WARMINSTER — Archbishop Wood ran away with a 56-12 win over Cardinal O’Hara in a Philadelphia Catholic League semifinal game at William Tennent Friday night.
The Vikings came out firing on all cylinders, dominating the Lions in every facet of the game. Adrian Lambert set the tone early for Archbishop Wood, almost taking the opening kick off all the way. But after only two plays from scrimmage, Jarrett McClenton punched it in, for one of his four touchdowns in the first half. McClenton scored three rushing touchdowns and one on a punt return.
“He’s one of the most electrifying kids in the state in my opinion,’ Vikings coach Steve Devlin said of McClenton. “He’s a threat to score every time he gets the ball.’
The Vikings never stopped punishing the Lions in the first quarter. They forced O’Hara to punt on all four possessions, blocking one of them. The Lions only first down of the quarter came on a pass interference call. Most importantly, though, the Vikings came out of the period with a 35-0 advantage.
“We had a week off and a great week of practice,’ Devlin said. “We came out with a lot of enthusiasm. We have to play our best football each week. The playoffs is a brand new season.’
Archbishop Wood scored five offensive touchdowns on just nine plays. It was evident early on that the Lions were never going to stop the Vikings’ first team offense.
Devlin elected to put in his back ups in the third quarter, and only then did the Lions have any success moving the ball. Their one highlight of the first half came off a kickoff return, when Myles Henderson ran the ball back 82 yards, putting the Lions on the scoreboard.
In the third quarter, the Vikings managed to outscore the Lions again without even having a possession. Bobby Heck scored on 61 yard interception return after Brandon Laughlin looked to hook up with a receiver by the sideline.
Henderson again gave the Lions a spark in the second half. He finished the game with 61 yards.
Finally, with nine minutes remaining, the Lions offense produced its only touchdown when Laughlin scored on a quarterback sneak, capping off an 86-yard drive.
Archbishop Wood was pleased to give their starters additional rest ahead of their Catholic League final clash with the winner of Bonner-Prendergast and Archbishop Ryan next week.
