Garnet Valley in sync in playoff opener

CONCORD — The first of what Garnet Valley hopes will be several playoff games could not have gone any better. Everything worked for the Jaguars. Everything.

Third-seeded Garnet Valley dominated its way to a 49-14 victory Saturday over No. 14 Pennsbury in the first round of the District 1 Class 6A playoffs. The Jaguars are 11-0. They will host No. 11 Quakertown Friday night in the quarterfinals of this tournament.

Postponed by one day due to Friday’s torrential rain, this one was decided early on. Garnet Valley forced a turnover on each of Pennsbury’s first three possessions. Before the Falcons could get into the red zone, it was 28-0. Before they could score, it was 35-0. The running clock commenced early in the second half.

It wasn’t close. And the Jaguars did all of this with their backup quarterback.

“It all started with the offensive line being physical, just pushing forward and getting us yards,” said Ryan Gallagher, the backup. “We just followed.”

Gallagher was subbing for starter Cole Palis, who was nursing an injury suffered last week. He did not look like a replacement, rushing for 142 yards and a touchdown and passing for 18 yards and another score. The Jaguars, as a team, ran wild for 466 yards.

They kept moving forward. They kept getting short fields. They kept scoring touchdowns. They were prepared.

“We got exactly what we thought we were gonna get,” said Garnet Valley coach Mike Ricci of Pennsbury’s 4-2-5 defense. “Our guys did a really good job of executing against it.”

The Jaguars piled up 50 yards on 10 plays and scored on Colin Robinson’s one-yard run to start the game. Fumble. Three plays later, Dominic LaBricciosa raced in for a 34-yard score. Interception. Seven plays later, Dan Bradley hit from 35 yards out. Fumble. Six more plays and then came Gallagher’s three-yard keeper.

It was Garnet Valley doing Garnet Valley things at the most opportune time. How? Practice.

“We had a great week of scout team practice, our scout team guys gave us a great look,” lineman Cade Brennan said. “We really knew what was coming and we handled it well.”

After Pennsbury finally put a drive together, but turned the ball over on downs, Garnet Valley had some fun. A 77-yard Gallagher run got the ball inside the 10. On fourth down, Gallagher found the 6-foot-4 Brennan for his first touchdown since eighth grade. It was 35-0.

Everything really did work.

“We do it a couple times every practice, I never knew when it was going to come,” explained Brennan. “Today was the night. It was fun. I like being out there. Offense is fun.”

In the second half, Robinson’s 54-yard touchdown run started the running clock. Greg Reynolds’ 20-yard burst capped the scoring later in the third quarter. That’s when Gallagher came out of the game. The junior knew he was going to start earlier in the week. But this was not his first time playing, or starting, at the varsity level.

He knew what he was doing.

“Ryan plays great every time he comes in,” Ricci said. “He’s just such a valuable member of our team, he knows exactly what to do in all situations, he’s extremely coachable. He’s a completely selfless team player, he plays hard, he’s a really good athlete. I can’t say enough good things about him.”

Palis, Ricci said, is questionable for next week’s game against Quakertown. Regardless of who is under center, the Jaguars know what’s a stake. They went three deep last season before a crushing loss to Coatesville. They know they need to get back.

So the tape will be picked apart. An opponent they know nothing of will be prepared for – something Ricci said he loves doing. The focus remains on winning.

“We have a lot of high expectations, we know we can always play better,” Gallagher said. “We just gotta improve from this week.”

Pennsbury (5-6) got its touchdowns from Eddie Dualu (nine-yard run) late in the first half and fan-favorite Louie Sepe (one-yard run) late in the second half. They totaled 298 yards offensively.

The Falcons saw a good season end in disappointing fashion. They knew it.

“We were blown (away), they’re just a really good team,” Pennsbury coach Dan McShane said. “We just didn’t do a good job at all.”