Scotties win battle at the line to top Red Raiders
Evans nearly wills Uniontown to victory in 3 TD performance
ALVERTON — Southmoreland’s offensive and defensive lines had a performance that would most-likely have put a smile on the face of one of its notable alumni happy, as the Scotties controlled the play up front in a 42-21 victory over Uniontown in non-conference play on Friday at Russ Grimm Field.
For those unfamiliar with Washington’s NFL franchise in the 1980s and early 1990s, Grimm was a mainstay on the team’s offensive line, known affectionately as “The Hogs,” after he began his football career as Southmoreland’s starting quarterback, linebacker and punter.
Grimm was recruited by the University of Pittsburgh as a linebacker, but made the change to center for the Panthers. He was drafted in 1981 and started at guard for 11 seasons before retiring as a player and beginning his coaching career.
Grimm wasn’t in attendance for the Scotties’ triumph over the Red Raiders, which was their first win of the season in three games, but Southmoreland’s “hogs” did the job in helping the home team gain 273 yards on 37 carries, including quarterback Dawson Wolfe’s 138 on 15 carries. The senior found the end zone four times.
Dylan Brown had 10 carries for 83 yards and a touchdown. Reese Jordan added 46 yards on 12 attempts and one trip to the end zone.
“I think Dawson (Wolfe), Dylan Brown and Reese Jordan all played well,” Southmoreland coach Dustin Shoaf said. “The offensive and defensive lines played well. It was a total team effort, and not just the players and coaches. The school district, student section, fans and parents all had a part in it.
“We had adversity hit us the first two weeks, and we didn’t overcome it. Today, our kids knew what it took to come back after having a tough first couple of weeks to start the season.”
The Scotties (1-2) extended their advantage to 21-9 with 9:15 remaining in the third quarter when Brown scored on a nine-yard run, but the ensuing kickoff proved to be the key play in the game when Southmoreland recovered an onside kick and Wolfe rumbled into the end zone from nine yards out and Liam Smith converted on his second of four PATs for a 28-9 lead with 7:12 left in the third period.
“The special teams definitely contributed,” Shoaf said. “We let the players play, the coaches coach and let the program succeed.”
With his team down 19 with a little over a quarter-and-a-half remaining and not having much success on the ground game, Red Raiders head coach Tim Bukowski decided to abandon the run and let quarterback Brayden Hinzy air it out.
The senior quarterback, who has been playing the position for just two years, helped pull his team back within two scores when he engineered an 80-yard touchdown drive that was culminated by a 20-yard pass to Marcus Evans with 5:22 remaining in the third, which cut the deficit to 28-15.
Hinzy found Nate Hice for a 28-yard gain, and Evans for another 14 yards. Hice pulled in receptions of three and 14 yards prior to Evans’ touchdown reception, where the junior wide receiver kept at least one foot inbounds, which is the rule for high school football.
The drive inspired Uniontown’s defense, who forced the Scotties to punt. The Red Raiders (2-1) pulled within a touchdown and PAT of tying the game five seconds into the fourth quarter when Hinzy threw a 43-yard strike to Evans, who raced into the end zone.
A week after being a key contributor in a Uniontown victory, Evans did everything he could to keep his team in the game. He had 209 yards on eight receptions and scored three touchdowns.
Hice kept Southmoreland’s defense on its toes in catching seven passes for 65 yards.
“Marcus, Nate and Brayden all played great,” Bukowski said. “They put three guys on Marcus there towards the end of the game, and I don’t blame them.
“Marcus has put three good games on film now, so teams are going to try and take him out of the game. If I’m playing us, I am going to try and take him away, so I am going to need other guys to step up. We have guys who can step up, but several of our top skill guys are injured. I have David Settles at ‘Z’ receiver, and he’s a running back, so we need some depth and guys to get healthy.”
The Scotties kept the Red Raiders’ rushing attack in check, but Mike Thomas finished with 32 yards on nine carries.
Bukowski gave Southmoreland credit for its play at the line on both sides of the ball, but Uniontown was down several of its top skill players, which forced the Red Raiders to juggle their lineup.
“Their offensive and defensive lines manhandled us,” Bukowski said. “They pushed us around up front, and that was the biggest thing. We are a beat-up football team. It’s crazy. We had freshmen in there that haven’t really played much, and we also lost guys during the game, and that’s tough.
“We could only use Taylor Galloway on defense, and he is a special player on offense as one of our skill guys. Cam Dugan is also injured and can’t play at all for some time. Hopefully, we can’t get some of these guys healed up and ready to return soon.”
The Scotties were able to burn some time off the clock and upped their lead to 35-21 at 8:22 of the third quarter on Wolfe’s 17-yard run.
Southmoreland attempted a short kickoff following the score, but Ki Richardson put Uniontown in great field position when he took the return 47 yards to the Scotties’ 23-yard line.
The Scotties forced a turnover on downs, and after the Red Raiders forced a punt, Smith’s 54-yard rugby-style punt had Uniontown deep in its own territory.
Uniontown fumbled and the home team capped off the scoring on Wolfe’s 11-yard run with 1:56 remaining in the game.
“We knew there were going to be plays made by both teams, and he’s (Evans) a good athlete, but we have a couple of good athletes,” Shoaf said. “I think what set in stone tonight is the culture that took over, and that’s not leaving any time soon.”
The Red Raiders had a 2-0 advantage with 6:39 left in the first quarter when Smith’s knee was ruled down after he fielded the ball for the punt.
Wolfe scored on a 10-yard run and added a two-point conversion for an 8-2 lead with 8:50 remaining in the second period.
Nick Snyder’s interception set up Southmoreland with a short field at Uniontown’s 21. Jordan scored from nine yards out with 6:26 before halftime, and Smith added the PAT for a 15-2 advantage.
Hinzy and Evans got to work following the home team’s score, when he threw a 52-yard strike and Hunter Smithburger converted the extra point to cut the Scotties’ lead to 15-9.
Hinzy was 18 of 34 for 310 yards and three touchdowns.
The Red Raiders’ Gavin Radford had an interception to stop the Scotties from scoring before halftime.