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By Kevin Petrochko
For the Mirror
ALEXANDRIA -- The Juniata Valley Hornets were firing on all cylinders on Saturday night as they jump-started their season with a 34-7 victory over the Newport Buffaloes at A.R. Simkins Memorial Field.
Sophomore running back Andrew Clark led the charge, finishing with 15 carries for 85 yards and one touchdown in the third quarter.
"I was feeling great," Clark said. "I had a lot of blocks and made a couple moves, and that's all you need really."
Jett Rand left the game in the first half with an injury, and sophomore quarterback Damian Williams came in and completed two of the Hornets' five touchdowns on the night.
"I honestly think I stepped up to the role after our QB went down," Williams said. "I think I performed really well, and sometimes you don't expect things to happen, but that's just how the cookie crumbles."
After the injury, Juniata Valley kept its foot on the gas for the rest of the game, both on the ground and through the air.
"I give credit to the coaches for making sure we were prepared," Hornet coach Bill Musser said. "I thought my assistant coaches did a nice job with having people prepared tonight."
Newport senior wide receiver Ethan Grove had a 14-yard touchdown run in the first quarter for the Buffaloes.
Despite the loss, Newport was pleased with its effort.
"I was pleased with the way we came out," Newport coach Todd Rothermel said. "This team didn't quit; they fought until the end."
The game was canceled with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter due to an injury.
Play of the game: With 8:26 left in the third quarter, Logan Brantner caught a 26-yard touchdown pass to give the Hornets a 20-7 lead.
Player of the game: Juniata Valley's Damian Williams entered the game after an injury and completed 9-of-16 passes for 108 total yards.
Unsung hero: Hornet running back Levi Thompson racked up 50 yards on 12 carries.
Most vital statistic: Juniata Valley finished the game with 494 total yards.
Coach Musser: "On defense I think we played a total of 18 players, and that's a testament to them wanting to play and the coaches having them prepared.''
Coach Rothermel: "We were close on a couple things; we were just a tweak here or a tweak there off.''
Clark: "I thought we played well as a unit, and our line stepped up for me.''
Notable: The game was canceled with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter due to a serious injury to Newport's Dalton Kratzer.
Records: Juniata Valley (1-0); Newport (0-1).
Next week: The Hornets travel to North Star while Newport hosts Line Mountain.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Newport 7 0 0 0 -- 7
Juniata Valley 6 8 6 14 -- 34
First Quarter
JV--Hoover 6 pass (Thompson kick), 6:51.
N--Groves 14 pass (Bates kick), 1:16.
Second Quarter
JV--Hoover 6 pass (conversion good), 6:50.
Third Quarter
JV--Brantner 26 pass (kick failed), 8:34.
Fourth Quarter
JV--Clark 3 run (Thompson kick), 9:30.
JV--Harker 16 run (Thompson kick), 4:30.
TEAM STATISTICS N JV
First downs 10 19
Total yards 101 494
Rushes-yards 21-101 42-198
Yards passing 0 296
Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 0-13-1 15-26-1
Punts-avg. 4-22.2 1-23
Fumbles-lost 1 0
Penalties-yards 8-80 5-30
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--Newport, Kratzer 11-70, Cigic 4-6, Arnold 4-11, Bates 1-0, Grove 1-14. Juniata Valley, Thompson 12-50, Clark 15-85, Prough 3-2, Hoover 3-32, Rand 1-(-1), Norris 2-11, Williams 1-0, Harker 5-19.
PASSING--Newport, Arnold 0-13-0-1. Juniata Valley, Rand 6-10-62-0, Williams 9-16-108-1.
RECEIVING--Newport, none. Juniata Valley, Hoover 3-27, Brantner 4-59, Norris 1-20, Clark 1-2, Dick 1-18.