Laurel outlasts Shenango in finale
Laurel (22) vs. Shenango (6)
Written: Nov 02, 2009
By DAN IRWIN
d_irwin@ncnewsonline.com
No playoff spots were on the line.
Laurel already had clinched the runner-up seed in the WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference. Shenango had been eliminated earlier in the day.
Sounds like a recipe for two teams to simply mail it in. But not this game.
The Wildcats trailed by only a point at halftime and by just a touchdown after three quarters before Laurel rode a school-record Jonathan Johnson field goal and a 128-yard rushing effort by Dylan Jones — all in the second half — to a 22-6 victory Saturday night at Glenn “Pop” Johnston Stadium.
Dan Poremski, in his first game back from injury, also had two second-half touchdowns for the Spartans.
“Whatever a kid has in him going into this game, he finds it,” Laurel head coach Jerry Holzhauser said. “It doesn’t matter the records, this is always a great football game.”
Shenango head coach Ryan Mayo also expected a battle. His team had started the day needing a loss by South Side to have hope for the playoffs, but South Side’s afternoon win meant the Wildcats knew going in they’d been eliminated. Still, Mayo was unconcerned about a letdown.
“I knew how they’d react,” he said. “Anytime we’ve faced adversity this year, we’ve come out and played great the next week. So I knew it wouldn’t have any effect on us at all. We played our hearts out.”
Laurel (6-1 conference, 8-1 overall) dominated the game statistically, outgaining Shenango 409-171. However, four big defensive stops and one huge offensive play kept Shenango (3-4, 5-4) in the game for over three quarters.
The Spartans scored on their opening drive, with Tyler Forbes passing 31 yards to Shane Caldararo. They turned the ball over on downs, though, at the Wildcats’ 8 on their first drive of the second period, then saw a 45-yard Johnson field goal try blocked on the second. Linebacker Eric Moscipan sacked Forbes on third down to force the kick, then came roaring up the middle on fourth down to block it.
In the third period, Shenango’s Ricky Mathews intercepted Forbes in the end zone, and in the fourth, the ‘Cats stripped Jones of the ball at the end of a 52-yard breakaway and recovered at their own 8.
Speaking of Mathews, the senior back bounced off the line, cut outside and streaked 92 yards down the sideline between the Spartans’ two second-quarter possessions to cut Laurel’s lead to 7-6. Mathews finished with 101 yards on 10 carries.
“Shenango is a threat to score any time,” Holzhauser said. “We knew we had to control the football, and I think we did that, especially in the second half. But give them credit, they did a nice job stopping us.”
Holzhauser also credited Shenango’s “D” with giving Johnson the chance to boot a record 42-yard field goal — which hit the crossbar and bounced through — early in the fourth quarter.
“Jonathan’s a strong kicker, and he’s done a great job for us for years,” Holzhauser aid. “There was one time last year I actually tried to get him the school record (R.J. Timmerman owned the previous mark of 36 yards) and it was short by a yard.
“We just never had the opportunity this year for him to kick something that long. So in one regard, Shenango’s defense gave us that opportunity.”
Poremski’s 3-yard TD runs in the third and fourth quarters rounded out the scoring.
Though Shenango’s season ended Saturday, and on a loss to boot, the smile on Mayo’s face was unmistakable.
“These kids have never had a winning record,” he said, “not JV, not junior high, not Pop Warner. So for us to get five wins and have a winning record is a tremendous accomplishment for them.
“This senior class has changed the culture of Shenango football. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
*****
LAUREL SHENANGO
19 First downs 3
291 Yards Rushing 132
12 Yards Lost 8
279 Net Rushing 124
18 Passes Attempted 8
7 Passes Completed 3
1 Passes Intercepted 1
130 Yards Passing 47
409 Total Yards 171
2-1 Fumbles-Lost 4-1
1-29 Punts-Average 5-30.2
7-60 Penalties-Yards 6-50
LAUREL 7 0 6 9 — 22
SHENANGO 0 6 0 0 — 6
Scoring plays
LAUREL — Shane Caldararo, 31-yard pass from Tyler Forbes (Jonathan Johnson kick).
SHENANGO — Ricky Mathews, 92-yard run (Pass failed).
LAUREL — Dan Poremski, 3-yard run (Kick failed).
LAUREL — Johnson, 42-yard field goal.
LAUREL — Poremski, 3-yard run.
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