Four players scoring over half their team’s points
Anthony Welsh continues to top the Herald-Standard Touchdown Club standings after Week Four and a breakdown of his points in respect to his team’s scoring shows how important the senior running back is to Beth-Center.
The Bulldogs have scored 160 points this season with Welsh accounting for 84 of those, or 53 percent of his team’s points. True to form, Welsh scored two of his team’s four touchdowns in a 28-0 win at Carmichaels last Friday.
Welsh isn’t alone, though. There are three other local players who have accounted for over half of their team’s offensive production and all three rank even higher than Welsh in that category.
Two of them are not surprising as they each recently set school records.
California senior KC Zajicek, who is second in the TD Club standings, scored eight touchdowns in one game during Week Two and accounted for all eight of the Trojans’ points in a 13-8 loss to Jefferson-Morgan last week.
Zajicek has scored 64 of California’s 85 points, putting him at an area-best 75 percent of his team’s scoring.
One of two players tied for second in scoring percentage is Mapletown sophomore Dylan Rush, who is third in the TD Club standings and tallied a team-record six touchdowns during Week Three. The Maples were shut out at Frazier last Friday, leaving them still with 81 points on the season. Rush has scored 48 of those, or 59 percent.
The other player tied for second with Rush is probably a surprise to many.
Albert Gallatin senior running back Joey Embacher, who is 10th in the TD Club standings with 32 points, has also accounted for 59 percent of his team’s points.
Embacher has been a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season for the Colonials through four weeks.
“We really thought this would be the year we would turn things around but it hasn’t panned out that way so far,” said AG coach Joe Embacher, who happens to be Joey’s father. “We need more consistency. We’ve played some good halves but we need to play a full game.”
Joey Embacher, however, hasn’t been one of the Colonials’ problems.
“He’s having a pretty good year,” coach Embacher said. “He’s played well offensively and defensively. He’s a strong safety on defense and has two interceptions and almost took one of them back for a touchdown.
“Offensvely, we run the triple option and he’s a wingback. There are two slot positions, the strong slot and the speed slot, and Joey has played both depending on where we need him.”
Embacher played the speed slot on Friday in a 69-22 loss at Trinity, but he got the Colonials off to a good start with a 51-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Hunter Moody on AG’s first offensive play. He also scored on TD runs of 10 and 64 yards and caught a two-point conversion pass.
Embacher was the area’s leading scorer in Week Four with 20 points.
“The kid works hard every day, as do most of our kids,” coach Embacher said. “Joey is one of those guys who’s at practice no matter what, whether he’s sick or hurt. He’s one of our team leaders.”
Embacher has accounted for all but 22 of the Colonials’ 54 points this season.
Those are four of the top 10 in the TD Club. In fourth place is Laurel Highlands’ Chad Livingston with 48 points. In a three-way tie for fifth with 36 points apiece are Southmoreland’s Jaden Datz and Frazier teammates Damon Lovis and Hunter Patterson.
In eighth place is Belle Vernon’s versatile Derek Verkleeron who has 35 points. Frazier’s Joshua Cox is ninth with 33 points, and tied for 10th with Embacher is Belle Vernon’s Luke Durigon with 32 points.