High school football: Five things we learned in Colonial League-Schuylkill League play last week
Palmerton faced a fourth-and-2 from its own 40-yard line midway through the third quarter of Friday’s game against Notre Dame-Green Pond.
The Blue Bombers’ lead was trimmed to 28-14 and the Crusaders defense made halftime adjustments and was playing inspired.
Palmerton initially sent out its punt team before Chris Walkowiak called a timeout.
“I told the players all week that I believe in them, have total faith and confidence in them,” Walkowiak said. “If I’m going to say that I’ve got to act like that.”
Walkowiak changed his mind. He called the punt team back, called a play for senior running back Ty Sander to run it up the middle.
Five yards later, the Blue Bombers had a first down.
Five plays after that, Palmerton scored on Matt Machalik’s 43-yard touchdown run on third-and-8.
“The timeout gave me a second to think about it, then say to go for it,” Walkowiak added. “I have faith in our offensive line, faith in what [Machalik] is doing for us and with the way [Sander] is running the ball for us.”
Machalik’s TD run came after the snap rolled back to him. The senior quarterback had to gather in the ball before getting around the right edge and winning the foot race down the sideline against the Notre Dame-GP secondary.
“Yeah, that’s what we like to do, roll it back there,” Walkowiak joked. “We like to throw people off on our tendencies.”
It wasn’t the only fortunate situation Friday night that Palmerton created out of potential disaster.
The Blue Bombers were in punt formation nursing a 15-point lead with 2:45 left, when Machalik could not handle the snap. But he didn’t panic. He scooped it up and outraced two Crusaders to the first-down marker.
That completed Palmerton’s 5-for-5 night on fourth down.
2. Bangor’s unselfishness
Seniors Dylan Krugh and Parker Sandt have been consistent contributors on Bangor’s offensive line for several years. They are the anchors to this season’s unit.
But there have been young faces and injuries that have shaken up the line’s continuity.
Jacob Weaver, a three-year starter at defensive end, was plugged in as a starting wide receiver until the injury bug hit the Slaters, who lack depth at virtually every position.
“That’s about as unselfish as you can be,” coach Paul Reduzzi said. “We needed a kid with some size to go in there and he did it.
“That’s why he is going to play in college. He’s an athlete who coaches can find somewhere for him to play on the field.”
Senior Sam Woolverton returned from an injury Saturday against Wilson and saw time on both sides of the ball. Junior Gianni Goodrich is a first-year starter at center. Junior Luke Rinaldi, who played some defensively last season, is a first-year starter on the offensive line who is back after missing time because of an injury.
That unit allowed the Slaters to rack up 323 rushing yards Saturday in its 41-0 victory.
Bangor survived the injuries to finish the first half of the regular season at 4-1. It enters a tough stretch Friday when it hosts Pottsville. Games against Lehighton, Northwestern, Blue Mountain and Pen Argyl follow as the Slaters look to return to the District 11 Class 4A playoffs.
3. Notre Dame-GP out of sync
Notre Dame-Green Pond’s offense was out of sync in the first half against Palmerton. It produced just seven points.
Quarterback Danny Darno and Co. started the second half in a 21-point hole because their defensive counterparts struggled trying to stop the Blue Bombers.
That was the case in a Week 2 loss at Southern Lehigh. The offense took until the second half to get going. The defense did the same thing.
Coach Phil Stambaugh is hoping that trend doesn’t continue against quality opponents.
“It’s hard to play offense when we feel like we have to score every time we touch the ball,” he said after Friday’s 41-26 loss to Palmerton. “We have to get a better give-and-take. Yes, we should be able to score on offense more consistently. We can’t just score seven points in a half.
“But we have to get to the point where we can make those adjustments we made in the second half — we played much better in the second half — but we were down by 21 points. It’s hard to play football like that when it’s not consistent.”
The Crusaders have a slew of first-year starters on defense, including a few freshmen. They are improving. They are battlers. But the growing pains are more noticeable against the likes of Palmerton’s Matt Machalik and Southern Lehigh’s Cade Sawyer.
“The kids fought until the end,” Stambaugh said. “But we made too many critical errors. We’ve got to get better. That’s the ultimate thing. There’s a long road ahead. We’ve got to go to North Schuylkill next week. It doesn’t get any easier, for sure.”
4. Pen Argyl has turned the corner
Pen Argyl coach Brady Mutton knew his team’s Week 4 game against visiting Northwestern was going to be a monumental task, and it was. The Tigers used their size and athleticism to shut down the Green Knights’ running game and controls things from the start.
