Barcliff’s big hit short-circuits Delco Christian in Lower Merion win

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NEWTOWN SQUARE >> As Delco Christian lined up for a fourth down on the first series of the second half Saturday, Daniel Barcliff had had enough.

The hulking Lower Merion lineman had seen the Knights’ triple-option attack move the ball steadily in a low-scoring affair. With the score tied and the Knights within striking distance, Barcliff knew someone needed to make a play.

That’s what Barcliff did on the fourth-and-1 at the 20, giving the Aces offense room to work out the kinks in offense and notch a 19-7 nonleague win Saturday.

Barcliff’s star turn was the first strike against Delco Christian’s offensive momentum, the senior lineman bursting into the backfield and wrapping up Jalen Mitchell for a one-yard loss with the Knights knocking on the door.

“I just needed a stop,” Barcliff said. “I knew the ball was going to go down the middle because whenever they put five in the middle, I know it’s going straight down the middle. So I said, ‘I’m going to stop this. He’s not going to gain any more yards.’”

Lower Merion's Elijah Smith rushes on his way to 107 yards and a 19-7 win for the Aces over Lower Merion. (Digital First Media/Anne Neborak)
Lower Merion’s Elijah Smith rushes on his way to 107 yards and a 19-7 win for the Aces over Lower Merion. (Digital First Media/Anne Neborak)

That wouldn’t be enough to spark the Aces offense yet, but coupled with a stop on DC’s next drive, Mitchell again thrown for a loss on fourth-and-long by Demetrius Hansen, the levee finally broke.

The final blow was struck by Lower Merion’s Elijah Smith, who picked his way 49 yards down to the 1-yard line, shedding tackles and nearly plowing into the end zone.

Three plays later, Deion Davis did the honors, his first of two second-half touchdowns thrown by Matt O’Connor that spelled the victory for Lower Merion (1-1).

“That was a really big play,” Davis said of Smith’s run. “It gave us energy and our team scored after that. It gave us energy and we were up. That’s what made us win the game.”

So, too, did the defense that set it up. Before Barcliff’s fourth-down stuff, Delco Christian (0-2) had collected 166 yards on the ground in a half plus one series, a tally that qualified as an offensive outburst Saturday between two teams still sorting out their personnel groupings in the early season.

After Barcliff’s stop, the Knights were held to just 63 yards the rest of the game. Where DC went 5-for-7 on third- and fourth-down conversions in the first half, the Aces defense stiffened after the break, holding the Knights to 2-for-6 on such occasions. And with no passing attack to speak of, that meant playing catchup was near impossible for Delco Christian.

The key for the Aces defense was time — with the repetition of 59 carries from DC’s rotating passel of four backs, the tendencies became more decipherable.

“It’s very difficult because you have to take your time and think about where the ball is going to go at what time,” Barcliff said. “If you don’t think about that before you play this team, you’ll never stop this offense.”

“They did a great job,” said Luke Gutowski, who led Delco Christian with 93 yards on 20 carries. “When we hit them with stuff we thought they didn’t know, they adjusted well and they made plays.”

Time also helped the Aces click in the short-passing game. After a misfiring first half that yielded just 42 yards on 14 pass attempts, O’Connor finished 15-for-27 for 130 yards. He hooked up with Davis eight times for 78 yards, getting the junior the ball in space to make plays.

“I’ve got to let the defense try to flow to me,” Davis said. “And then I can make a move and maybe I can break for a touchdown or 10-15 yards maybe.”

Their connection at 2:32 of the third from eight yards put Lower Merion ahead, 13-7. Davis took a swing pass in the fourth quarter, after DC turned the ball over on downs for a fourth time, got the edge and booked down the sidelines 18 yards for the clinching score.

Smith kept pounding out the yards, finishing with 107 on nine carries, including a first-quarter score. He and Ben Rubin fell on DC fumbles, and even Gutowski’s interception of O’Connor at the 8-yard line late in the third quarter only delayed the Aces offense rather than destroyed it.

Jason Motley scored on a four-yard run in the first half for Delco Christian, and Chris Chung added 58 yards on 11 carries, but the Knights couldn’t get even in the second half.

Matthew De George

Matthew De George
Matthew De George is the Asst. Sports Editor and the lead Union writer for The Daily Times.

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