Pantalone and passing game carry Oxford in rout of Great Valley
OXFORD—When the Hornet offense is on, they can put up points in a hurry. Friday night against Great Valley, Oxford was about as “on” as they could get, with Dom Pantalone grinding out nearly 100 yards rushing in the first half, while Tom Repetz threw for 239 by the break. The Hornets (3-5, 2-4) were in Mercy Rule territory by halftime, then coasted to a 44-13 victory over the Patriots (2-6, 1-5).
“We were all disappointed with what happened last week,” said Oxford head coach Mike Means. “We all thought we could do something but we just came out and laid an egg. So we were all ready to get back to work and get on the field and play the way we know we can.”
It didn’t take long for the Hornets to get going. After returning the opening kick to their own 40, Oxford needed just two plays—a 29-yard run from Dom Pantalone, and a 31-yard pass from Repetz to Jackson Chew—to reach the endzone. Not even a minute had ticked off the clock.
After the defense held the Patriots to a three-and-out, Oxford went back to work, this time marching off a 63-yard drive on a more balanced blend of runs from Pantalone (14-carries, 122 yards, TD), and Repetz passes to Justin Neskie (4 catches, 94 yards, TD) and Chew (6 catches, 93 yards, TD). The Hornets capped the drive with a 37-yard pass from Repetz to Kelvin Figueroa (2 catches, 52 yards, 2TD).
“When our offense is at its best is when we are getting the guys up front playing physical and we’re running the ball,” said Means. “The line did a great job up front, and Dom did an incredible job as a sophomore.”
It was a career day for Pantalone, who took over the job as the Hornet workhorse when Davon Rueda left the team a couple weeks ago.
“Without the line doing their thing up front, I wouldn’t have done anything,” said Pantalone. “All the credit goes to them. Just feels great to play the way we did tonight and get a win.”
Great Valley got on the board with a big play, an 80-yard scoring strike from Jake Smith to Nate McCay, but the rest of the half was all Oxford.
Up 37-6, just before halftime, Chew put the game into Mercy Rule territory with a 27-yard interception return.
“I saw the tight end go out, so I got in my zone,” said Chew. “The ball was a little underthrown, and I just got myself in position to make the pick. I had no idea I was going to score until I was almost in the end zone.”
Great Valley did get one third quarter touchdown, a 13-yard run from Michael Corrgian, but Oxford’s second team defense stepped up and shut the Patriots down the rest of the way, making a couple of stops and forcing a turnover on a fumble, despite seeing the first-team Great Valley offense until the last series.
“It’s always great to see guys that don’t get a lot of playing time get a chance to play,” said Means. “They put in as much time as everyone else, so I was thrilled to see them come in and play tough, physical football. Even nicer was looking down our sideline and seeing all our number one guys standing and cheering them on. No one was sitting.”
