Coatesville holds off Bishop Shanahan

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CALN >> When you play the Coatesville High School football team, you better be able to defend the big play that can happen at any time. Friday night at Red Raider Stadium, the host exploded on Bishop Shanahan for four first-quarter touchdowns as Coatesville jetted out to a big lead. The Eagles fought back in the second half, but the Red Raiders held on for a 32-20 Ches-Mont League National Division win.
Coatesville (3-0 Ches-Mont, 8-1 overall) took the opening kickoff and four plays later, quarterback Harrison Susi hit a wide open Tommy Ortega for a 20-yard touchdown pass and an early 6-0 lead.
After a Bishop Shanahan (1-3, 6-3) three-and-out, the Red Raiders struck again as Ashon Wesley scored on a 48-yard run right up the middle of the Shanahan defense and it was an early 13-0 advantage.
“We knew they play the run well, so we wanted to come out throwing the ball down the field,” Susi said. “We had the one long run, but our plan was to throw the ball down the field and make big plays. We have multiple receivers that can make plays. You can’t double anyone of them. we have Tommy and James Taylor and Lebron Bessick and other guys, so it is a good passing game.”
Coatesville was not done yet with their first-quarter blitzkrieg. After forcing a punt, it took the Red Raiders just three plays to score again. Susi dropped back and lofted a perfect 49-yard scoring pass to Ortega to pull ahead 20-0, with 5:51 left in the first.
With the Coatesville defense shutting down the running game and getting pressure on quarterback Cooper Jordan, things were not looking too bright for Shanahan.
Things got worse late in the first when Bessick fielded a punt and went untouched down the left sideline for a scintillating 75-yard punt return and Coatesvile sauntered out to a 26-0 lead after one.
“We knew they had the number one rush defense in the league, so we were looking to throw the ball,” Coatesville head coach Matt Ortega said. “The guys came out and made plays and we got a good early lead on them.”
Coatesville also got another touchdown pass from Susi in the second period when he threw a pretty 24-yard slant pattern to Dwayne Molina to balloon the advantage 32-0 at halftime.
But, Bishop Shanahan did not quit. They took the second-half kickoff and marched down the field. Colin McGrory finished the eight-play drive with a six-yard run to cut the deficit to 32-6.
The Coatesville offense suddenly looked out of sync, while the Eagles were just finding their footing, Jordan passed for 226 yards, going 18-for-34, but he was harrassed by the Coatesville defense for most of the evening.
Shanahan scored two more time in the second half, while the Red Raiders offense stalled. Evan Kapczynski caught a 12-yard strike from Jordan with 10:06 left in the fourth to make it 32-20. Kapczynski caught eight passes for 128 yards on the night.
Coatesville’s offense eventually got its running game going in the fourth and ran out the clock on the game Eagles and started thinking about next Friday when Downingtown East comes into Red Raider Stadium.
“We came out a little flat in the second half” Ortega said. “We told them at halftime to set the tone, but they scored on their opening drive and they started making plays. But, I am so proud of my kids were coming off a tough win over Chester last week. They came out and got the job done here tonight.”
Bishop Shanahan is still a big player in the District 1 4A playoff race and head coach Paul Meyers talked about the team’s bad start.
“We knew they were looking to go deep on us,” he said. “But it is just so hard to replicate their speed and when you are on the field with them it is tough. But, we came back and battled tonight in the second half.”