West Catholic 35, Penn Charter 0
Burrs Run Past Quakers for Easy Win
The West Catholic football team was faced with a few obstacles prior to Friday’s clash with Penn Charter. First, the game was originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon, but was moved up to 4 o’clock Friday with the remnants of Hurricane Hanna looming. Next, the Quakers presented a challenge from an unfamiliar foe. Lastly, the mid-afternoon start allowed the game to be played in unfriendly heat and humidity. Sound like a lot to overcome? Well, it wasn’t, as the Burrs unleashed an offensive fury in the opening half, thus, cruising to their second win in as many tries.
The Burrs had five possessions in that opening half and scored on all of them to build a commanding 35-0 halftime lead. The score would remain that, as the second half was played with a running clock and the mercy rule in effect.
Every one of the Burrs scoring drives covered considerable real estate. West scored on drives of 58, 67, 75, 92, and 75 yards. Once again, it was the Burrs three-headed attack in the backfield doing a lot of the damage. Senior running back Rob Hollomon started the scoring just 2:42 into the game with a 16-yard dash. The score was set-up up by a Hollomon 29-yard kickoff return to the start the game and a 32-yard pass play from senior quarterback Curtis Drake to senior fullback Juan Rozier on the Burrs’ first play from scrimmage.
Penn Charter’s first series moved into Burr territory, but was halted by an interception by junior defensive back Ray Manuel, who was all over the field throughout.
When West regained possession, Hollomon unleashed a 49-yard run to begin things. Then, Drake found senior wide receiver Ed Colon on a 17-yard reception. This lead to a 13-yard rumble by senior running back Raymond Maples for a 14-0 West lead.
As the game moved to the second quarter, the Burrs continued with their yardage-consuming assault. Hollomon scored his second touchdown of the game with a 16-yard run. This was followed by an exciting 76-yard burst by Drake to make it 28-0. West would cap the first half scoring with an impressive two-minute drive that concluded with a 3-yard scoring run by Maples.
The Burr offense churned out a whopping 360 yards in the first half. Drake finished the half with 224 yards rushing (6-146) and passing (5-11-78). He also lost a sensational 67-yard touchdown due to an illegal block. Hollomon turned his four carries into a productive 87 yards. Maples assisted with 55 yards on 11 totes.
The offensive line did more than enough to aid the cause and they’re beginning to look like a unit that will need to be reckoned with in the coming weeks. They are led by: Seniors Victor McNair, Paul Murtagh, Austin Peters, Covisia Wilson, junior Jake Zuzek, and sophomore tight end Jim Lynch. Rozier was sturdy at fullback.
Defensively, Manuel ran free for 11 tackles (8 solos) and also recovered a muffed punt. Seniors Artis Carroll and Chris Williams split a sack. Sophomore Brandon Hollomon made a pick. Defensive tackles, senior Dwayne Shaw (3 TFL’s) and junior John Ruppert (2 TFL’s) were wall-like in the trenches.
Junior kicker Tim Carroll belted all five of his PAT attempts.
Next week, the Burrs will play Saturday night at Plymouth-Whitemarsh high school. The opponent will be the LaSalle Explorers from the Catholic League 4A division. The Explorers possess a nifty offense and are always well-coached. They currently sit a (1-1) with a victory over Plymouth-Whitemarsh (45-0) and a loss yesterday to a very good Malvern team (47-21). This promises to be an up-and-down contest with plenty of action.
This Burr squad needs and welcomes your support. So, make sure you set aside some time to check out this exciting and promising team in the coming weeks. Next week’s game is a 7 o’clock start time.