Norristown’s Kaden Cruz runs for 289 yards in OT loss against Bensalem
WEST NORRITON >> The first defender never got Kaden Cruz down Friday night and most of the time the second defender didn’t bring him to the ground either.
The Norristown senior running back ran for 289 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries in the Eagles 28-20 overtime loss against Bensalem Friday night at Norristown Area High School.
“My line got a great push for me up front,” Cruz said. “They did what they’re supposed to do – let me get my brakes off.
“I run hard. That’s what I do. I come out here, I work, I put all my effort into that.”
Cruz got off to a fast start. His first carry went for 15 yards and his second for 33. Two attempts later, he broke a pair of tackles in the middle of the field, cut left and raced 89 yards in front of the Norristown bench for a touchdown and first-quarter 7-0 lead.
“I saw the green,” he said. “That’s where the money’s at. I took it, I ran, I didn’t stop my legs. I just kept working.”
He added 22 yards in the second quarter to head to halftime, which was extended due to a lightning delay, with 177 rushing yards.
On the fourth play of the third quarter, it looked like he was on his way to his second touchdown run of the night. He was hit at the two-yard line and fumbled into the endzone. Teammate Nate Robinson jumped on the ball for a Norristown score and 13-7 advantage.
After running for 81 yards in the third quarter, he added 30 more in the fourth. His biggest contribution in the fourth, however, was with his arm. He threw a game-tying 30-yard touchdown to John DiNolfi on a trick play with less than a minute remaining to make it a 20-20 game.
In overtime, he and running mate Rashad Triplett couldn’t find much running room. The duo, which ran for more than 330 yards in regulation, could only gain seven yards on three attempts after falling behind 28-20. The game ended when Robbie Miller’s fourth-down fade to DiNolfi was too high.
“They keyed in on the running game and got there fast,” Cruz said. “There was nothing we could really do, nowhere for us to break. It was so close and they were bringing everybody.”
Bouncing back
Norristown looked like it was finished late in the fourth quarter. After surrendering a 53-yard go-ahead touchdown run to Bensalem running back Josiah Leonard, the Eagles fell further behind when Miller threw a pick six, returned 70 yards by Zach Roberts, to give the Owls a 20-13 lead with 2:40 left in the game.
The ensuing drive started with a Bensalem sack that was negated by an illegal participant penalty when an Owl lost his helmet and continued with the play. Cruz had eight and 10-yard runs while Miller connected with DiNolfi and Robinson to get the Eagles within striking distance with a minute remaining.
That’s when Norristown went into its bag of tricks. Cruz took a pitch running to his left and threw deep down the sideline to DiNolfi, who avoided a defender at the one and stepped into the endzone for the game-tying touchdown.
“They could’ve went in the tank,” Norristown coach Joe Milligan said. “When we threw that pick and he scored, we could’ve easily went in the tank. They fought, they didn’t give up, we came back, we scored to force overtime, which is great. That was big and then we got some overtime experience. We’re a young team, also … We’re a young team that fought and didn’t give up. As we get older and get through the season, we’ll finish off drives.”
Too many mistakes
Norristown committed five turnovers in the loss and walked away with zero points inside the Bensalem 10-yard line on two separated occasions.
Miller threw four interceptions – two in the first quarter, one in the third and the pick six in the fourth – and Cruz lost a fumble in the third quarter. All four interceptions came on the offensive side of the 50-yard line.
“Turnovers,” Milligan said. “That’s what we have to stop. You can’t shoot yourself in the foot. The turnovers happened in the red zone. That cost us.”
In the second quarter, Norristown had a 16-play drive that ended with zero points. A Cruz run set up 1st-and-goal at the nine with 30 seconds left in the half. After two incompletions, Cruz carried the ball to the six. On 4th-and-goal, Miller’s pass to Robinson was broken up and the teams went to halftime tied, 7-7.
“You have to finish those drives,” Milligan said. “If you finish off that drive, now we’re up at half and now it’s a different ball game. We get the ball back, we go down and score all of the sudden it’s 21-7. (Not scoring) definitely hurt.”
In overtime, Norristown needed eight points to extend the game. From Bensalem’s 10, the Eagles had runs of one, four and two yards before the fourth-down fade to DiNolfi fell incomplete.
Getting defensive
Norristown’s defense played well for most of the night. Between Leonard’s 43-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and his 53-yard touchdown run in the fourth – a 30:40 span – they held the Owls to 13 yards on 17 plays.
“We got the push up front,” Cruz, who plays linebacker, said, “but it’s not about how you start it’s about how you finish. We didn’t finish tonight.”
Bensalem 28, Norristown 20
Bensalem 7 0 0 13 8 — 28
Norristown 7 0 6 7 0 — 20
Scoring
First Quarter
NO – Kaden Cruz 89-yard run (Tahjohn Wright kick) 3:38
BE – Josiah Leonard 43-yard run (Tommy Hurst kick) 2:54
Third Quarter
NO – Nate Robinson 0-yard fumble recovery (kick failed) 9:55
Fourth Quarter
BE – Josiah Leonard 53-yard run (Tommy Hurst kick) 8:14
BE – Zach Roberts 70-yard interception return (kick failed) 2:40
NO – John DiNolfi 30-yard reception from Kaden Cruz (Tahjohn Wright kick) 0:49.1
Overtime
BE – Matthew Saunders 1-yard run (Josiah Leonard run for 2)
TEAM STATISTICS
BE NO
First downs 9 21
Rushes-Yards 19-186 46-334
Passing yards 38 102
Total yards 224 436
Passing 4-15-1 9-20-4
Punts 4 0
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 4-1
Penalties-Yards 10-70 12-69
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
BE: Josiah Leonard 9-171, 2 TD; Matthew Saunders 8-0, TD; Harry Disla 2-15.
NO: Kaden Cruz 33-289, TD; Rashad Triplett 11-53; Robbie Miller 3-(-8).
PASSING
BE: Allen Myers 1-1-34-0-0; Matthew Saunders 3-14-4-0-1.
NO: Robbie Miller 8-19-72-0-4; Kaden Cruz 1-1-30-1-0.
RECEIVING
BE: Ben Hall 2-36; Allen Myers 1-4; Josiah Leonard 1-(-2).
NO: Rashad Triplett 2-12; Nate Robinson 2-20; Milan Baird 1-10; John DiNolfi 4-60, TD.
INTERCEPTIONS
BE: Zyan Greene, Jalen Soberal, Zach Roberts 2.
NO: Nate Robinson.
