Quest fulfilled: Belle Vernon repeats as PIAA champion in resounding fashion
MECHANICSBURG 无毛视频� The quest has been fulfilled.
There wasn无毛视频檛 much the 2023 Belle Vernon football team could do to top the Leopards无毛视频� run to WPIAL and PIAA championships a year ago.
The goal was to match those lofty accomplishments.
The Leopards did that in resounding fashion on Saturday afternoon.
Given an early boost from two spectacular touchdowns by Anthony Crews, Belle Vernon rolled past Northwestern Lehigh, 38-7, in the PIAA Class AAA final at Cumberland Valley High School无毛视频檚 Chapman Field to complete their quest of repeating as district and state champions.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 definitely not easy,无毛视频� said Belle Vernon senior and Penn State recruit Quinton Martin. 无毛视频淣ot many teams do it. But I feel we had the mentality don无毛视频檛 take any team lightly. Just go out there, do your job and we无毛视频檙e going to get the outcome we expected. That无毛视频檚 what happened today.
无毛视频淲e got everybody无毛视频檚 A game and we expected that. We无毛视频檙e the defending state champion. We just had to go harder.无毛视频�
Crews took the opening kickoff back 78 yards for a touchdown and the Leopards never looked back.
无毛视频淵ou can无毛视频檛 script it better than that,无毛视频� Belle Vernon coach Matt Humbert said of the first-play score.
Martin rushed for 133 yards, including a 92-yard touchdown run, as the Leopards rolled up 334 yards on the ground.
Dalton Klymer ran for 110 yards for the Tigers and Shane Leh completed 15-of-22 passes for 112 yards with one touchdown, but Northwestern (15-1) could not match Belle Vernon无毛视频檚 big-play capability.
Crews turned a near disaster into another long touchdown and a 14-0 lead later in the first quarter after he tipped and bobbled a short pitch from quarterback Braden Laux. Crews finally gathered in the ball, then abruptly reversed field and sped 62 yards down the left sideline, taking advantage of a key block by Laux.
无毛视频淲e don无毛视频檛 have speed like that,无毛视频� Tigers coach Josh Snyder said. 无毛视频淭hey had a couple more play-makers.
无毛视频淭hey无毛视频檙e a good football team, back-to-back state champs for a reason. Kudos to them. There are not a lot of holes in their football program.无毛视频�
Northwestern wouldn无毛视频檛 get closer than 14 the rest of the way.
Humbert pointed to the Leopards无毛视频� experience of being in the spotlight as one of the reasons his squad was able to pull off the back-to-back feat.
无毛视频淥ne of the key things is they无毛视频檝e been in big games,无毛视频� Humbert said. 无毛视频淲e无毛视频檝e been in our district championship game four times over the past five years. They know what it无毛视频檚 like to be in big games and it doesn无毛视频檛 really affect us. That composure and that moxie is built in, it无毛视频檚 in their DNA.无毛视频�
While the Leopards无毛视频� running game was on display, so was their hard-hitting defense, which forced five punts, two turnovers and two turnovers on downs in Northwestern无毛视频檚 10 possessions.
The biggest defensive stop came early in the second quarter after Landen Matson recovered a Belle Vernon fumble at the Leopards无毛视频� 37. Clymer无毛视频檚 13-yard run set up a first and goal from the BV 7 and three more runs by Clymer led to a fourth-and-goal play at the 1.
The Tigers were denied, though, when Jake Gedekoh sliced through the line and knocked Clymer back for a 1-yard loss to end the threat.
无毛视频淔or us to make that stand down there and not let them get six points, that was key,无毛视频� Humbert said.
无毛视频淲e get down to the one-foot line, never been stopped this year from that point,无毛视频� Snyder said.
It wasn无毛视频檛 anything new for the Leopards, as Crews pointed out.
无毛视频淲e won a state championship off of a goal-line stop last year,无毛视频� said Crews, alluding to Belle Vernon无毛视频檚 stand and forced fumble that preserved the 9-8 win over Neumann Goretti in the 2022 PIAA final. 无毛视频淭hat无毛视频檚 what we无毛视频檙e known for.无毛视频�
From there, Belle Vernon put together a nine-play, 98-yard touchdown drive that featured a bruising, 49-yard run by Gedekoh to the NL 5 and was capped by Laux无毛视频檚 2-yard run two plays later to put the Leopards up 21-0.
Despite the crushing turn of events, the Tigers weren无毛视频檛 about to go quietly.
