Delco Football Notebook: Chichester, Sun Valley team up for a great cause
Sun Valley and Chichester recently put aside their longstanding rivalry for a great cause.
The Vanguards and Eagles teamed up to raise funds for a 7-year-old girl from Aston battling a rare form of cancer.
Little Cameron McCarthy was in high spirits when Sun Valley and Chichester players, along with head coaches Ray Gionta and Ryan Smith, paid a visit to her home last Sunday. The Sun Valley and Chichester booster clubs matched donations raised by the players and the teams presented Cameron with a check for $1,000. Sun Valley’s Gabe Boccella, Jon Kester, Bobby Koons and Logan Markley were joined by Chichester’s Martin Frempong, John Lawrence and Hunter Thornton. They spent time with Cameron and took pictures with her and the McCarthy family.
“I’m an Aston guy, I’m personal friends with the family and the Aston community has been doing a lot of great things for Cameron. I really wanted to do something from the Chichester perspective,” Smith said. “Obviously, with me being at Chi and her living in Aston, I thought the best thing to do would be to get Sun Valley involved. I contacted Ray and he was right on board. We asked our kids to fundraise and each booster organization matched the kids’ number, and each program was able to donate a nice amount of money to Cameron. ”
The football programs began their fundraising efforts early in the summer. Cameron has made steady progress since that time.
“She’s doing great. You see her and she has a smile on her face. Her parents can’t say enough,” Smith said. ”She’s so strong and so courageous. She had a soccer game yesterday and was on the sideline cheering on her teammates.”
Two rival football programs banded together to make a difference in the community. That’s a win for everyone involved.
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A handful of teams in Delaware County are finding success by utilizing multiple quarterbacks. Marple Newtown and Episcopal Academy, for instance, are 2-0 with their two-quarterback rotations.
Marple Newtown sophomores Bobby Siderio and Anthony Paoletti have been effective in the early weeks. Siderio is 17-of-26 for 242 yards and two touchdowns, while Paoletti is 11-of-19 for 181 yards and two scores. Meanwhile, Episcopal has relied on the talents of Jon’avin Freeman (8-of-12, 173 yards, three TDs) and CJ McAnally (4-of-8, 47 yards). To a lesser extent, Bonner-Prendergast has rotated Evan Raiburn and Shaun Douglas, while Ridley has shown that both Cade Stratton and Jon Buckmaster can run the offense.
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It’s only two games, but The Haverford School senior Kevin Carter is on a record-breaking tear. With 596 passing yards, the All-Delco quarterback is on pace for 2,980 yards, which would obliterate the single-season Delco record of 2,737 yards, which was set by current Ridley coach Dennis Decker in 1990. It’s still early, but it’s something to keep an eye on.
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Academy Park, Episcopal Academy, Haverford School, Marple Newtown, Radnor, Ridley and Upper Darby are the remaining undefeated teams in the county. Of those teams, perhaps the biggest surprise is Radnor.
Just don’t say that to coach Tom Ryan, who had a good feeling that his team would jump out to a strong start and turn some heads. With first-year quarterback Pat McDermott, athlete Jack Wilson, running back Jack Horvath and All-Delco linebacker Dario Falcone showing the way, Radnor has outscored the opposition, 63-27.
Horvath rushed for 164 yards and three TDs in last week’s 42-20 victory over Sun Valley. Falcone has been all over the field on defense and McDermott has shown an uncanny ability to bounce back from early mistakes. After his first pass attempt went the other way for a pick-6 against Sun Valley, McDermott went 5-of-5 for 162 yards and a touchdown the rest of the way.
Radnor begins its Central League schedule Friday night at home against Springfield (1-1).
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Upper Darby is making the most of its three-hour road trip to State College.
The school rented a luxury bus for a Friday morning departure. Boosters are bringing hoagies and other goodies, and coach Rich Gentile said plans were in the works to take a tour of the Penn State All-Sports Museum.
The Royals will then go into prep mode for State College High School, which is still in search of its first win. Friday night is homecoming for the Little Lions.
“Why not have some fun with it,” Gentile said. “It will be a great experience for the kids.”
The Royals are No. 7 in this week’s Super 7. Running back Isaiah Bruce is tied with Academy Park’s Jermaine Wesley as the second-leading rusher in Delco. Both players have 308 yards after two games, trailing only Penn Wood’s Tayvon Ruley (311 yards) for the county lead.. Bruce’s 207-yard effort in last week’s win over Frankford is the best single-game rushing performance of the season.
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Moving the Chains >> Strath Haven (0-2) has managed just 2.3 yards per carry and six total points through two games…Ridley’s defense was one of the best at stopping the run in 2014, and the same could be said this year. Opposing rushers are averaging a paltry 1.9 yards per tote in the early going. Ridley’s defensive line has been spearheaded by Antonio Petril and Nick DePrinzio…Interboro has allowed just nine points in eight quarters. That’s good for best in the county… The Haverford School (95 points) and Academy Park (87) are the highest-scoring teams in the county after two weeks.
To contact Matt Smith, email msmith@delcotimes.com or follow him on Twitter @DTMattSmith.
