Panthers Pound Upper Merion, Face Marple Newtown in Quarterfinals Friday at King Field
Photo by Jim Quinn, BQPictures.com
On to Round 2 of the District 1 5A football playoffs, where the Strath Haven Panthers will have the added challenge of facing an opponent for a second time this season. While the #2-seeded Panthers were pounding out a convincing 35-0 whitewash of Upper Merion last Friday night, the possibility of facing #7-seeded Marple-Newtown in the quarterfinals came into focus. The Tigers held on for a 21-14 victory over #10 Phoenixville, setting the stage for what should be an entertaining and challenging Central League rematch from early September.
Marple Newtown has rebounded nicely after a 1-2 start. Following lopsided losses to Strath Haven and Garnet Valley, the Tigers have rattled off seven victories in the last eight weeks. Head Coach Chris Gicking continues to rely heavily on All Delco running back #2 Charlie Box, and the offensive line—with all new starters at the start of the season—has improved with experience. The same can be said of sophomore quarterback #10 David Bertoline, who has 11 games under his belt as a starter, rather than just one game of experience when the Panthers last saw him in early September. The Tiger defense, led by defensive end #55 Damien Bogsch up front, has been stingy as well, allowing just 18.5 points per game overall, and holding eight of their 11 opponents to under 16 points.
The Panthers continued to roll last week in the victory over Upper Merion, activating the running clock mercy rule early in the third quarter. Haven hammered away for nearly 300-yards rushing, and mixed in two big plays, one featuring Quarterback #4 Sam Milligan to running back #23 Matt Shuler for an 83-yard touchdown, and the other on special teams, with Shuler breaking free for an 80-yard kickoff return to pay-dirt. Shuler’s four total touchdowns capped another tremendous performance from the offensive line.
Of course, winning is a little easier when the opponent does not score. The Panthers halted Upper Merion with outstanding performances from defensive tackles #72 Jason Williams and #68 Ben Farabaugh. They clogged the middle of the line, allowing defensive ends #85 Nate Perlman and #84 Mason Green to once again run wild in the Viking backfield. #32 Anthony Crawford returned to the lineup to force a fumble and a handful of tackles, with #40 Bob Fooskas (fumble recovery), #25 AJ Glavacic (fumble recovery) and #5 Chase Nangle (interception) all feasting on takeaways to kill Upper Merion drives.
Leading into this week’s battle, the Panthers will need to be conscious of the enormous challenge of beating the same team twice in the same season. Expect new wrinkles and perhaps some trickery from Marple-Newtown on their return visit to George L. King Field, which will give Coach Kevin Clancy and his staff the chance to recall the twin billings of 2011, when Marple Newtown beat Strath Haven 24-7 in the regular season, only to have the Panthers return the favor, 31-7, in the first round of the playoffs. Rematches can be unpredictable, so the Panthers can ill afford to bask in the glory of their 41-13 victory two months ago. Solid tackling will be a must against the Tigers, and maintaining good balance among all five primary Panther ball carriers will be key to putting up another big point total. The winner of #3 Unionville versus #6 Academy Park awaits on November 19th, but neither Strath Haven nor Marple Newtown can afford to look ahead to the semifinals just yet.
If you can’t make it to the game in person for the rematch, catch the audio broadcast on www.havenfootball.net at 6:45 p.m. for pre-game and a 7 p.m. kickoff, with a trip to the District 1 5A semifinals on the line! The game will be available on our archives within a few hours after the game concludes. You can also check in on Twitter for scores and video updates.
