Rosano shines as Dtown West slogs past CB South
WARRINGTON — With spasms still shooting through his calf, Downingtown West’s Alex Rosano walked slowly off the field, fighting a limp that did it’s best to mask a proud stride.
It was a fitting metaphor for the Whippets, who were hardly in danger against an upset-minded Central Bucks South team, but head into week three with much to improve on.
West moved to 2-0 on the season with a 34-13 non-league win over the hosting Titans, and while there was much to be proud of — starting with Rosano’s 210 yards of total offense — there was nothing about the win that made the Whippets feel satisfied.
“We came away with the win, but we have a lot to work on,” Rosano said, echoing the sentiment of the post-game huddle. “We made some big plays, but overall, we gotta get better.”
Make no mistake, the Whippets have high hopes this season, with many key starters back from a district semifinalist team a year ago. After the game, West coach Mike Milano told his team, “there’s greatness here.”
That was on display the first 14 minutes of play. West forced two punts on South’s first two possessions and proceeded to methodically march down the field for short touchdown runs by Tyriq Lewis and Will Howard.
On the Titans’ (1-1) third drive, West stuffed them on a third-and-one, but a facemask penalty extended the drive, and four plays later South found life with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Josh Consoletti to Sean Smith.
From there, a contest that seemed like a potential boat race by the Whippets turned into sludgy race to the finish.
“I told (the team) the goal was to win and we won,” Milano said. “That was nowhere near perfect. We have tons to work on. We won and we’re 2-0, but we were inept at times.”
West sputtered its next two drives, but an interception by Julian Williams set the Whippets up with the ball at the South 35, with a minute left in the half. With 18 ticks to go, Howard connected with Rosano for a 15-yard score to push the lead to 15 at the break.
“It’s great playing with a quarterback like Will,” Rosano said. “It’s a great opportunity, and it’s amazing playing with him.”
Rosano, a returning starter in the Whippet secondary, has seen his role on offense expand as he takes the place of the graduated Dan Byrnes. Rosano had six catches for 141 yards and two touchdowns, adding 69 yards on four carries.
“He’s doing a great job,” Milano said of Rosano. “He waited his turned behind Danny, and they’re very similar, athletically. He has really good ball skills and he’s fearless.”
Rosano’s second score pushed West’s lead to 21, but Smith kept the Titans alive, turning a short reception into a 68-yard TD. Smith has scored six times his first two games, but was limited to six touches, Friday.
“He’s looking to make plays with the ball in his hands, and it’s up to us to make sure he touches the ball 10, 15 times a game,” South coach Tom Hetrick said. “When you put the ball in your playmaker’s hands, he makes plays.”
Howard’s third TD pass of the night, an 18-yarder to Gabe Nunez, ended the scoring, and West’s defensive line made sure the lead held.
South ran for 16 yards on 15 carries in the first half and finished with 61 yards on 26 totes, while Beau Bryan and Max Hale made themselves at home in the Titan backfield.
West’s Sean Pelkisson picked off a pass from his defensive end position, as well.
“We’re really a tight group, the defensive line and linebackers, and really the whole defense,” Bryan said. “We hit the gaps as hard as we can and play as hard as we can.”
The Whippets will travel to Neshaminy as their stellar non-league schedule continues, while South looks to rebound when Council Rock South comes to town.
“I think we got a little better tonight, even though we lost,” Hetrick said. “We’ve played two pretty tough non-league games and the only way you can see where you need to improve is by playing good teams. We need to work on areas where we need to improve, and then we get Council Rock South and then on to our league schedule.”
