Trending
MECHANICSBURG -- It may not have been the quality of Joe Montana leading the San Francisco 49ers 92 yards to win Super Bowl XXIII, but Altoona's Parker White ran the two-minute drill about as well as any coach could ask of a high school quarterback at the end of Friday's game.
With Altoona down 16-14, White and the Mountain Lion offense went 72 yards in just less than two minutes to set up a 25-yard field goal for Cody Chathams. The junior kicker nailed it with 20 seconds left to give Altoona its first win in dramatic fashion, 17-16, over Cumberland Valley at Chapman Stadium.
The Mountain Lions had no timeouts, and rather than risk the game clock running out before they could get a shot at a field goal, Altoona coach Vince Nedimyer Jr. elected to kick the field goal on third down from the Eagles' 8-yard line.
"We knew (Chathams') range was right about where we were," Nedimyer said. "It was third down and we were talking and I said, 'We have to kick it now.' I was too afraid to not be able to get the kicking team out there. We put the kid in a situation to make a play, and he freakin' did it. I couldn't be happier for him."
Altoona's Michael Chisolm picked off a last-second prayer from Eagle quarterback Kameron Wolfe to put the game in the bag.
Play of the game: Any of the 10 plays in the two-minute drill could qualify, but give a lot of credit to Julian Hazlewood for getting 8 yards on a run on third and 6 from the Cumberland Valley 23 with 48 seconds to play. The first down got Altoona a realistic shot at a field goal.
Player of the game: White's stat line doesn't tell the whole story. He was 9-of-22 for 105 yards passing, and he also rushed 13 times for 51 yards. But his poise down the stretch was a huge factor in the win.
Unsung heroes: The Altoona PAT block team got a lot of pressure on a Cumberland Valley extra point attempt after the Eagles went ahead 16-14 with 9:46 to play. It's unclear if anyone got a hand on the ball, but the pressure was enough for the ball to hit off the upright, which left the door open for Chathams' heroics.
Most vital statistic: The total offense is almost identical with Cumberland Valley getting a slight win, 268-262. The difference really was a missed extra point.
Nedimyer: "You open the season with two big rivals, and we put two good first halves together. Our goal this week was to have our kids be as fresh as they could. I think that really helped in the second half. We sputtered in the second half our first two games. Tonight, we were able to step up and make big plays."
Cumberland Valley coach Josh Oswalt: "Hats off to Coach Nedimyer. Their No. 7 (White) is a dog. That kid is tough as nails. We were hitting him all night, and he kept getting up. It's a disciplined offense we faced tonight. That's how Altoona wins games. They're going to grind you out."
White: "This is amazing. We knew we'd give them a good game. We knew it would be a battle. We left a couple plays out there we could've made, but we got the win."
Chathams: "We practice that situation all the time. I'm not sure (of my range), but I'm going to find out now."
Notable: There was only one turnover in the entire game, which was Chisolm's interception to finish it. ... Wolfe also did a lot of damage on the Altoona defense, both with his arm and his legs. He was 11-for-20 for 153 yards, and also had 16 carries for 73 yards.
Records: Altoona (1-2); Cumberland Valley (1-2)
Next week: Altoona hosts Central Dauphin, while Cumberland Valley visits State College.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Altoona 0 7 7 3 -- 17
Cumberland Valley 3 7 0 6 -- 16
First Quarter
CV--Snyder 26 FG, 3:20.
Second Quarter
A--Clemons 16 run (Chathams kick), 4:35
CV--Pines 18 pass from Wolfe (Snyder kick), :47.
Third Quarter
A--White 1 run (Chathams kick), 5:35
Fourth Quarter
CV--Smith 27 pass from Wolfe (kick failed), 9:46
A--Chathams 25 FG, :20
TEAM STATISTICS A CV
First downs 17 16
Total yards 262 268
Rushes-yards 35-157 33-115
Yards passing 105 153
Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 9-22-0 11-20-1
Punts-avg. 5-39 6-32.3
Fumbles-lost 0-0 1-0
Penalties-yards 7-50 7-65
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--Altoona, White 13-51, Clemons 9-38, Baer 5-25, Chathams 2-18, Hazlewood 4-16, Stump 1-10, Team 1-(-1). Cumberland Valley, Wolfe 16-73, Bushman 14-42, Johnson 1-5, Sherman 1-(-1), Erole 1-(-4).
PASSING--Altoona, White 9-22-105-0-0. Cumberland Valley, Wolfe 11-20-153-2-1.
RECEIVING--Altoona, Baer 2-31, Chathams 3-27, Baker 1-20, Chisholm 2-16, Wukovich 1-11. Cumberland Valley, Pines 4-57, Sherman 3-43, Smith 2-43, Erole 1-10, Bushman 1-0.