Northwestern Lehigh, which was set to receive the second-half kickoff, went to the air to try to get on the board before halftime. Leh was 4-for-5 on a brisk 78-yard drive that ended with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Matson in the left side of the end zone with just 35 seconds left in the half. Seth Kern无毛视频檚 extra point made it 21-7 at halftime.
无毛视频淲e gave ourselves a chance,无毛视频� Snyder said.
The Tigers began the second half with a drive that produced three first downs and reached the BV 38. The Leopards无毛视频� defense came up with consecutive key plays at that point to thwart the push. LaCarte sniffed out a swing pass to Clymer and dropped him for a 5-yard loss and Aiden Johnson sacked Leh for a 9-yard loss, forcing a punt.
Clymer无毛视频檚 boot pinned Belle Vernon back at its own 8.
Martin then delivered a gut punch to the Tigers, bolting around left end and down the sideline on the next play for a 92-yard TD.
无毛视频淲e felt like we were able to get the perimeter with Quinton and it was just a matter of time,无毛视频� Humbert said.
无毛视频淭hat one explosive play sort of took the last hope out of us,无毛视频� Snyder admitted.
Lori C. PadillaBelle Vernon无毛视频檚 Quinton Martin (left) and Curtis Wade celebrate a big play during Saturday无毛视频檚 PIAA Class AAA championship game at Cumberland Valley High School无毛视频檚 Chapman Field.
Belle Vernon tacked on two more scores in the fourth quarter. Preston Rathway, who was 5-for-5 on extra points, hit a career-long 44 field goal and Gedekoh capped off a 71-yard rushing day with a 1-yard touchdown plunge.
The final TD was indicative of the Leopards无毛视频� unselfishness, according to Humbert.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檙e driving down here to put the nail in the coffin and we rotate Quinton and Gedekoh in our wildcat formation,无毛视频� Humbert explained. 无毛视频淨uinton无毛视频檚 number was up to run it and he said 无毛视频楥oach, I don无毛视频檛 want it, I want him to get a touchdown.无毛视频� That无毛视频檚 just the unselfish nature of these kids and I think that无毛视频檚 a key core component to the success we无毛视频檝e had.无毛视频�
Humbert commended his offensive line and defense.
无毛视频淎 lot of this win tonight is because of the line and the way that they played,无毛视频� said Humbert. 无毛视频淭hat defense was good, that defense was stingy. They had a lot of success all year. It was gratifying to see.无毛视频�
Humbert also was pleased at how his defense handled Northwestern Lehigh无毛视频檚 offensive line.
无毛视频淭hey无毛视频檙e probably one of the most athletic line groups we无毛视频檝e seen,无毛视频� Humbert said. 无毛视频淚t was a stressful week because, the way that those linemen get on backers, we thought it would be a very interesting game in terms of we无毛视频檝e got smaller inside backers, we无毛视频檝e got smaller outside backers to some degree. How was that speed going to be able to combat?
无毛视频淎nd you saw. Our kids were hitting windows and flying around. Colton Lee, Tanner Moody, Jake Gedekoh, Alonzo Wade 无毛视频� just, wow. What a performance by all of them.无毛视频�
Humbert also singled on LaCarte, who had an interception and forced fumble that was recovered by Laux.
无毛视频淔rom a college standpoint and a recruiting standpoint, that kid doesn无毛视频檛 get enough credit because he无毛视频檚 gritty, he无毛视频檚 athletic and, boy, he can fill, and he proved that today,无毛视频� Humbert said of LaCarte.
Northwestern Lehigh无毛视频檚 Devon Hildebrand was the game无毛视频檚 leading receiver with eight catches for 60 yards.
Laux was 6-of-8 passing for 33 yards, with five of those completions going to Martin for 25 yards.
LaCarte led the Leopards with 12 tackles and Lee had 11.
Humbert reflected on the journey that led to the program无毛视频檚 third WPIAL title and a second PIAA title with a smile.
无毛视频淭he thing that sticks out the most is just the happiness for everyone associated with it,无毛视频� Humbert said. 无毛视频淥bviously, it无毛视频檚 extreme joy for me, but I think of all the coaches that put in the energy, the hours, our support staff from the water girls to the trainers to the equipment guys.
无毛视频淭o think of everyone and how they sacrificed. This is what you do it for, to be able to get to this point. All their effort paid off and I think that无毛视频檚 the most gratifying thing.无毛视频