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By Kevin Landis
For the Mirror
SOMERSET -- Eli Muthler accounted for two Central touchdowns while teammate Jay Hoenstine had eight receptions for 112 yards and the two scores as the duo helped the Central Scarlet Dragons rebound from a sluggish first half to defeat the Somerset Golden Eagles, 20-13, Friday.
Play of the game: With the game tied at seven at the half, Central used a big play with Muthler hitting Hoenstine on a curl, with Hoenstine getting away from his defender and racing 45 yards for the score on their first offensive play of the third quarter, which seemed to be the spark the Dragons needed to flip the momentum of the game.
Player of the game: Central quarterback Muthler threw 24 times, completing 11 of them, while also scrambling numerous times to keep the plays alive from an intense Somerset pass rush.
Unsung hero: Central punter Adam Loucks time after time flipped field position, showing off his big leg. He punted the ball five times for 210 yards or a 42-yard average.
Most vital statistic: Somerset lost the mental aspect of the game, committing nine penalties for 100 yards compared to just five for 40 yards for Central.
Central coach Jerry Albright: "Our defense has played incredibly the first two weeks. I gave our lines a challenge at halftime that if it was going turn around, it was going to be won upfront, and they answered that challenge."
Somerset coach Jeff Urban: "It all starts with discipline. Life is hard for the undisciplined, life is easy for the disciplined. There are two parts to football the physical aspect and the mental aspect, and I was proud of the effort physically, but we gave the game away mentally."
Muthler on the first play of the second half: "There was a lot of time on that play. Coaches saw some things they thought we could take advantage of, and we ran it on that first play and Jay was able to beat his man and score That gave us the momentum we needed to start believing in ourselves."
Notable: The Somerset trio of Lane Lambert, Rowen Holmes, and Camden Lowry rushed a combined 48 times for 149 yards, often carrying the pile for extra yardage. Somerset had 162 yards of offense in the first half compared to just 27 for Central, but Central turned that around in the second half. Somerset's Rowen Holmes had 20 carries for 116 yards to lead the Golden Eagles.
Records: Central (1-1), Somerset (0-2)
Next week: Central visits Tyrone. Somerset visits Greater Johnstown.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Central 7 0 13 0 -- 20
Somerset 7 0 0 6 -- 13
First Quarter
S--Parry 55 pass from Lambert (Antram kick) 8:47.
C--Beach 1 run (Steele kick) 5:21.
Second Quarter
No scoring.
Third Quarter
C--Hoenstine 45 pass from Muthler (Steele kick) 11:39.
C--Hoenstine 3 pass from Muthler (kick failed) 5:11.
Fourth Quarter
S--Lowery 8 run (kick failed) 7:56
TEAM STATISTICS S C
First downs 16 8
Total Net Yards 194 215
Rushes-yards 50-149 14-76
Passing 45 139
Comp-Att-Int 2-5-0 11-24-0
Punts 3-101 5-210
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 0-0
Penalties-Yards 9-100 5-40
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--Somerset, Lambert 9-67, Holmes 20-116, Lowery 9-67, Miller 1-1, Dunmyer 1-4. Central, Muthler 4-6, Beach 8-59, Mickel 2-11
PASSING--Somerset, Lambert 2-5-0-45. Central, Muthler 11-24-0-139
RECEIVING--Somerset, Parry 1-45 Lowery 1-0 Central, Hoenstine 8-112, Beach 2-26, Musei 1-1.