Perkiomen Valley handles Owen J. Roberts, but loses QB Peterlin to injury
BUCKTOWN >> The last thing anyone wants to see is one of their star players on crutches.
Yet immediately following their postgame huddle, the first person members of the Perkiomen Valley football team flocked over to was their quarterback.
The Vikings’ senior QB Cole Peterlin threw for 216 yards and three touchdowns in leading his team to a 33-6 win over Owen J. Roberts on Friday night. He did all that before leaving midway through the fourth quarter with an apparent ankle injury and was on the sideline afterward on crutches.
“He got rolled up on pretty awkwardly,” recalled PV head coach Rob Heist of the play Peterlin got injured on. “He was experiencing some pretty severe pain, but then as he was sitting on the bench it kind of subsided. So we’re hoping that it was just the initial shock and it won’t be as bad as we thought.”
Nevertheless, the Vikings (1-0 Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division; 3-2 overall) used a dominant second half performance where they held the Wildcats (0-1 PAC Liberty; 3-2 overall) to just 58 yards of total offense to claim the win in both teams’ league opener.
Meanwhile, Perkiomen Valley put its high-power offense on full display throughout the night, racking up 367 total yards for the game with receivers Isaiah Domine and Austin Rowley combining for 11 catches and 193 yards.
Domine broke loose for a 64-yard touchdown reception for the game’s opening score late in the first quarter before OJR responded with a Marcus Martin touchdown midway through the second.
From there, Perkiomen Valley put together a textbook 8-play, 78-yard drive just before the end of the first half. The possession resulted in Peterlin hitting Rowley on a 16-yard touchdown reception to give the Vikings a 13-6 lead headed to the break with the ball coming back their way to start the second half.
Three plays into Perk Valley’s possession to start the second half, the Wildcats got their chance.
Cornerback Martin intercepted a pass and returned it to the 41-yard line, putting Owen J. Roberts in great field position to even it up. But the Wildcats faltered on offense, eventually turning it over on downs after gaining just five yards on four plays.
“Their score right before the half was big,” said OJR head coach Rich Kolka, “but we got the turnover right away then don’t do anything with it. That was a big momentum swing. That could have changed everything.”
From there, Perk Valley’s offense got rolling.
Malik Smith II opened the Vikings’ next possession with a 44-yard burst up the left side before adding a 12-yard gainer later in the drive. A few plays later, Rowley pulled in a 10-yard touchdown reception from Peterlin, making it a 19-6 game.
“I’ve got to thank my linemen, the ‘Big Five’ as I call them,” said Smith II, who finished the night with 85 rushing yards on four carries. “They open everything up, I’ve just got to run through it. Anyone could run through some of the holes they made for me tonight.”
After forcing a punt on OJR’s ensuing drive, the Vikings put together a 7-play 48-yard possession ending with Jon Moccia rumbling his way into the end zone from two yards out to make it a 26-6 lead late in the third quarter.
The scoring ended with Domine intercepting a pass and returning it 16 yards to the house to make it 33-6 with 3:30 left in regulation.
“Owen J. is a great team. We expected to come in here and get a dog fight and that’s what we got,” said Heist of the game. “The score is in no way reflective of how tough and close of a football game this was.”
OJR running back Martin was a problem for Perk Valley for most of the night. He racked up 155 yards rushing on 26 carries, though was held to just 27 yards in the second half when his team was forced to go to the air. Quarterback Cooper Chamberlain completed 10 of 19 passes for 63 yards.
Up Next >> Perkiomen Valley will head back home for a game against Norristown next Friday night while Owen J. Roberts will hit the road to take on Boyertown.
