Shanahan uses ground game to beat rain, Olney

DOWNINGTOWN — With a steady rain ongoing, the conditions were pefect for Nick Pasvanis and the Bishop Shanahan rushing attack.

The Eagles’ running backs knew they would see a majority of the touches during the downpour against a 26-man Olney squad. The secret was out.

Upperclassmen like Pasvanis know better. Especially when the the driving force behind Shanahan’s running game was dominant all afternoon.

“The offensive line was making great blocks all day,’ Pasvanis said. “Our outside and inside guys were just making the holes huge for me. They make it that much easier to run through (the gaps).’

Pasvanis had four carries for 73 yards and two touchdowns as Bishop Shanahan rushed for 307 yards in a 44-0 victory over Olney at Jack Mancini Field Saturday afternoon.

The Eagles remain undefeated (3-0) with the win, while Olney (2-1) dropped its first game of the season.

Shanahan controlled the game from the opening kickoff. On Olney’s first play from scrimmage, the Trojans fumbled the snap and the Eagles recovered at the Olney 22.

Four plays later, Pasvanis scored his first touchdown from four yards out to give Shanahan a 7-0 lead, which it would not relinguish.

“We did what we had to do and that was take care of business,’ said Shanahan had coach Paul Meyers. “Had to change the game plan with the weather. We practiced a lot of passing this week because we thought we could throw on them, but once this weather hit we changed it.’

That change worked in Shanahan’s favor with Pasvanis, Kevin Stine and Jerry Riccardo carrying the Eagles down the field for the majority of the first half.

On Shanahan’s third drive of the game, Stine took a sweep for 61 yards to the Olney 5-yard line. Two plays later, Pasvanis scored his second touchdown of the game to make it 14-0.

The Eagles built a commanding lead on their next possession, but went back to Meyers’s initial gameplan to get into the end zone.

Danny Murphy threw a jump ball to Cody Smith on 3rd-and-10 at their own 40. Smith won the battle with Olney cornerback Sultan Johns and took the pass 60 yards for the touchdown to make it 22-0 late in the first quarter.

“That’s what you have to to there,’ Meyers said. “An athlete makes plays like that. We always talk about who’s going to make a play and Cody did there.’

From that point, Shanahan’s defense took over. Doug Costin led the charge with two sacks as the Eagles front seven kept pressuring Olney quarterback Kadir Chisholm throughout the game.

Chisholm completed just 2-of-9 passes for 15 yards. The Eagles allowed just 198 yards on the afternoon.

“We liked how we were playing,’ Costin said. “The pace was uptempo. We were feeding off each other. The energy was high. We got to keep that going.’

Shanahan padded its lead late in the first half as Riccardo scored on a 22-yard run to give the Eagles a 30-0 lead at halftime.

Riccardo’s 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter made it 37-0 and put the mercy rule in effect; sealing a game that was never in any doubt.

Stine led the Eagles with five carries for 110 yards and Riccardo had four carries for 43 yards with two touchdowns.

Murphy finished with 103 total yards (70 pass, 33 rush).

For the second consecutive season, Shanahan has won its first three games. The Eagles open their Ches-Mont schedule as they host West Chester East Saturday.

Meyers knows Shanahan will have to be ready for its biggest game of the season to this point.

“West Chester East is playing well,’ Meyers said. “We got to be ready. If not, we could be in trouble. They’re a well-coached team.’