Dtown West takes care of business with Conestoga between rivalry showdowns

DOWNINGTOWN >> It’d be hard to call a playoff game a trap game, but if there ever was one, Downingtown West dealt with it, Friday.

Following a thrilling week 10 win against crosstown rival, Downingtown East, and a potential rivalry game in week two of the playoffs, the No. 4 Whippets had to find a way to take care of business against No. 13 Conestoga.

There was nothing flashy about it, but West did exactly what it needed to do to withstand the Pioneers, 35-13, at Kottmeyer Stadium in the first round of the District 1-6A playoffs.

The victory sets up a second round rematch against East, marking the first time the two Downingtown schools face off in the playoffs, in their 20th season since the split.

“We talked about how hard it is every week,” West coach Mike Milano said. “You don’t have a lot of time to feel good about yourself. We have to go back to work.”

In an effort to inject energy into his team, Milano started West (9-1) in a no-huddle offense on its first drive. It worked to perfection, with Quinn Henicle completing all three of his passes for 56 yards, and John Mulville capping the 62-yard drive with a four-yard touchdown run.

Conestoga (6-5) played tough in the first half, but on West’s third possession, Jake Kucera took a counter 14 yards for the score.

The Pioneers got on the board when Pete Costigan found Brody Eaton for an 18-yard TD reception, cutting the Whippets’ lead to seven, heading into the break.

“We had a funny week, without (Dean) Hangey and a couple kids out sick, and got in our own way a little bit in the first half,” Milano said. “Give credit to (Conestoga). Matt (Diamond) does a great job and they beat us up for the first 24 minutes.”

The Whippets went back to the hurry-up offense to start the third quarter, and again moved right down the field to set up a one-yard TD run by Mulville. The senior running back led the Whippets with 77 rush yards and scored his third TD on their next drive.

West put the game all but out of reach on the first play of the fourth quarter when Kameryn Alex broke free for a 14-yard TD run. With Hangey disqualified from the playoffs due to his transfer from Malvern Prep, others like Alex (six carries, 36 yards) will be called upon to step up.

“It’s an opportunity for everybody,” Alex said. “It feels good to get the win. We work hard, day and night.”

’Stoga got its second TD on a 17-yard pass from Costigan to Jeremy Friend. Jon Quici led the Pioneers with 57 yards on the ground.

“The message to the guys was just to keep their heads up high,” Conestoga coach Matt Diamond said. “I’m extremely proud of them. This senior class led us to back-to-back qualifications to the district playoffs and that’s something that hadn’t been done in a number of years. They set a great standard for how it’s done.”

The last time ’Stoga reached the playoffs in back to back years was 2008 and 2009, when the Pioneers were beaten by West both times.

The Whippets will now turn their attention to East, who they defeated 31-28 in the regular season finale. This time it’ll be without Hangey, who scored the game-winning TD in the final five minutes.

“Playing people twice is always tough,” Milano said. “There’s some really good football and the District 1 playoffs are a grind. It doesn’t get any easier, week to week.”

Downingtown West 35, Conestoga 13

Conestoga  0 7 0 6-13

Downingtown West   7 7 14 7 – 35

Scoring

First Quarter

DW- Mulville 4 run (Mehan kick)

Second Quarter

DW- Kucera 14 run (Mehan kick)

C- Eaton 18 pass from P. Costigan (White kick)

Third Quarter

DW- Mulville 1 run (Mehan kick)

DW- Mulville 3 run (Mehan kick)

Fourth Quarter

DW- Alex 14 run (Mehan kick)

C- Friend 17 pass from P. Costigan (kick failed)

Team Totals

C       DW

First downs 10     19

Yards rushing 33-145   36-162

Yards passing  44          127

Total yards      189          289

Passing      4-11-0    10-19-0

Fumbles-lost    1-0           0-0

Punts-avg. 3-32     2-42.5

Penalties-yds 4-40     3-40

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Downingtown West — Mulville 19-77, 3 TDs; Alex 6-36, TD; Hayford 5-36; Kucera 3-19, TD; Henicle 4-8; Dunn 2-(-4); Garrity 1-(-2). Conestoga — Quici 12-57; Newhall 8-34; Kent 1-22; Cook 3-17; P. Costigan 9-15

Passing: Downingtown West — Henicle 10-19, 127 yards. Conestoga — P. Costigan 4-11, 44 yards, 2 TDs

Receiving: Downingtown West — Kucera 4-41; Hayford 1-33; Barry 2-26; Campbell 1-19; Alex 1-9; Mulville 1-5. Conestoga — Eaton 2-22, TD; Friend 1-17, TD; Newhall 1-5.