Penalties-Yards 3-22
NESHANNOCK 21 14 7 3 — 14
VINCENTIAN 0 0 0 0 — 0
Scoring plays
NESHANNOCK — Chris Scott, 24-yard run (Caitlin Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Danny Welker, 2-yard run (Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Jonah Vitale, 2-yard run (Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Frank Antuono, 24-yard run (Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Robert Lindsey, 2-yard run (Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Ty Sear, 5-yard pass from Antuono (Trotta kick).
NESHANNOCK — Anthony DoVidio, 4-yard run (kick failed).
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