Archbishop Wood’s line paves way past Academy Park in PIAA 5A semifinals
WHITEMARSH >> From the second the ball left the tee on the game’s opening kickoff, Archbishop Wood never lost momentum.
The numbers weren’t as gaudy as last week, but the formula was much the same. The Vikings’ offensive line paved the way, the ground game kept pounding, the passing game made some plays and the defense choked out any hope of an upset.
Wood scored first and just kept going from there as it defeated District I champion Academy Park 37-0 at Plymouth-Whitemarsh on Friday in their PIAA 5A semifinal.
“It was of the mental stuff,” Wood lineman Tommy Walsh said. “We had to pick up the blitzes and movements. It was a good job all around by the coaches and the whole o-line making different calls for different situations and getting good movement off the ball.”
Wood rushed for 225 yards, led by 125 yards and two scores from senior Raheem Blackshear. Shawn Thompson ran for 67 yards and a touchdown while sophomore quarterback Jack Colyar ran and threw for scores.
The Vikings will play for the state title Friday in Hershey, against the winner of Saturday’s game between Harrisburg and West Allegheny. It will be Wood’s third state title game appearance in the last four seasons, losing in last year’s District 12 championship contest.
That feeling weighed heavily on the team’s seniors and they took the field Friday knowing how close they were to returning to Hershey.
“We did not want to feel how we felt last year,” Wood senior offensive lineman Matt Arcidiacono said. “It was terrible last year. We knew we needed to win tonight and losing wasn’t an option.”
FOOTBALL 19.3 Q2: Wood 31, Academy Park 0
Colyar 16 pass to Kyle Pitts pic.twitter.com/QEn7pipqSr— Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3) December 3, 2016
Wood took the opening kickoff and scored in four plays, capped by a six-yard Blackshear run. The defense stopped the Knights, then Wood added a 26-yard Dan Zanine field goal with 1:37 left in the first quarter. On the following kickoff, Academy Park’s returner muffed the kick and Wood linebacker Matt Palmer flew to it, recovering on the Knights’ 12-yard line.
Blackshear punched that in from six out for a 17-0 lead with 5.8 left in the first quarter and it just seemed like Wood was in total control.
“The coaches said this team was going to be tough and physical,” Blackshear said. “By us pounding on them, we kind of wore them down and we just had a good game all over.”
No drive better epitomized Wood’s night than its first in the second quarter. After forcing a Knights punt, the Vikings tool over with nine minutes left before the half. They then ran 14 plays, covering 89 yards in 7:28 and capped it off when Colyar drove in from a yard out, following his linemen into the end zone.
Academy Park wasn’t giving up anything easy, stuffing the box to try and shut down Thompson’s runs up the middle. So, Wood went to Blackshear on the edges and got two big catches by tight end Kyle Pitts on the drive for 20 and 26 yards, both on third downs.
“We wanted to make a statement a little bit against them,” Wood coach Steve Devlin said. “We knew they were good on defense and had a lot of talented guys, but when you load the box like that, you’re one gap or one missed assignment away from breaking long runs. Those long drives wear on defenses but that opens up the stuff to Mark (Webb) and Kyle Pitts that we had tonight.”
Pitts, the massive 6-foot-6, 230 pound junior, had hands on two of the next five plays. Academy Park’s second play following the Colyar TD run ended when Wood linebacker Adrian Lambert punched the ball away from Dazhon Miller with Pitts recovering and advancing to the Knights’ 30.
A 19-yard completion to Webb after a flag got the ball inside the 20, where Colyar found Pitts for a 16-yard score with 19.3 left before the half.
“Everyone’s really stepped up into their positions and went to work,” Arcidiacono said. “We’ve been grinding out and as a result have been able to win.”
Arcidiacono is one of two seniors on the offensive line, along with co-captain Anthony Diodato.
“He’s got the same temperament, he wasn’t blessed with the size the others had but he’s an ‘Arch’ and he’s tough,” Devlin said. “Believe me, he had a lot of older brothers he had to fight to get food at the dinner table and he brings that out here.”
FOOTBALL 10:42 Q1: Wood 7, Academy Park 0
Raheem Blackshear 6yd run pic.twitter.com/6rqoA8CKSN— Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3) December 3, 2016
Wood’s defense forced a three-and-out to start the second half, then went right back down the field and scored on Thompson’s one-yard run to start the running clock. The backups went in, finished the game and kept the shutout as time expired and a hail of candy rained from the Wood bleachers onto the Vikings sideline.
Regardless of which team comes out of the western semifinal, either WPIAL champ West Allegheny or Harrisburg with the special talent Micah Parsons, Wood will have its work cut out for it. The Vikings have let their line pave the way this far, and they’ll ask the unit to do it for them one more time in Chocolatetown.
“It’s the extra push at the end,” Walsh said. “We’re not out there giving up, we play whistle to whistle and getting extra yards.”
ARCHBISHOP WOOD 17 14 6 0 – 37
ACADEMY PARK 0 0 0 0 – 0
1st Quarter
AW – Raheem Blackshear 6 run (Dan Zanine kick) 10:42
AW – Zanine 26 Field goal 1:37
AW – Blackshear 6 run (Zanine kick) 5.8
2nd Quarter
AW – Jack Colyar 1 run (Zanine kick) 1:32
AW – Kyle Pitts 16 pass from Colyar (Zanine kick) 19.3
3rd Quarter
AW – Shawn Thompson 1 run (kick miss) 8:38
Team Statistics
AW AP
First Downs 15 4
Rushes-Yards 41-225 22-65
Passing 7-13-1-0 5-9-0-0
Passing Yards 111 43
Total Yards 336 108
Penalties 6-53 9-59
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 2-2
Punting 0-0 4-35.3
Individual Stats
Rushing: AW – Shawn Thompson 10-67, Raheem Blackshear 19-225, Jack Colyar 1-1, Chris Blackstone 5-14, Leroy Pendleton 4-11, Eric Bauer 1-4, Tom Cattolico 1-3; AP – Miller 12-60, Burton 3-(-11), Wright 2-11, Moors 2-4, Marton 1-2, Coles 1-(-1)
Passing: AW – Colyar 7-13-1-0-111; AP – Moors 5-9-0-0-43
Receiving: AW – Kyle Pitts 4-67, Mark Webb 2-32, Thompson 1-12; AP – Burton 3-12, Fillis 1-27, Golds 1-4.
Top Photo: Archbishop Wood’s Kyle Pitts scores against Academy Park during their PIAA Class 5A semifinal on Friday, Dec. 2, 2016. (Bob Raines/Digital First Media)
