Football

Guilfoyle steamrolls Ridge

Five was the most significant and operative number Friday night as undefeated Bishop Guilfoyle Academy cruised to a 47-7 Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference mercy-rule victory over Chestnut Ridge at Mansion Park.

BG senior star Hamilton Gates scored five touchdowns -- two rushing, two receiving and one on a fumble recovery and 55-yard return -- and Chestnut Ridge turned the ball over five times, four on interceptions. Two of the turnovers directly produced BG touchdowns, while three others paved the way for three more scores in the game for the Marauders, who scored 27 points in the second quarter to build a 34-0 halftime lead.

"I thought that we played a pretty complete game,'' said BG coach Justin Wheeler, whose Marauders improved to 8-0. "Our offense moved the ball, our defense created turnovers, and our special teams units played well, except for a couple unsuccessful point-after-touchdown plays.''

After Braden Reilly's interception set up a 2-yard Gates touchdown run with 2:36 left in the first quarter, the Marauders blew the game open in the second quarter.

Defensive end Jake Kissell read a pass by Chestnut Ridge starting quarterback Cale Harrison perfectly, picked it off at the Ridge 40 and ran untouched to the end zone 9 seconds into the second period to give BG a 14-0 advantage.

"I thought that Jake's pick-6 gave us a lot of energy and really kind of got us rolling,'' Wheeler said.

Kissell, a junior, was in the right place at the right time, and made a big play.

"I was playing defensive end, I read their screen pass, the ball was thrown my way, and I took it to the house,'' Jake Kissell said. "I'm glad that I could do it for my team.''

Following that play, BG immediately executed an onside kick and senior Nick McCloskey recovered it at the Ridge 45, setting up a six-play Marauders' scoring drive that was capped off by senior quarterback Chase Kissell's perfect 20-yard scoring pass to Gates in the left corner of the end zone.

On Ridge's ensuing possession, Gates, playing defensive back, stripped a Ridge back of the football at the BG 45, and took the fumble recovery down the left side of the field for a touchdown with 7:28 left in the first half, giving the Marauders a 28-0 lead.

"Their running back was running the ball, our whole team had him held up, and I stripped the ball loose,'' Gates said. "Although we definitely have room for improvement, we're clicking on all cylinders as a team right now, with the postseason approaching.''

Ridge senior quarterback Cale Harrison left the game with an ankle injury while being tackled on the Lions' next possession, and BG got the ball back and covered 51 yards, with Chase Kissell's 25-yard pass to Gates setting up Gates' 1-yard TD burst with 2:43 left in the first half.

The Marauders kicked the mercy rule into play on Chase Kissell's 11-yard touchdown pass to Gates in the third quarter, following an interception by Tyson Lestochi.

Plays of the game: Two stood out, both on defense, and both in the second quarter, for BG. They were Jake Kissell's interception return for a touchdown and Gates' fumble recovery and touchdown run.

Player of the game: Gates.

Unsung heroes: BG's first-team defense kept Ridge off the scoreboard and came up with five turnovers, all of which factored in touchdowns.

Most vital statistics: Ridge turned the ball over five times while BG did not commit a single turnover. BG racked up 303 yards in total offense -- 156 through the air and 147 on the ground -- while limiting Ridge to a total of just 111 yards.

Wheeler on Gates' performance: "He gets (touchdowns) offensively and defensively. He's a pretty special player.''

Chestnut Ridge coach Max Shoemaker: "It's kind of obvious what the storyline was tonight -- with four picks and a fumble, and a minus-five turnover ratio, you're not going to win any games. Hats off to BG. They're an outstanding team with athletes that we couldn't match up with -- athletes that a lot of teams cannot match up with -- and those athletes accounted for several big plays tonight.''

Notable: Carolyn Maguda was crowned BG's homecoming queen, while football player Isaac Yeskey was named BG's homecoming king ... Jake Kissell, backing up his brother Chase at quarterback in the fourth quarter, ran 8 yards for the Marauders' final touchdown following a McCloskey interception ... Ridge averted a shutout on Owen Claycomb's 6-yard touchdown run with 6:31 left in the game against BG's defensive reserves.

Records: Chestnut Ridge (4-4); Bishop Guilfoyle (8-0).

Next week: Bishop Guilfoyle travels to Philipsburg-Osceola; Chestnut Ridge hosts Richland.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Chestnut Ridge 0 0 0 7 -- 7

Bishop Guilfoyle 7 27 6 7 --47

First Quarter

BG--Gates 2 run (Boland kick), 2:36.

Second Quarter

BG--J. Kissell 40 interception return (Cacciotti kick), 11:51.

BG--Gates 20 pass from C. Kissell (Boland kick), 10:00.

BG--Gates 55 fumble return (Cacciotti kick), 7:28.

BG--Gates 1 run (pass failed), 2:53.

Third Quarter

BG--Gates 11 pass from C. Kissell (kick failed), 6:37.

Fourth Quarter

BG--J. Kissell 1 run (Boland kick), 11:06.

CR--Claycomb 6 run (Sandoval-ronquillo kick), 6:31

TEAM STATISTICS CR BG

First downs 5 16

Total yards 111 303

Rushes-yards 27-96 32-147

Yards passing 15 156

Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 1-7-4 11-18-0

Punts/avg. 2-34.5 1-39

Fumbles-lost 1-1 0-0

Penalties-yards 0-0 3-15

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING--Chestnut Ridge, Webb 21-78, Wharton 4-21, Pincin 1-4, Harrison 1-(-7). Bishop Guilfoyle, Wheeler 5-37, Consiglio 7-34, Gioiosa 5-34, J. Kissell 5-23, Gates 5-11, C. Kissell 4-5, Okonak 1-3.

PASSING--Chesnut Ridge, Harrison 1-3-2-15; Pincin 0-4-2-0. Bishop Guilfoyle, C. Kissell 10-17-0-156; J. Kissell 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING--Chestnut Ridge, Ickes 1-15. Bishop Guilfoyle, Gates 6-86, Reilly 2-49, Consiglio 1-13, J. Kissell 1-8.