“We’re going to stick with it,” Mutton said. “We have a big two weeks coming up with Catty and Minersville, and we’re going to stick with what we’re doing.”
Pen Argyl players were rewarded Friday night for sticking with it. The team racked up 231 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a 36-14 win at Catasauqua. That is the most yards the Green Knights have run for since grinding out 298 during a Week 9 victory last season over Panther Valley.
Friday’s victory also was another stepping stone.
Nov. 12, 2016: Pen Argyl beat Palisades 28-7 in a District 11 Class 2A playoff game. Victories since then against teams with winning records have been tough to come by.
A Week 6 victory last season over a 4-1 Minersville team was the only other such celebration since 2016 until Friday night against Catasauqua (3-2).
Pen Argyl travels Friday to Minersville, which again is 4-1. The Green Knights piled up 272 rushing yards and four scores on their way to a 29-12 win in last year’s meeting.
Despite its win over Catasauqua, Pen Argyl still sits behind coach Travis Brett’s club in the District 11 Class 2A playoff race. Schuylkill Haven is first, followed by Williams Valley, Catasauqua and Pen Argyl. The top four advance.
5. In good position
Marian Catholic turned to a freshman Saturday night, and Rory Dixon delivered in a 12-6 victory over Nativity BVM.
Dixon ran 18 times for 70 yards and a touchdown. He had 32 carries for 107 yards in the Colts’ first four games.
Michael Silliman’s second interception of the season preserved the victory for coach Stan Dakosty’s club.
The win catapulted Marian Catholic (3-2) into the No. 4 spot in the district’s Class A race for four spots. Defending champion Northern Lehigh (2-3) dropped to No. 5 after losing at North Schuylkill.
Minersville, Tri-Valley and Nativity BVM are 1-2-3.
Since losing its season opener to Marian Catholic, Schuylkill Haven has won four in a row to take over the top spot in 2A. It won 14-7 Friday at Palisades to keep the momentum going into the second half.
Schuylkill Haven hosts Catasauqua on Friday night.
Colonial-Schuylkill League standings
Team Overall, Division, PF, PA
Gold Division
Northwestern 5-0; 2-0; 215; 33
Southern Lehigh 5-0; 2-0; 232; 73
Bangor 4-1; 2-1; 137; 76
Saucon Valley 3-2; 2-1; 131; 86
Blue Mountain 3-2; 1-2; 107; 100
Lehighton 2-3; 1-2; 115; 137
Pottsville 1-4; 1-2; 71; 158
Wilson 0-5; 0-3; 28; 222
Red Division
North Schuylkill 4-1; 2-0; 179; 66
Palmerton 5-0; 2-0; 217; 117
Notre Dame-GP 3-2; 2-1; 213; 149
Jim Thorpe 2-3; 1-1; 140; 135
Northern Lehigh 2-3; 0-1; 89; 170
Tamaqua 1-4; 1-2; 89; 193
Salisbury 0-5; 0-3; 56; 210
White Division
Minersville 4-1; 1-0; 196; 139
Schuylkill Haven 4-1; 1-0; 105; 82
Pen Argyl 3-2; 1-0; 146; 104
Catasauqua 3-2; 0-1; 132; 99
Panther Valley 2-3; 0-1; 99; 156
Palisades 1-4; 0-1; 85; 152
Pine Grove 1-4; 0-0; 53; 205
Blue Division
Marian Catholic 3-2; 1-0; 119; 82
Williams Valley 3-2; 0-0; 135; 82
Tri-Valley 3-2; 0-0; 146; 99
Shenandoah Valley 2-3; 0-0; 138; 162
Mahanoy Area 1-4; 0-0; 109; 144
Nativity BVM 3-2; 0-1; 121; 99
WEEK 6 GAMES (at 7 p.m. unless noted)
Thursday
Blue Mountain at Lehighton, 7:10
Friday
Pottsville at Bangor
Pen Argyl at Minersville
Wilson at Southern Lehigh
Saucon Valley at Northwestern
Salisbury at Northern Lehigh
Jim Thorpe at Tamaqua
Pine Grove at Palmerton
Notre Dame-GP at North Schuylkill
Catasauqua at Schuylkill Haven
Nativity BVM at Williams Valley
Panther Valley at Palisades
Shenandoah Valley at Tri-Valley
Saturday
Mahanoy Area at Marian Catholic
Morning Call reporter Tom Housenick can be reached at 610-820-6651 or at thousenick@mcall.com
