SOMERSET, Pa. – North Star used lessons learned in a tight Week 9 loss to Berlin Brothersvalley and also heeded their coach’s call to be the more physical team in Friday’s District 5 Class 2A football championship.
The combination helped North Star earn the program’s first district crown in 15 years via a 16-7 victory over Berlin Brothersvalley.
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“This is huge,” Cougars first-year head coach Shane Smith said. “It’s been forever since this program, this town, the school district, had a chance to play in this game.
“Then, to come in here against a really good Berlin football team and get a win against a quality opponent really means the world.”
WATCH WTAJ VIDEO | North Star vs. Berlin Brothersvalley
The Cougars (10-2) held the upper hand along the offensive and defensive lines against the Mountaineers (8-3) in this rematch. North Star used two lengthy scoring drives and a stifling defense to win a game that was separated by only three points until Cougars senior Kasey Yoder returned an interception 45 yards for a touchdown on the final play.
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PHOTO GALLERY | North Star vs. Berlin Brothersvalley | Football
“Last game I felt we physically got beat up front for four quarters,” Smith said of Berlin Brothersvalley’s 17-14 win Oct. 23. “Tonight, our line came out and I felt we controlled a lot of that football game on both sides of the line of scrimmage.”
North Star won its first District 5 crown since going back-to-back in 2010 and 2011. The drought extended to Berlin Brothersvalley’s win over the Cougars in the 2012 title game.
“Hats off to North Star,” Berlin Brothersvalley coach Dante Paul said. “We knew who they were coming in, and knew it was going to be a great back-and-forth game. They were able to pound the rock, get behind their big offensive line.
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“The combination of Yoder and (Will) Eshleman made us pay on the ground. They played hard.”
A four-year quarterback, Yoder ranked fourth in the area with 1,410 passing yards entering the game. But Friday, his legs made the biggest impact, as Yoder carried 17 times for 94 yards and a touchdown. He only threw three passes for a net of 2 yards.
Junior running back Will Eshleman had 15 rushes for 85 yards to complete the one-two punch.
“It’s just built on brotherhood, and I think (it is) with family and friends that you love, and people who have been through it with you all of your life through football,” said 6-foot-3 senior lineman Brody Shroyer, whose back-to-back sacks in the closing minute of the second quarter preserved a 7-0 lead. “I’ve been with my friends for 10-plus years and we finally brought home the D5-2A championship.”
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Berlin Brothersvalley junior back Carter Durst had a team-high 73 rushing yards on 14 carries – 62 yards came in the second half. Durst ran 24 yards for the Mountaineers’ lone touchdown.
“All that we did was just improve,” Shroyer said of winning Round 2 against Berlin. “Every single day you’ve got to improve by at least 1%. Every single week. Every single day. Every single practice. You’ve got to always try your hardest and push through the pain.”
The Cougars established the best drive of the first half, moving 60 yards in 11 plays that used 7:22 of game clock. Yoder ran 4 yards to the end zone, and Sean Hemminger’s extra-point kick at 2:39 gave North Star a 7-0 lead that stood at halftime.
Berlin Brothersvalley quarterback Brody Janidlo hit his brother Carson Janidlo on passes or 33 and 8 yards to put the Mountaineers at the Cougars 39-yard line before Shroyer’s two sacks pushed Berlin Brothersvalley back 15 yards in the final minute.
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“I just imagined me doing that and pulling through for my team,” Shroyer said. “Just get the half done so we could be 7-0 and have the lead. It was for my team, all the people in the crowd that came to watch us.”
North Star took the second-half kickoff and moved 49 yards in 12 plays, using 8:36 of game clock. Hemminger kicked a 26-yard field goal to make it 10-0 with 3:16 remaining in the third.
“It’s all built on attitude and technique,” Shroyer said. “Without that, you don’t have anything. With those you’re surrounded by, that helps you push forward and move on.”
Berlin Brothersvalley answered by marching 80 yards in nine plays.
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Durst had a pair of 24-yard runs, with the second one resulting in a touchdown. Josh Brinton’s extra-point kick set a 10-7 score with 14 seconds on the clock.
“They gave us some different looks, sending backers, bringing more (pressure),” Paul said. “But we finally felt like we got in a little bit of a rhythm. We a little bit of a footing. We were running the football hard, executing blocks up front.
“It seemed like we finally got a little bit of momentum. It kind of fizzled out on the pass interference (call). It is what it is.”
After the Berlin Brothersvalley touchdown, North Star faced a second-and-10 at its own 28 when a pass interference penalty put the ball at the 43 and helped the Cougars chew up another five minutes early in the fourth quarter.
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“We shot ourselves in the foot a couple times, especially in the first half when we had decent field position on the punt return, a kickoff with a block in the back,” said Paul, whose team had 11 penalties for 81 yards. “All night it seemed like any time we got a little bit of momentum, we just shot ourselves in the foot.
“We were having a great defensive drive and then a pass interference call extended the drive,” Paul added. “Regardless, we didn’t do enough to win. We didn’t have our best game. We didn’t execute to our capabilities.”
North Star will face District 8 Westinghouse next week in the PIAA Class 2A tournament.
The Bulldogs defeated District 9 Karns City, 42-21, Friday.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
