Downingtown West stuffs Bishop Shanahan’s 2-point try to hold on for win

DOWNINGTOWN >> They play football games on turf, not on paper. A week after a convincing win over Class 6A power Downingtown East, the Downingtown West football team needed a big goal line stand on a two-point conversion with 1:14 left in the fourth quarter to come away with a thrilling, 14-13, win over Bishop Shanahan in a key Ches-Mont National Division test at Kottmeyer Stadium.

Shanahan was trailing, 14-7, with 3:45 left in the fourth quarter when the running of Kyle Stein and the passing of Charlie Maddocks drove them down the field. Maddocks then hit Vince Riccardo with a pretty 17-yard touchdown pass to make it a 14-13 game. After an offside penalty on the Whippets (4-1 Ches-Mont, 8-1 overall), the Eagles decided to go for the two-point conversion. Stein took the handoff and appeared to be going in, but Max Hale stuffed the run and the Whippets came away with a tougher-than-expected win over a game Eagles squad.

“We needed to stop them on that goal line stand,” Hale said. “We may have had a little letdown after the East win but Shanahan played well and we matched their intensity and turned it around on the goal line play, and we got the win. That is what matters.”

Hale was splendid the entire night for the Whippets as he recorded a sack and made nine tackles. But, it was a big pass play that broke a scoreless tie late in the second quarter.

After forcing a Shanahan (1-5, 3-6) punt, the Whippet offense, which was stymied up until then, exploded. On the first play after the punt, quarterback Ryan Wetzel hit Jackson Luneberg far behind any Eagles defenders for a 67-yard touchdown pass and a 7-0 Downingtown West lead at halftime.

It looked like the Whippets were going to put the game away early in the fourth quarter, as Downingtown West went on an 18-play, seven-plus minute drive with Tyler Alston going the final yard to make it a 14-0 game with just 9:58 left in the fourth quarter. That 93-yard drive came after Maddocks fumbled the ball at the Whippets’ seven-yard line, killing a potential Bishop Shanahan score.

“The turnover really hurt us,” Bishop Shanahan head coach Paul Meyers said. “They went on that drive after that but we came right back. Everyone of our players left it all out on the field tonight and I cannot be prouder of them. They can look themselves in the mirror and be proud.”

Bishop Shanahan came right back and the Eagles went on a 73-yard, six-play drive that featured a 17-yard fourth down completion from Maddocks to Riccardo to keep the drive alive. The fourth down play came after Maddocks was sacked on two consecutive plays. Tyler Kingsbury finished the drive by hauling in a perfect 21-yard touchdown pass from Maddocks to make it a 14-7 game ands set up the late heroics by the Whippet defense.

“We may have had a little letdown after beating East,” Downingtown West linebacker and quarterback Ryan Wetzel said. “But, we dug down and Max Hale makes a game saving play and we got out of here with a win.”

Downingtown West will host West Chester East next week, and a win by the Whippets would likely give West a home game in the upcoming District 1 Class 6A playoffs, but Downingtown West head coach Mike Milano was focusing on what happened Friday night.

“Football is a game played with energy and passion,” Milano said. “And give Bishop Shanahan credit. They played with more energy. We had a good week of practice and Ryan is still finding his way at quarterback with some things and if there is a better defensive end than Max Hale at 180 pounds I have not seen him. Give them credit. They played with a lot of energy but we made a big play on the goal line for the win.”