B-A capitalizes off miscues, runs over Tyrone

Devils force 4 TOs, rush for 253

Bellwood-Antis junior Alex McCartney has the speed and footwork to outmaneuver defenders if he wants to.

That much was evident on his third touchdown last night against Tyrone in the Backyard Brawl.

After blasting off tackle, McCartney was able to zip past a defender, keep his feet in bounds, and cross the goal line from 16 yards out. It was a big league run, and one that he’s quite capable of.

But McCartney’s size and natural instincts make him much more apt to seek contact rather than avoid it, which is why most of his 21 carries were some version of this one.

Or this:

The point is, McCartney is an elite back who can beat you in a lot of ways, and with he and classmate Chase Plummer running with the intensity they carried last night, the Blue Devils don’t need any extra help. Just slowing that two-headed monster is tough enough on its own.

So Tyrone did itself no favors when it treated the football like a hot potato at Gray-Veterans Memorial Field.

The Golden Eagles turned the ball over four times, with three of them leading directly to B-A scores, and fell to the Blue Devils for the second straight season, 26-7.

“That’s the best offensive line in District 6 regardless of the level,” Tyrone coach John Franco said afterwards. “They worked us up front. You can’t hand the game to a team that good. Their running backs are as good as any two in District 6, and their line is as good as I’ve seen in years. They whooped us the good old-fashioned way, and we’ve got to learn from it.”

Tyrone’s inability to hold onto the ball and sustain drives meant that the Blue Devils never had to deviate from their game plan or press on third-and-long situations. Instead, they kept the football in the hands of their two capable rushers, and the result was 253 yards on 44 carries, which amounts to almost 6 yards per rush.

McCartney alone had 150 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries while Plummer added another 74 on 9 tries.

“The fumble recoveries and the two picks were big plays,” said Bellwood-Antis coach Nick Lovrich. “Our guys were in the right positions at the right times. Then pretty soon those 4-yard runs became big runs as the game went on.”

The success of Plummer and McCartney also ensured that quarterback Bradyn Partner, who was seeing his first action since Week 1, wouldn’t be forced to put a strain on his injured left ankle. He only ran the ball 7 times and was rarely in a situation where he needed to pass, let alone scramble.

“We have three guys on our line (Jayce Quick, Christian Jennings, and Logan Ridgway) who have started for three years,” said Lovrich. “Our line is really starting to gel. They did a lot of work in the offseason to get stronger. They move their feet well and they like to run.”

Running was essentially all the Devils did on their first series, a drive that was emblematic of the first half for the Golden Eagles, when B-A began two of their three possessions well inside Tyrone territory. And it began that way, as did several others, thanks to a Blue Devil takeaway.

This one came on the opening kick, which started as a nifty return from junior Caleb Whitby. After moving from the 6 all the way to the 42, Whitby was taken down by Colin Gibbons while Brady Hostler came in from behind and poked the ball away.

Jeffrey Waite was there to recover, and that play set the tone and pace for the rest of the first half. Plummer and McCartney split carries over the next 8 plays, getting the ball as deep as Tyrone’s 12 before the Devils faced third-and-10 form the 12. That’s when Partner found Plummer, who had slipped into the flat, for this 9-yard gain.

The connection made it fourth-and-1 from the 3, and that was easy pickings for McCartney, who powered in to the endzone on the next play. The first of two PAT kicks from Miles Smearman made it 7-0 with five minutes expired in the first quarter.

Tyrone couldn’t move the ball on its opening possession, and a long punt return by JD Dorminy had the Devils starting from Tyrone’s 35. An 11-yard run from Plummer and a 12-yard burst by McCartney gave B-A a first-and-goal from the 6, but the Devils fumbled a center exchange and Ashton Emigh was there to recover for Tyrone.

Aided by a personal foul penalty, the Eagles advanced as far as the 31 where they converted on third and short. But just when the offense was settling in, a second costly turnover put an end to Tyrone’s momentum. And it was a dagger.

Plummer’s pick-6 went 28 yards and lifted B-A to a 14-0 lead it would take into the locker room at halftime.

“Those turnovers were huge,” Lovrich said of his team’s first-half takeaways. “On the (kickoff), Colin Gibbons did a great job of making the tackle, and then we had guys flowing to the ball and knocking it loose. The interception was just Chase reading the play.”

B-A continued to pound the ball on the ground in the second half, beginning on its first possession, one that went 62 yards and lasted 7 plays. McCartney had his longest run of the night, going 18 yard off an option pitch to get the Devils to the 19, and two plays later he broke free for this 12-yard touchdown to make it 20-0.

Woomer threw his second interception of the game on Tyrone’s ensuing series, but the Eagles’ defense held strong and forced a B-A punt.

That gave Tyrone the ball at their own 17 with just under four minutes left in the third quarter, and three plays into the possession Woomer unloaded a bomb to Brayden Parsons, who hauled in the pass at B-A’s 36 and took care of the rest on his own.

It went down as a 62-yard touchdown, and the kick by Tytus Novak made it 20-7 with an entire quarter left to play. It was an uphill battle, but the Eagles were finally in the game.

Just minutes later Tyrone forced a B-A punt and took over at its own 20 before another costly turnover closed the books. On first down, Woomer hit John Stroup on a quick hitch to the sideline, but in fighting for yards Stroup lost the ball and the Devils came away with it, setting up McCartney’s third score.

Their running backs are as good as any two in District 6, and their line is as good as I’ve seen in years. They whooped us the good old-fashioned way, and we’ve got to learn from it.

Tyrone coach John Franco

“We did not play well, but we didn’t quit,” said Franco. “We needed to get a stop, which we did, and then we fumbled. You can’t do that.”

The loss halted Tyrone’s three-game winning streak and dropped the Eagles to 3-2 with the toughest stretch of their schedule ahead. They’ll travel to Altoona to play Bishop Guilfoyle next week, and Franco is hoping his team can take some tough lessons from the humbling loss.

“We’ve got to focus on the task at hand,” Franco said. “It’s a good learning experience. We’ve got to be able to move on to the next week and put this one in the rear-view mirror.”

For the Devils, who improved to 3-2, the win put them in a much better position in the 2A standings and was a sign of how well the team can play when all of its pieces are on the field.

“We feel good about where we’re at,” said Lovrich. “The last two weeks we’ve played well, but it’s one game at a time. We’ll celebrate this one tonight, but tomorrow it’s on to P-O. You can’t take any weeks off because in the Laurel Highlands everyone is good.”

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Bellwood-Antis                 14  0  6  6 — 26

Tyrone                               0  0  7  0 — 7

First Quarter

B – McCartney 3 run (Smearman kick) 7:08

B – Plummer 28 interception return (Smearman kick) :40

Third Quarter

B – McCartney 12 run (PAT kick failed) 8:00

T – Parsons 68 pass from Woomer (Novak kick) 1:48

Fourth quarter

B – McCartney 16 run (PAT kick failed) 9:27

TEAM STATISTICS            B               T

First downs                         15             10

Total yards                          271            215

Rushes-yards                      44-253       29-56

Yards passing                     18             159

Passing (comp.-att.-int.)      3-7-0         11-20-2

Punts-avg.                          3-30.3        2-32.5

Fumbles-lost                       4-2            2-2

Penalties-yards                   2-20          4-25

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Tyrone Whitby 9-45, Woomer 8-(-5), A. Emigh 1-2, Zupon 2-2; Bellwood-Antis McCartney 21-150, Plummer 9-74, Partner 7-17, Shedlock 1-2, Gibbons 4-0, Crist 2-10.

PASSING—Tyrone Woomer 8-16-148, 1 TD, 2 Ints., Walk 1-1-2, Zupon 2-3-9; Bellwood-Antis Partner 3-7-18, 0 TD, 0 Int.

RECEIVING—Tyrone Parsons 3-77, M. Emigh 1-4, A. Emigh 1-19, Whitby 2-42, Robinson 1-12, Woomer 1-2, Stroup 1-2, Martin 1-1; Bellwood-Antis Plummer 1-9, Waite 1-5, Gibbons 1-4.