Senior send-off
Colonials culminate special night with win over Mustangs
YORK RUN — Albert Gallatin has plenty of seniors on its football roster, including quarterback Bronx Jamison, and running backs Gio Guerriere and Roman Smith.
The Colonials’ John Cerny IV starts at wide receiver, but in Albert Gallatin’s flexbone offense, he is primarily used as a blocker, however, the senior was able to make his way onto the stat sheet with a reception for a touchdown in the Colonials’ 27-20 victory over Laurel Highlands on Friday night in Class 4A Big Six Conference play at Albert Gallatin Stadium in York Run.
Smith scored a touchdown while rushing for a game-high 124 yards on 16 carries, Guerriere reached the end zone twice on a three-yard run and a 64-yard reception, and Jamison gained 55 yards on six attempts and was 2 of 2 for 84 yards and two touchdowns.
Jamison’s eight-yard run on third down allowed Albert Gallatin (2-2, 4-5) to run out the clock for a Senior Night triumph after the Mustangs (0-4, 0-9) had pulled within a touchdown after falling behind 20-0 with 2:50 remaining in the second quarter.
“I thought we played very unselfish tonight,” Albert Gallatin coach Drew Dindl said. “They were taking our outside away, and usually that’s when we’re hitting with our A-backs, but it just wasn’t going to happen tonight. We used a lot of Gio (Guerriere) and Roman (Smith), and the perimeter guys were fine with that. They just wanted to play football, and play a team game.
“I’m proud of our guys up front. They’ve been getting better and better every week. We started with a new group, and we started to see some gelling together and chemistry building. I also want to thank my assistant coaches for getting me out of trouble, doing the dirty work and getting our guys prepared.”
The Colonials received the opening kickoff and drove 66 yards for the game’s first touchdown on Guerriere’s rushing score for a 6-0 lead with 9:50 remaining in the first quarter. Guerriere ran for 77 yards on 15 attempts.
Albert Gallatin forced Laurel Highlands into a three-and-out and drove to the Mustangs’ 12-yard line with 7:34 left in the second period, but Laurel Highlands forced a turnover on downs.
The Mustangs punted on their second drive, and Jamison found Cerny for a 20-yard touchdown pass and a 13-0 advantage with 3:44 remaining in the second quarter after Eli Fisher connected on the first of three PATs.
The Colonials’ defense forced Laurel Highlands to punt a third time prior to Guerriere’s touchdown reception and a 20-0 lead.
The Mustangs drove inside Albert Gallatin territory on their fourth possession, but the Colonials’ Tavian Potts intercepted Nick Crouch.
Rather than hang his head following the turnover, Crouch never gave up on the play, forcing a fumble, which he recovered at Albert Gallatin’s 12-yard line with 1:56 left in the first half.
Crouch, a senior, scored on a two-yard run to cut the deficit to 20-6 with :42.6 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
“When we moved Nick to quarterback, we knew he would be touching the ball on every play, and he made insane plays tonight,” LH coach Ian Edenfield said. “He plays so hard, and he asked me if he should go back in on defense when we were giving him a break, and I kept saying: ‘Do you want to win?’ Then, he would strap on his helmet and tell Jimmy Pierce, the DB coach: ‘Put me in, I want to win.’ He is a kid who didn’t miss all summer, and he did extra when the workouts were done.
“He has been awesome. He is not a vocal leader, but the kids gravitate towards him, and I wish I could have 11 of him and Mark Reeds on the field.”
Laurel Highlands used a 13-play, 58-yard drive to score on its first drive of the second half, and pull within 20-13 with 4:08 remaining in the third quarter.
Crouch found Gabe Centofanti on a curl route for a first down on a fourth-and-three from the Colonials’ 22-yard line. Centofanti was able to work himself free after pulling in the reception, and sprint towards the end zone before being tackled at the four-yard line.
Crouch took the ball in for the score and Jackson Nairn connected on the first of two extra points. Crouch rushed for 45 yards on 14 carries and was 9 of 17 for 131 yards.
Albert Gallatin responded on the ensuing drive when Smith scored on a seven-yard run with 11:08 left in the fourth quarter.
The Mustangs didn’t let a holding call negate a 26-yard reception from Crouch to Alafia Calloway, as Crouch found Centofanti for a 44-yard gain to the Colonials’ 20-yard line on third down before Jonah Coleman pulled in a four-yard reception for a score with 4:53 left in the contest. Coleman caught seven passes for 69 yards.
Albert Gallatin was able to run out the final 4:49, as Bentley Swaney gained nine of his 22 yards rushing on a third-and-seven prior to Jamison’s run that denied Laurel Highlands the opportunity to tie the game, as Edenfield had used his final timeout of the half.
The Mustangs have faced a tough season, but Edenfield is proud of his team for continuing to battle, and he hopes the momentum Laurel Highlands gained against the Colonials can carry over into the season finale against cross-town rival Uniontown (0-3, 3-6) in Week 10.
“We have to be super disciplined next week and eliminate stupid penalties,” Edenfield said. “The thing that has killed us this year, in general, has been the penalties, especially early in the year. We were up by 10 against Derry, but we had 20 penalties in that game. We had 12 tonight.”
Albert Gallatin remains in contention for a WPIAL playoff berth, but it needs a victory at Chartiers Valley (3-1, 5-4) in the final week of the regular season and a Ringgold (3-1, 5-4) to South Fayette (4-0, 8-1).
“I told the guys: ‘Listen, it’s not over yet,'” said Dindl. “Now, we have something to play for. We have an opportunity to get into second place if we can knock those guys off.
“This game with Laurel Highlands is always great. This rivalry is a clean rivalry. We started the game off with team prayer with both guys. A lot of these guys know each other, and Ian’s (Edenfield) a great guy, and Coach (Cedric) Lloyd coached with us for a few years. Ian has those guys improving each week, and we knew they were going to give us their best.”