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Altoona Mountain Lions battle, but fall short to Harrisburg

By John Hartsock 5 min read

Altoona stood toe-to-toe with state power Harrisburg for three quarters in the Mid-Penn Conference matchup between the two teams Friday night at Mansion Park, but the unbeaten Cougars capitalized on special teams and short fields to ultimately break away in the fourth quarter and reel off a 40-20 victory.

Senior back Princeton Dent rushed for 125 yards and four touchdowns on 26 carries, while senior quarterback Kayden Stevens completed 13 of 17 passes for 166 yards and another score, as Harrisburg improved to 5-0 overall despite racking up 110 yards in penalties on 14 infractions.

"They've done a good job for us all year,'' Harrisburg coach Calvin Everett said of the Dent-Stevens run-pass combination. "I thought we moved the ball real well tonight when we weren't hurting ourselves with penalties.''

Altoona (3-2 overall and 3-1 in the conference) broke out to a 10-0 first-quarter lead on a 36-yard touchdown burst by senior back Myzick Clemons on the Mountain Lions' opening possession, followed by a 30-yard field goal by sophomore kicker George DelBaggio, before Harrisburg got its footing.

After senior Trays Walker returned the ensuing kickoff to the Mountain Lions' 35, Harrisburg used a short field to get on the board with Dent's first 1-yard touchdown run of the game with 1:05 left in the first quarter.

An 18-yard DelBaggio field goal put the Mountain Lions on top, 13-7 early in the second quarter, but Harrisburg cashed in on a fumble recovery on the Altoona 5 late in the second quarter that paved the way for Dent's second 1-yard touchdown run and a 14-13 Harrisburg halftime lead.

"We weren't really ready to go at the beginning of the game,'' Everett said. "We were still on the bus. It wasn't until the second half that we woke up and got ourselves ready to play football.''

After a shanked Altoona punt out of bounds gave Harrisburg possession at the Mountain Lions' 25 in the third quarter, Harrisburg needed only three plays -- capped off by Dent's 4-yard touchdown run -- to take a 21-13 lead.

"I think that we could have been more disciplined, but when it came time to execute, we got the job done,'' said Dent, who scored his fourth touchdown of the night on a 1-yard fourth-quarter run as the game clock expired.

"We got moving in the second half, and that's what helped us take over the game,'' Dent said.

Starting from the Altoona 45 early in the fourth quarter, Harrisburg took a commanding 28-13 lead when Stephens connected with Walker on a 31-yard touchdown pass.

Stephens, who was an all-state selection last year, felt that the Cougars mixed the run and pass well Friday.

"Being able to run and pass well makes us a bigger threat,'' Stephens said. "It's one thing to succeed putting the ball in the air, but when P.J. (Princeton Dent) is running the ball like he did tonight, he's very elusive.''

The Mountain Lions, hampered by the absence of the injured Clemons in the second half, never quit fighting. Junior quarterback Mekhi Jackson's beautfully-thrown 38-yard touchdown pass to senior wideout Noah Stump pulled Altoona to within 28-20 with 7:33 left, before Harrisburg promptly responded with another short-field scoring drive that was set up by senior Jayion Lewis's kick return to the Mountain Lions' 24.

Harrisburg needed only three running plays by junior back Ja'Auan Johnson -- the last a 9-yard TD scamper -- to go up 34-20 with 6:16 left.

"We were right there tonight -- up 10-0 at the start,'' Altoona coach Vince Nedimyer said. "Our kids really believed in themselves and I couldn't be more proud of how they hung in there against one of the top Class 6A teams in the state.''

Play of the game: The 31-yard fourth-quarter scoring pass from Stephens to Walker helped Harrisburg regain its two-touchdown lead.

Player of the game: Call it a toss-up between Stephens and Dent.

Unsung hero: Altoona's Stump caught four passes for 73 yards and also made the key fumble recovery on defense.

Most vital statistic: Harrisburg started scoring drives from the Altoona 35, the 5, the 25 and the 24. "They had some short fields for sure tonight and in the second half, they capitalized on them,'' Nedimyer said.

Notable: It was Childhood Cancer Awareness Night, with all cancer survivors asked via the public address system to stand for recognition prior to the game ... Altoona freshman Colton Sipes, who got some significant playing time Friday, is a childhood cancer survivor. Sipes, the younger brother of former Altoona PIAA wrestling finalist Luke Sipes, was himself a Pennsylvania Junior Olympic Wrestling champion this past March ... Sophomore Zahyr O'Neal intercepted a pass for Altoona, while Johnson and Duron London recovered fumbles for Harrisburg ... Longtime Altoona High gymnastics coach Mark Biseli served as the honorary captain.

Records: Harrisburg (5-0); Altoona (3-2).

Next week: Altoona hosts Chambersburg Friday night and Harrisburg hosts Carlisle Saturday afternoon.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Harrisburg 7 7 7 19--40

Altoona 10 3 0 7--20

First Quarter

A--Clemons 36 run (Delbaggio kick), 5:51.

A--Delbaggio 30 FG, 3:54.

H--Dent 1 run (Garay-Oropeza kick), 3:29.

Second Quarter

A--Delbaggio 18 FG, 9:32.

H--Dent 1 run (Garay-Oropeza kick), 3:29.

Third Quarter

H--Dent 4 run (Garay-Oropeza kick), 9:35.

Fourth Quarter

H--Walker 31 pass from Stephens (Garay-Oropeza kick), 10:00.

A--Stump 38 pass from Jackson (Delbaggio kick), 7:33.

H--Johnson 1 run (kick failed), 6:16.

H--Dent 1 run (no kick), 0:00.

TEAM STATISTICS H A

First downs 13 12

Total yards 370 233

Rushes-yards 41-204 31-139

Yards passing 166 94

Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 12-16-1 10-20-0

Punts/avg. 1-31 3-27.3

Fumbles-lost 1-1 3-2

Penalties-yards 14-110 6-45

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING--Harrisburg, Dent 26-125, Johnson 10-53, Stephens 4-15, Walker 1-11. Altoona, Clemons 17-91, Nedimyer 4-45, Stump 1-6, Sipes 2-2, Jackson 7-(-5).

PASSING--Harrisburg, Stephens 13-17-1-166. Altoona, Jackson 10-20-0-94.

RECEIVING--Harrisburg, Lewis 4-62, Walker 3-63, Sinkler 2-18, Dent 2-(-4), Collier 1-24, Johnson 1-3. Altoona, 5-16, Stump 4-73, Nedimyer 1-5.

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