Football: Jihad Cave, Kaleel Mclaughlin help Upper Darby hold off Marple Newtown

NEWTOWN SQUARE — The signals were coming daily, the thuds defining every football practice at Upper Darby High. One night, the Royals believed, their defense would show the ability to be one of the best in the Central League.

Friday was that night, a 7-6 victory over Marple Newtown the end result. And a late drive suppression was the proof.

Limiting the Tigers to 114 total yards and denying an offensive score, the Royals bumped their league record to 3-2 and, with precision and fury, hinted that there would be more to come.

“We all talk about playing hard,” said safety Jihad Cave, who successfully ruled the passing lanes and, in his role as a leader, kept the defense steady. “And we work hard in practice. Tonight, everybody flew right to the ball. It wasn’t one person making the tackle, it was everybody making the tackle.”

In on more tackles than most, defensive tackle Kaleel Mclaughlin was a night-long force, helping to limit the Tigers to 28 rushing yards on 29 attempts, four times assisting on sacks.

That effort was of particular value when Marple Newtown assumed possession at its own 24 with 2:05 to play. With quarterback Dave Bertoline finding Bryan Bogan with a 21-yard pass, a pass-interference boost and a Brett Wolski reception, the Tigers would advance to the Upper Darby 43 with a minute remaining. But responding to the test, the Royals forced a four-and-out to snap a two-game losing streak.

“At that point, I had to get my defense together,” Cave said. “I told them, ‘Keep your eyes on the backfield. No eyes on the QB. Worry about your man.’”

It was the kind of leadership Royals coach Dave Barr had come to expect from his senior safety.

“He is our leader,” Barr said. “He got us lined up the whole night and did everything we needed him to do.”

While also solid on defense, the Tigers were stung early when Montez Ellis uncorked a 56-yard sprint along the right sideline to put Upper Darby at the 10. That put Lavar Jackson in position to drag at least six defenders across the goal line for a six-yard TD run.

Bility Abraham added the PAT, which quickly proved to be vital, as Bryan Box returned the ensuing kickoff 91 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown. The two-point conversion pass failing, the Royals spent the rest of the night preserving the one-point lead.

“It was a great game, man,” Mclaughlin said. “It was a fun game. We started off the season rough. But last game? Great defense. This game? Great defense. I truly feel that Upper Darby’s defense is one of the top defenses in Delaware County.”

As for the offense, that continues to evolve. Friday, Barr gave Nate O’Donnell his first start at quarterback, and the sophomore calmly ran a virtually mistake-free offense that produced 162 rushing yards.

“He came out tonight and just ran the show,” Barr said. “He didn’t turn the ball over. He did a great job.”

Ellis ran for 89 yards and Nathan Sparrow added 56. Bogan had 44 receiving yards and Wolski added 32, but the Tigers dipped to 4-3 and 3-3 in the Central as a losing streak reached three. The three losses have been by a total of five points.

“It is very frustrating,” coach Chris Gicking said. “We have to find a way to win those games. But Upper Darby deserved to win. They played well. Obviously, they’ve got two, three, four kids who can really run the ball. And their defense is really tough. They were tracking things down from the back side and from the front side. They are a really good team.”

And the Royals are improving.

“We are getting better and better every game,” Cave said. “Every game. Every week, we go hard. And then we go out and get that W.”