Germantown Academy falls to Rock Creek Christian Academy

WHITEMARSH >> Brian Allen ran for 158 yards Saturday, taking a few defenders with him along the way.

His 18 tough carries produced three touchdowns and powered Germantown Academy’s offense.

“We fought. We fought our hardest,” Allen said. “In the end, we missed a few plays, missed a few tackles. And that’s how we ended up with the loss. But I felt like we played really hard.”

The Patriots couldn’t quite catch Rock Creek Christian Academy, as the visitors from Maryland pulled away to a 48-27 victory on a hot, sunny afternoon on the turf at Carey Stadium.

GA, now 3-1 on the season, hosts West Philadelphia Saturday at 1 p.m. GA then heads to its bye week before opening Inter-Ac play.

“We took the lead in the second half but we knew they weren’t gonna go away – they have way too many playmakers,” coach Matt Dence said of the Eagles. “They have a ton of talent all over the field and the speed was what we needed to see to get ready for the Inter-Ac.”

The Patriots took a 14-8 lead less than two minutes into the third quarter when a tackle-breaking run by Allen paid off for a 14-yard score.

But Rock Creek answered on its next series, when a 31-yard reception by Chauncey Spikes led to a one-yard sneak by quarterback Jordan Morse. Robert Alvarez caught the two-point conversion pass, giving the Eagles a 16-14 edge.

GA marched all the way to the Rock Creek five-yard line, but a halfback pass by Allen was intercepted by Canaan Williams and returned 95 yards for a touchdown. Spikes caught the two-point pass to extend the Eagle lead to 24-14.

“They just have a ton of talent,” Dence said. “The missed tackles today were frustrating. The interception down here for the pick six was a killer for us. But we saw some stuff today that is gonna help us get ready for the future.

“We have one more game (West Philly) before we get into our bye week but we saw some stuff today that ensures it’s not gonna be new to us when we play Episcopal Academy.”

Back and forth the game went for the rest of an explosive third quarter, as the Patriots crept within 24-21 with an eight-yard touchdown run by Allen.

The Eagles got the lead up to 11 when Morse hit an open Lasalle Rose Jr. in stride for a 35-yard score and a 32-21 advantage (Morse hit Rose for the two-pointer as well).

Rock Creek took its momentum into the fourth, widening the gap to 40-21 when Andre Wright Jr. scored on a one-yard rush and Morse threw to Aaron Lewis for two.

But the Patriots muscled their way back in, as Allen raced around the left side, scoring on a 17-yard run to bring the Pats within 40-27.

“Brian ran great. We were trying to get Taj (Dyches) going more too because Taj was running well but then he got hurt,” Dence said. “He gutted it out and hung in there. I was proud of Anthony Lara running hard as well. He showed a lot today.”

Lara displayed plenty of burst, making 44 yards on three carries.

Rock Creek was able to put it away when Morse (18-of-21, 312 yds, 2 TD; two rushing TD’s) connected with Rose Jr. (8-135, 2 TD) again, this time for a 15-yard TD. Julian Marks caught the two-point pass for the final margin of 48-27.

The Eagles led at halftime 8-7, thanks to a one-yard sneak by Morse and a two-point run by the QB. GA scored on a 24-yard, Tristian Machado-to-Evan Spivey connection.

Both offenses came to life in the second half.

“It’s an upsetting loss but we can take a lot of advice after this and carry it into our upcoming games,” Allen said. “Our practices have gotten more intense throughout. I feel like we’re ramping it up, getting it going.”

Rock Creek Christian Academy 48,
Germantown Academy 27
Rock Creek              8 0 24 16 – 48
GA                      0 7 14  6 – 27
First Quarter
RC-Jordan Morse 1 run (Morse run), 8:01.
Second Quarter
GA-Evan Spivey 24 pass from Tristian Machado (Jared Smith kick), 5:33.
Third Quarter
GA-Brian Allen 14 run (Smith kick), 10:08.
RC-Morse 1 run (Robert Alvarez pass from Morse), 9:09.
RC-Canaan Williams 95 interception return (Chauncey Spikes pass from Morse), 4:11.
GA-Allen 8 run (Smith kick), 2:52.
RC-Lasalle Rose Jr. 35 pass from Morse (Rose Jr. pass from Morse), 1:49.
Fourth Quarter
RC-Andre Wright Jr. 1 run (Aaron Lewis pass from Morse), 9:19.
GA-Allen 17 run (pass failed), 7:25.
RC-Rose Jr. 15 pass from Morse (Julian Marks pass from Morse), 4:01.
                                RC                  GA
First Downs                     17                  22    
Rushes-yards                    30-89               31-191
Passing (c-a-i)                 18-21-0             19-28-1
Passing yards                   312                 186
Total yards                     401                 377    
Punts                           0                   1
Penalties-yards                 16-170              4-41
Fumbles-lost                    1-0                 1-1
Turnovers                       0                   2
Rushing
RC: Robert Alvarez 11-40; Andre Wright Jr. 2-6, TD; Jordan Morse 6-18, 2 TD; Lasalle Rose Jr. 2-(-12); Keith Lewis 1-0; Julian Marks 2-37.
GA: Allen 18-158, 3 TD; Taj Dyches 4-8; Anthony Lara 3-44; Tristian Machado 5-(-22); Seamus Knox 1-3.
Passing
RC: Morse 18-21-312-2-0.
GA: Machado 19-26-191-1-0; Aidan Donahue 0-1-0-0-0; Allen 0-1-0-0-1.
Receiving
RC: Rose Jr. 8-135, 2 TD; Spikes 3-52; Alvarez 2-11; Dontez Wiggins 2-62; Aaron Lewis 3-52.
GA: Evan Spivey 5-90, TD; Mike McGhee 3-26; Donahue 4-35; Allen 2-0; George Arendt 3-25; A.J. Towson 2-10.
Interceptions
RC: Canaan Williams.