Peterson carries the load as Bonner-Prendergast outlasts Upper Darby
UPPER DARBY — Mason Peterson kept getting stronger on a night when many players were struggling to stay healthy.
By the second quarter, Bonner-Prendergast and Upper Darby were locked in a battle of attrition. The game lasted nearly three hours thanks in large part to 12 injury stoppages and 32 penalties.
It was ugly … and typical of a Week 1 high school football game.
Peterson, though, didn’t seem to be affected. He was the Friars’ bell cow. The heat and humidity did not slow him down one bit.
“Every carry I started to see more and started to realize how their defense was rotating,” Peterson said. “How their D-line crashed down into certain places, how aggressive they were. I was able to find those lanes and go.”
Peterson ran for 177 yards on 32 carries, accounting for both Bonner-Prendie touchdowns. He had scoring runs of 10 yards and 27 yards as the Friars downed the Royals, 18-6, to win the Upper Darby Bowl.
Peterson was selected as Bonner-Prendie’s game MVP. That was a no-brainer. On the Upper Darby side, defensive lineman Julien Laventure took home the honors.
“This is a nice, traditional game,” Peterson said. “You’ve got your friends over here. They want to prove a point to you, and it’s just a nice, fun game because you’re going up against your friends. Whoever wins gets to have bragging rights, and now we have them.”
The host Royals gave the Friars everything they had on defense. B-P’s offense was stymied especially near the goal line, where they turned the ball over on downs on three separate occasions. The Friars defense carried their weight. Upper Darby produced only two first downs against the Friars, who racked up 18 negative-yardage plays. The line sacked UD quarterbacks Donte Shaw and Joshua Johnson three times. Myles Reynolds, David Washington and David Kpelgo led the attack on the defensive line.
“Our goal is to get every team a three-and-out on every drive that they have,” said Peterson, who also plays outside linebacker. “When our defense is making plays, it hypes up the offense, especially when they get it on our side of the field to score. It’s real good for the offense.”
Peterson admitted the offense “left points on the field,” but acknowledged they will continue to improve each week. Coach Jack Muldoon said the Friars are still looking for a secondary playmaker. New quarterback Shane Mulholland, transferred in from Garnet Valley, was fine in his Friars debut. He struggled to make a connection with his receivers (3-for-14, 30 yards) but showed plenty of athleticism rolling outside the pocket.
It’s just a matter of time before the offense starts to click.
“We had a lot of mistakes. It’s a neighborhood game and guys are getting hot. It’s frustrating, but credit to (Upper Darby coach) Dave (Barr). He had his guys ready to play. That’s a tough defense,” Muldoon said. “We just have to be a little better. I’ve never had our whole offensive line called offsides twice in the same game. The whole line, set up in the neutral zone. We have to clean it up.”
Barr was an assistant coach for Muldoon at Bonner-Prendie before he was hired for the UD job last year. The connection between the programs remains strong, and not just because of geography.
“Dave is a great coach and a great friend and he’s done a heck of a job here with this program,” Muldoon said.
The Bonner defense produced a pair of safeties on tackles by Avery Hankey and Damir Williams-Bey. UD leaned on running back Montez Ellis on its only productive drive. Ellis broke off a 40-yard jaunt early in the third quarter, setting up a four-yard scoring scamper to put the Royals on the board. Ellis finished with 48 yards on 13 carries.
“With hard work, we’re going to make progress,” Laventure said. “The guys on offense, they know what they need to do and we’re going to work on it every second of every practice until we come out next week and win a football game.”
