Photo for the Mirror by Joe Isenman Northern Bedford’s Vaughn Schleinkofer throws under pressure from Wimber’s Lukas Oleska.
SOMERSET — Northern Bedford and Wimber have been District 5’s top Class 1A teams in recent years.
The two programs have split the district crown for the past two years, but it was no surprise that they returned to it in the third round Saturday night at Somerset Area High School.
As the game began with the Black Panthers and Ramblers exchanging scores, both teams’ defenses took over.
Unfortunately for NBC, Wimber was able to score his second touchdown late in the first half as the Panthers lost 14-7 in the District 5 Class 1A Championship and were eliminated from the playoffs.
Northern Bedford coach Garry Black said, “I want to give a shout out to the team, especially the defense.” “That team (Wimber) scored 35 points against us in the first round (Oct. 18), but tonight they scored 14 points. They only played 14 games in the first half, so they scored so many points. We had the ball. It was back and forth. They had a very good defense, so it was difficult to score. We knocked it down a few times, but we couldn’t knock it down. ”
Despite the loss, the atmosphere and emotion was that Black said he was extremely grateful and proud to be a part of District 5.
“District 5 has a lot of community-based schools, so I’m really excited for our town and community to have the opportunity to play in a game like this,” Black said. “I feel sorry for our friends in District 6 who don’t have the same opportunities that we do because the system is broken. Single-A football consists of 100 kids walking the hallways of a rural schoolhouse. It’s supposed to be two communities. I really want to be an advocate for single-A schools like ours because it’s becoming more and more difficult in today’s environment.”
Key highlights of the game: With 3:06 left in the third, Northern Bedford began a nine-play drive that extended into the fourth, but it ended 4-4, Wimber 27. The ball was snapped on that down. In an attempt to save yards, the ball went over NBC quarterback Vaughn Schleinkofer’s head and intentionally grounded out, resulting in a 24-yard loss.
The Ramblers took over with 11:04 left, overcame three penalties, and cut the clock to 5:25 after failing to convert a 4-15 from the NBC 28 on an 11-play drive. .
Schreinkofer was intercepted by Wimber’s Dylan Woodruff on the third play of the ensuing drive, giving the Ramblers another three minutes of running before the Panthers got the ball back one last time with 1:23 left and 81 yards left. .
Woodruff came up with another interception to end the game.
“We thought we’d take some air out of the ball and try to score,” Wimber coach Matt Grohal said. “It would have been really easy to get two scores up there.”
Most Valuable Player: Wimber QB Lucas Oleksa had 21 rushes for 102 yards and helped control the clock. The senior also caught a pass from Luke Hostetler for 26 yards. On this play, Olexa freed the ball and missed it to the side of the end zone. However, officials ruled him out on NBC 1 as it set up a winning score.
“It means a lot to me to do everything I can to help my teammates achieve a common goal,” Oleksa said. “Thank you for all the lines.”
Unsung hero: RJ Tarrion gained 60 yards on 14 attempts for the Ramblers, and the senior had two 1-yard touchdown runs.
“I’m frustrated with the host. I’m going to make sure he says something,” Black said. “Before the game, I told them (the officials) that there were over 200 plays where they (Wimber) didn’t set up (on offense) for even a second. I put it (film) in slow motion. , I talked to them (the officials) about it. It was a quarter of a second and they (Wimber). makes different movements with his hands when running or overtaking. He (a senior official) said he wasn’t going to get into details. And I said, ‘Why is there a rulebook and the game is fair?’ Should it be played?” In other words, it is advantageous for the offense if it does not need to be set for a moment. ”
Great reaction: Following Wimber’s first TD, Northern’s Ben Clark broke free and made a 50-yard gain up the middle to the Rambler 20. Schreinkofer then connected with Connor Donaldson for an 18-yard strike to tie the game at 7-7.
“We watched a lot of film and some of the things other teams did,” Black said. “We stole plays. That’s what you do at this point in the season. We did everything we could.”
Most important stat: Wimber had 61 plays to Northern Bedford’s just 40, including a 32-14 lead in the first half.
Record: Northern Bedford (9-3). Wimber (10-2).
Next week: North Bedford’s season is complete. Wimber will face Westinghouse in the PIAA playoffs on Friday at Couples Stadium in Pittsburgh.
Score per quarter
Northern Bedford 7 0 0 0 — 7
Wimber 7 7 0 0 — 14
1st quarter
W-Tallion 1 run (Klaus kick), 6:06.
NB–Donaldson 18 Pass from Schleinkofer (Kochala kick), 3:32.
2nd quarter
W-Tallion 1 run (Klaus kick), 3 minutes 15 seconds.
Team statistics NB W
First down 8 15
Total Yards 156 274
Rush Yards 18-101 50-197
Passing Yards 55 77
path (comp.-att.-int.) 8-18-2 4-8-0
Punt average 3-32 1-37
Lost fumble 2-0 0-0
Penalty Yards 7-54 8-60
personal statistics
Rushing – Northern Bedford, Clark 11-89, Schreincofer 6-13, A. Bowers 1-(-1). Wimber, Talion 14-60, Olexa 21-102, Mash 2-10, Richards 3-17, Hostetler 4-(-1), Chikarel 5-10, Team 1-(-1).
Passing – Northern Bedford, Schreincofer 7-16-2-46, Clark 1-1-0-9, Team 0-1-0-0. Wimber, Olexa 3-7-0-51, Talion 0-0-0-0, Hostetler 1-1-0-26.
Receiving – Northern Bedford, Donaldson 1-18, Z. Bowers 1-7, Clark 2-0, A. Bowers 1-9, Pittman 2-15, Hoesch 1-6. Wimber, Brady 1-30, Olexa 1-26, Mash 1-9, Chikarel 1-12.
