WINDBER, Pa. – After a first half with no scoring, Trace Baker used both his legs and his arm to lead the Northern Bedford County Black Panthers to a 21-0 victory in the District 5-1A championship over the Meyersdale Red Raiders Friday night.
Baker finished with seven carries for 94 yards and a touchdown, and the junior quarterback added another score in the air and came up with big play after big play to secure the district crown. He said it all started up front with his offensive line, and it was special to win a title a year after a two-win season.
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“My line has been playing hard all year,” said Baker. “They have really turned it on when we got to the playoffs, and they made some big holes to run through. As a manager when I was younger, you maybe took this for granted, winning a title, and now that I am here, this is just so special.”
“That is a team that doesn’t start a single senior on their offensive line, and that is a good young football team over there,” said Northern Bedford County coach Garry Black. “The fumble to start the second half was huge, but in the first half we just didn’t finish plays, but starting with that play, the second half was a different story. I am just so proud of these guys for adding that 2-6 to the banner in the gym.”
WATCH WTAJ VIDEO | Northern Bedford County vs. Meyersdale
The Black Panthers took the opening kickoff and went three and out, and punted the ball away to the Red Raiders.
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Meyersdale moved the ball past midfield, but its opening drive stalled, forcing a punt. Meyersdale punter Gavan Steinberg booted the ball, and it was downed inside the one-yard line to give the Panthers a long field.
After 12 plays and as Northern Bedford County marched into Meyersdale territory, the quarter ended.
The drive ended after 18 plays when the Red Raider defense batted away a scoring opportunity for the Panthers inside the 10-yard line.
The teams traded punts, and after an injury to Meyersdale quarterback Spencer Whitfield on defense, Meyersdale found it tough to move the ball.
Northern Bedford County had an opportunity late in the half; however, a Baker pass was intercepted by Meyersdale’s Carter Vogt inside the five-yard line to end the threat, sending the teams to the locker room in a scoreless tie.
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Disaster struck for the Red Raiders on the opening kickoff as the ball was fumbled and recovered by the Black Panthers at the Meyersdale 32-yard line.
Two plays later, Baker found a wide-open Jordan Free to give Northern Bedford County a 7-0 lead.
After Meyersdale turned the ball over on downs on the next series, Baker used his legs this time, running off right tackle and making a few players miss on the snow-covered field to race 67 yards for the touchdown to extend the lead to 14-0.
As the game moved to the fourth quarter, Brett Cottle added an eight-yard touchdown run to ice the game for the Panthers and set the final.
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For Meyersdale coach Ryan Donaldson’s Red Raiders, who were held to less than 100 yards of offense on the night, this is one that will hurt for a while.
“It stings right now, especially for the kids,” said Donaldson.
“They have been working hard through the 12 weeks of the season. I am proud of them for getting here, but we fell short tonight. First half, it’s a 0-0 ball game. It was a dogfight, and in the second half things didn’t go our way and it got out of hand quickly.
“Losing Spencer Whitfield was key, one of our guys we relied on for both sides of the ball, but we still had a game to play with the guys that were in there, but they left it out on the field and I appreciate their fight.”
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
