Rivalry refueled, Pottsgrove pulls out high stakes win over Pottstown
POTTSTOWN >> The last time the stakes were this high between crosstown rivals Pottstown and Pottsgrove, there was no COVID-19 and Maroon 5’s “Girls Like You” was atop the Billboard Hot 100.
Yes, it’s been a while. Almost five years since the two met in the 2018 District 1 Class 4A football final. But Friday was a return to the normal urgency the annual matchup historically entails.
Entering the season with just one post-Covid win, the Trojans have since racked up three already this fall before meeting the Falcons, who’ve turned around an 0-2 start with two wins. Both are within the top three in District 1-4A rankings, and in a marquee matchup, it was Pottsgrove that came out on top, 35-14 at Grigg Memorial Field.
“I can’t lie, Pottstown is a better team this year. Definitely a better team than they’ve ever been since I’ve played them,” senior tailback Bryce Caffrey said. “In the first half, they definitely gave us a run for our money.”
Pottsgrove quarterback Gabe Rinda, right, scrambles out of the pocket to avoid a sack against Pottstown at Grigg Memorial Field on Sept. 22. (Evan Wheaton – MediaNews Group)
Caffrey was a driving force for the Falcons (3-2, 1-0), who put up 35 consecutive points after finding themselves down 8-0 through the first quarter. The backfield bell cow finished with 25 rushes for 160 yards and two touchdowns on the night.
The Trojans (3-2, 0-1) struck first with three minutes left in the opening frame. Following a turnover on downs for Pottsgrove, Dimark Lyons (five rushes, 108 yards) ran the ball 71 yards to the house on the Trojan’s first snap of the drive. Nahzier Booker (11 rushes, 39 yards) then punched in a two-point conversion for an 8-0 lead.
“We were pumped up. We were ready,” Pottstown coach Levert Hughes said. “Now once that fades, we have to get into the game plan and all this. Now it’s time to see who’s really with us and who’s against us. Pottstown’s a family.”
Pottsgrove found its footing in the second quarter with an 11-play, 79-yard drive capped by a 3-yard rushing touchdown from Caffrey. The senior kept the drive alive when faced with fourth-and-long, converting on a fake punt by rushing 10 yards to convert in Trojans territory.
According to Caffrey, it was all heads-up.
“It wasn’t supposed to be a fake, I got the ball and I saw no one was out there, so I just took off and ran honestly,” Caffrey said. “My coaches have the trust in me that if I see that, I can do it. I can’t thank them enough for that.”
Pottsgrove fullback Anthony Mayes, left, carries the ball down the sideline against Pottstown at Grigg Memorial Field on Sept. 22. (Evan Wheaton – MediaNews Group)
Tied 8-8 with 38 seconds left before halftime and a fresh set of downs on Pottstown’s 19-yard line, senior quarterback Gabe Rinda (3-for-9, 31 yards, TD) rolled out of the pocket and floated the ball to DeVon Grinnage in the end zone for a 15-8 lead – one that became permanent from there.
Less than a minute into the third quarter, Tyler Birch intercepted Pottstown quarterback Dillon Mayes (2-for-9, 54 yards, TD, INT). From there, the Falcons flew downfield and Rinda took a 2-yard keeper into the end zone to pull away, 22-8.
Five minutes later, Rinda once again passed the plane with a 1-yard QB sneak, ballooning Pottsgrove’s lead further, 29-8 through three quarters.
“We weren’t expecting to be down early,” Rinda said. “I think the focus was, stay calm. We’ve been here before. Execute to the best of our abilities, which we did.”
Caffrey added another rushing touchdown from 10 yards out early in the fourth quarter.
After starting 0-2 on the season, Pottsgrove has now won three straight games by scoring 30-plus points in each contest, flying as the season bleeds into league play.
“We just continue to get better,” Rinda said. “We’re hitting our stride and we’re getting better every single week.”
Pottstown quarterback Dillon Mayes, right, evades pressure from Pottsgrove’s Brandon McGinley, center, at Grigg Memorial Field on Sept. 22. (Evan Wheaton – MediaNews Group)
Pottstown bookended the scoring with another big play in the waning minutes. Mayes found Booker open for a 43-yard receiving touchdown, the two-point attempt after no good.
It was the first completed pass of the night for the Trojans, who operated with a backfield of Booker and Lyons, who are both averaging over seven yards per carry. Mayes is averaging 11.6 yards per carry, the signal caller adding to Pottstown’s rushing attack.
“They were just better than us tonight,” Hughes said of Pottsgrove. “We have to learn how to put it together. Can’t put together one game, two games, we have to put together a complete game. That’s the one thing I can say about this group now, we fight our butts off.”
The Trojans entered the game ranked No. 2 in District 1-4A, Pottsgrove just behind in the rankings at No. 3. The two now reverse those spots after a rivalry refueled.
“Those are friends, those are family, the people we grew up with,” Rinda said of Pottstown. “Pottsgrove, Pottstown, it’s pretty much the same town, so it’s always a fun game, we always get really excited about it. We were on a business trip.”
Pottsgrove 35, Pottstown 14
Pottsgrove 0 15 14 7 — 35
Pottstown 8 0 0 6 — 14
SCORING
First quarter
PT — Lyons 71 run (Booker run), 2:59
Second quarter
PG — Caffrey 3 run (Caffrey run), 10:34
PG — Grinnage 19 pass from Rinda (Williams kick), 0:38
Third quarter
PG – Rinda 2 run (Williams kick), 8:09
PG – Rinda 1 run (Williams kick), 2:50
Fourth quarter
PG – Caffrey 10 run (Williams kick), 9:05
PT – Booker 43 pass from Mayes (run failed), 7:36
TEAM STATISTICS
PG PT
First downs 13 3
Rushes-Yards 54-222 26-164
Passing yards 31 54
Total yards 253 218
Passes C-A-I 3-10-0 2-9-2
Fumbles-Lost 3-0 1-0
Penalties-Yards 6-30 11-80
Punts 2 5
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Pottsgrove — Caffrey 25-160, 2 TD; Rinda 8-5, 2 TD; Mayes 6-24; Dargan 7-37; Thorum 1-(minus-2); Palladino 2-7; Rivera 1-(minus-2); Birch 4-(minus-7).
Pottstown — Lyons 5-108, TD; Booker 11-39; Mayes 8-21; Robinson 1-(minus-1); Monreaeru 1-(minus-3).
Passing
Pottsgrove — Rinda 3-9, 31 yards, TD; Hawthorne 0-1, 0 yards.
Pottstown — Mayes 2-9, 54 yards, TD, INT.
Receiving
Pottsgrove — Grinnage 1-19, TD; Delp 1-9; B. McGinley 1-3.
Pottstown — Booker 1-43, TD; Washington 1-11.
Sacks: PG 1 (B. McGinley).
Interceptions: PG 2 (Tibbs, Birch).
