St. Joseph’s Prep rolls past rival La Salle in District 12-6A semifinals
PHILADELPHIA >> La Salle scores the game’s first points, then heads to the half tied with St. Joseph’s Prep. The Hawks come out after halftime and dominate the second half en route to a convincing win.
Sounds like the meeting between the two Philadlephia Catholic League powerhouses three weeks ago at Widener University.
Well, it happened again.
After falling behind 3-0, the Prep scored the game’s final 17 points in a 17-3 win in the District 12 Class 6A semifinals Friday night at Charles Martin Memorial Stadium at Northeast High School in Philadelphia.
“(Prep is) a really good football team,” La Salle coach John Steinmetz said. “They know how to finish. I guess we have to learn how to finish a little bit.”
In the first meeting, La Salle (7-4) took a 7-0 lead on their first possession of the game and the Prep (10-0) matched the score in the second quarter to send it to halftime tied.
In the rematch, Explorers kicker Daniel Karrash kicked a 37-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead midway through the second quarter. Hawks kicker Anthony Tigano tied the score with 13.3 seconds left in the first half with a 30-yard field goal.
The Hawks, ranked No. 1 in PA Prep Live’s top 20, scored three second-half touchdowns to put away a 28-14 win when the rivals met in Chester.
In Northeast Philly, Kolbe Burrell ran for a touchdown late in the third quarter and quarterback Marquez McCray did the same early in the fourth. A fourth-down stop by the Hawks defense on La Salle’s next possession put the nail in the coffin on a 17-3 win.
“We worked hard all summer,” McCray, a Lansdale native, said. “In the third an fourth quarter, it just comes out.”
In both games, the Prep’s defense forced three second-half three-and-outs to allow the offense to build its lead.
Trusting his guy
Early in the third quarter, with the game tied at three, McCray dropped a dime. On 3rd-and-12 from La Salle’s 38-yard line, the senior threw a high-arcing pass that hit a wide-open James Cherry in stride inside the 10-yard line. Cherry couldn’t reel in the pass and the Hawks had to punt.
On St. Joe’s next possession, McCray faced a 3rd-and-7 at La Salle’s 41. He went back to Cherry — this time for a 14-yard gain and first down. The drive ended with Burrell’s touchdown to give the Hawks the lead for good.
On the Prep’s next possession, McCray hit Cherry for 20 yards on the final play of the third quarter to set up a 1st-and-goal situation. Two plays later, McCray scored on a quarterback sneak.
“I told him to let that one go,” McCray said. “We hit a big play last time against (La Salle). We both trust each other and have good coordination with each other. I know what he’s going to do — I know the route he’s going to run before he runs it. I just put trust in him and he caught them.”
Extend the streak
The Prep extended its winning streak to 24 games. The Hawks last loss — which came against La Salle in the District 12 semifinals — was in 2015. They went 14-0 and won the state championship last year and are now 10-0 in 2017.
Friday’s win was the Prep’s fourth straight over La Salle and ninth out of the last 10 meetings.
Up next
St. Joe’s Prep will face the winner of Northeast and Central in the District 12 Class 6A championship game next week.
St. Joe’s Prep 17, La Salle 3
La Salle 0 3 0 0 — 3
St. Joe’s Prep 0 3 7 7 — 17
Second Quarter
LS – Daniel Karrash 37-yard field goal 5:13
SJP – Anthony Tigano 30-yard field goal :13.3
Third Quarter
SJP – Kolbe Burrell 2-yard run (Anthony Tigano kick) 3:32
Fourth Quarter
SJP – Marquez McCray 1-yard run (Anthony Tigano kick) 11:34
Individual Statistics
Passing: LS: Isaiah Jones 9-22-64-0-0. SJP: Marquez McCray 10-21-76-0-0.
Rushing: LS: Isaiah Jones 21-65-0, Brett Mallee 1-2-0, Manny Quiles 2-(-5)-0, Joey Burnham 3-13-0, Octavious Carter 1-8-0. SJP: Marquez McCray 17-82-1, Marques Mason 13-76-0, James Cherry 1-3-0, Kolbe Burrell 9-21-1, CJ Duell 1-(-12)-0.
Receiving: LS: Marvin Harrison 2-14-0, Brett Mallee 1-5-0, Octavious Carter 3-16-0, Troy Holland 2-22-0, Joey Burnham 1-7-0. SJP: Anthony Leneghan 1-(-1)-0, Johnny Freeman 1-9-0, Jack Sutton 3-12-0, Brandon Sanders 3-22-0, James Cherry 2-34-0.
