Pennsbury stifled by North Penn
FALLS >> It’s now three losses in a row and and counting for the traditionally strong Pennsbury High School football team that continues to set new low standards in finding ways to beat itself.
The latest setback was pretty much entirely expected as North Penn continued its long-time dominance of Pennsbury with a 13-3 victory Friday night at Falcon Field.
Pennsbury almost certainly will have more success once the Suburban One portion of its schedule gets underway, but it first faces another difficult non-league assignment next Saturday at Central Bucks East. Unless it can get things turned around in a hurry, Pennsbury could be headed to an unheard of 0-4 start.
What made Pennsbury’s latest loss even more frustrating is North Penn played as poorly a game as you will ever see a Dick Beck-coached team play.
By the time this sloppy game was finished, North Penn (2-1) had committed six turnovers, including two on fumbles deep in Falcon territory and two more on first-half interceptions by Pennsbury quarterback/safety Drew Hensor.
In the end, however, none of that mattered because Pennsbury could put only three points on the board despite having first-and-goal situations twice inside the North Penn 5 yard line in the first half.
The first failure to convert came when Shane Simmons picked off a pass on the third play of the game to set the Falcons up at the North Penn 27 yard line. Pennsbury then quickly ran the ball to the Knight 1 yard line, only to mysteriously decide it was time to throw the ball.
This didn’t work and after a procedure penalty Pennsbury was forced to settle for its only points of the night on a 21-yard field goal by Brady Burgfechtel.
It was more of the same in the second quarter when Pennsbury reached the North Penn 4 yard line, only to again attempt a pass before fumbling the ball away.
In hindsight these two missed opportunities were where the game was largely lost, but an inspired defensive effort by Pennsbury and North’s Penn mistakes kept the issue in doubt until late in the fourth quarter.
North Penn got the only points it would need in the third quarter when Khalani Eaton bulldozed into the end zone on an 8-yard run after Kenneth Grady picked off a Hensor pass at the Falcon 24 yard line.
The Knights later got insurance on a 4-yard TD run by quarterback Kolby Barrow with 1:14 remaining, but the way the North Penn defense controlled the second half there was no way Pennsbury was coming back anyway.
Pennsbury had just one first down in the second half and that came with less than a minute remaining and North Penn in a prevent defense. Incredibly, it was the only pass Pennsbury completed all evening in 18 attempts.
Pennsbury’s penchant for stupid penalties also came to the fore once again. The worst occurred early in the fourth quarter when a botched North Penn punt would have set the Falcons up at the Knight 15 yard line.
Instead, the punter was hit out of bounds and a personal foul penalty gave the Knights the ball back and a first down.
Between undisciplined football and its inability to score with the ball perched near the other team’s other goal line, Pennsbury has become like watching the same movie with a bad and frustrating ending over and over again.
North Penn (2-1) 0 0 7 6 — 13
Pennsbury (0-3) 3 0 0 0 — 3
P-Burgfechtel 21 field goal
NP-Eaton 8 run (Moon kick)
NP-Barrow 4 run (kick failed)
