Football

Extra ‘special’ win: Big plays lift Golden Tigers over rival Lions

Back-to-back stellar special team plays shifted momentum in Hollidaysburg's favor as the Golden Tigers defeated rival Altoona, 24-7, in the opener of the high school football season Friday night at a near-capacity Mansion Park.

With the game tied at seven and just seconds to play in the first half, Altoona jumped offside on a hard count by Hollidaysburg quarterback Vince Albarano, and sophomore Devin Walters drilled a 46-yard field goal with just one second to play in the second quarter.

Before Altoona had a chance to respond, Isaac Vent -- seeing a lot more playing time due to an injury to Carter Muth early in the game -- took the opening kickoff of the second half 70 yards to set up a 5-yard touchdown pass from Albarano to Will Padamonsky to put Hollidaysburg firmly in control.

"My teammate Joey (Richardson) got me a block," Vent said. "I saw an open hole from that to the right. I hit the hole. I thought I was going to get a touchdown, but I ended up getting caught. We definitely got a lot of momentum off that. It set the tone for the second half."

The Golden Tigers added another touchdown and had a goal-line stand later in the game to blank Altoona in the second half after the Mountain Lions had scored the first points of the game on a Cody Chathams 8-yard catch from Mekhi Jackson.

"We got the penalty to get them in field-goal position, and then we came out and didn't tackle on the kickoff," Altoona coach Vince Nedimyer said. "Those were two big plays that kind of turned the momentum of the whole game. We'll get there. We have a lot of kids playing and getting experience. We'll fix it and go from there."

Play of the game: Prior to the special teams heroics, Hollidaysburg got rolling after a slow start on Albarano's 34-yard touchdown pass to J.J. Stultz on fourth-and-3 to tie the game at 7-7. Prior to that play, Altoona's defense was keeping the Golden Tigers' offense in check.

Player of the game: Albarano finished 11-for-16 and threw for 135 yards and two touchdowns after starting the game as a wide receiver and making one catch for 7 yards. He also ran the ball five times for 47 yards and helped run out the clock in the fourth quarter.

"We knew it was going to be packed," Albarano said. "There were White Out conditions. But we made a statement. We came out firing in the second half and didn't look back from there."

White Out lives up to hype: Guido D'Elia, a 1965 Altoona graduate who came up with the concept for the Penn State White Out -- the first of which was held Oct. 9, 2004 -- was the honorary captain, and both sides of the bleachers were filled with white shirts. Both sides were boisterous, especially in the first half when the game was back and forth.

Unsung hero: Vent, who took the bulk of the carries for Hollidaysburg after Carter Muth -- who ran for more than 2,000 yards last season -- was injured on his second carry and did not return. Vent had the big kickoff return and ran the ball 11 times for 41 yards.

"I was not expecting to play as much as I did. But you have to be ready for anything. We have a lot of potential. I think this team can win districts and hopefully have another good state run."

Most vital statistic: Altoona committed seven penalties for 55 yards in the first half, including the offside penalty that set up Walters' go-ahead field goal.

"We were trying to draw them offside, but if they didn't jump, we were going to run our field goal team on and try a 51-yarder," Hollidaysburg coach Homer DeLattre said. "But they jumped, so we got to reset it 5 yards closer and not rush it. As long as we protect him, he's good from 55 or 60. He can do it, but you have to have a good snap, hold and protection."

Most deceiving statistic: Altoona outgained Hollidaysburg for the game, 265 yards to 242 yards.

DeLattre: "It's awesome for high school football. There was probably not a better atmosphere in high school football tonight in Pennsylvania. It's great to have both communities show up and support their teams. Altoona played a hard game. They are physical, and I think they will win some games this year. Both programs represented their communities well, and it was a well-played game by both teams."

Nedimyer: "We have a tendency to score the first drive. Then, we just can't find a way to put it in the end zone after that, but I'm proud of our kids' effort. Give (Hollidaysburg) credit. Homer did a great job with their guys, and they executed when they needed to."

Albarano on Walters' field goal: "I just became the holder this week. I even left the laces out for him, and he still drilled it. Proud of that guy. He's only a sophomore, and he's going to do big things."

Nedimyer on having the stands full consistently: "That comes with victories, we know that," Nedimyer said. "We have a great group of kids. Our senior class, I can't talk enough about them. It's only Week 1. We have a lot we can get better at, and we have to improve from Week 1 to Week 2. We'll see how is healthy and who is not and get back to the drawing board."

Notable: Altoona honored its 2001 team that made it to the PIAA semifinals prior to the game. Altoona athletic director Phil Riccio, the coach of that team, said 35 players made the trip back for Friday's game. ... At school this week, Altoona's seniors handed out white T-shirts for Friday's game to the teachers who made the biggest difference in their lives in an emotional video shown during halftime. ... Prior to the second half, there was a tribute to Dolly Parton on the video board. ... Jackson had 102 yards passing and 45 yards rushing for Altoona. Myzick Clemons had a game-high 83 yards rushing for the Mountain Lions, but 65 of those came on his first carry.

Records: Hollidaysburg (1-0); Altoona (0-1).

Next week: Altoona will host Central Dauphin, and Hollidaysburg will host Allegany, Md. next Friday at 7 p.m.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Hollidaysburg 0 10 14 0 -- 24

Altoona 7 0 0 0 -- 7

First Quarter

A--Chathams 8 pass from Jackson (Chathams kick), 8:47.

Second Quarter

H--Stultz 34 pass from Albarano (Walters kick), 10:04.

H--Walters 46 field goal, :01.

Third Quarter

H--Padamonsky 5 pass from Albarano (Walters kick), 10:54.

H--Snyder 1 run (Walters kick), 2:58.

TEAM STATISTICS H A

First downs 14 12

Total yards 242 265

Rushes-yards 24-100 37-148

Yards passing 142 117

Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 12-21-0 9-16-0

Punts-avg. 3-43 4-31.5

Fumbles-lost 1-0 1-0

Penalties-yards 7-64 4-31.5

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING--Hollidaysburg, Albarano 5-47, Vent 11-41, Richardson 1-6, Snyder 3-4, Consiglio 2-2, Muth 2-0. Altoona, Clemons 12-83, Jackson 16-45, Chathams 3-15, Sipes 4-11, Nedimyer 1-(-4), TEAM 1-(-2).

PASSING--Hollidaysburg, Albarano 11-16-0-135, Wallace 1-5-0-7. Altoona, Jackson 8-15-0-102, B. Pike 1-1-0-15.

RECEIVING--Hollidaysburg, Stultz 3-46, Richardson 2-43, McGough 2-27, Padamonsky 2-21, Albarano 1-7, Wallace 1-2, Vent 1-(-4). Altoona, Chathams 3-36, Walker 2-26, Moyer 1-36, Switzer 1-15, Stump 1-3, Nedimyer 1-1.