High School Football

Plummer answers the call for B-A in victory

H.S. football extra

BELLWOOD -- Chase Plummer has made a pretty nice complement to fellow senior Alex McCartney in the Bellwood-Antis backfield all season.

In the opening round of the District 6 Class 2A playoffs on Friday night, it was Plummer getting the brunt of the work in a run game that picked up 241 rushing yards for the night.

Plummer went for 128 rushing yards on just 11 carries, while McCartney picked up 80 yards on 13 rushes to lead the third-seeded Blue Devils over No. 6 Bald Eagle Area, 34-10, on Friday evening at John R. Hayes Field at Memorial Stadium.

"We talk about 'we' being greater than 'me.' Our kids all stepped up," Bellwood-Antis coach Nick Lovrich said. "Tonight was a really good night for Chase. Brady (Crist) made some plays. Alex made plays. It was a great team effort tonight."

It was the third straight year that Bellwood picked up an opening-round victory, although the last two years were both on the road at River Valley.

The Eagles battled injuries all throughout the season, and finished the year at 5-6.

"When (Bellwood) has to make a play, they make plays," BEA coach Jesse Nagle said. "They've done that for three years. Everybody talks about (McCartney) and he's a good back. (Plummer) is a dude. I don't think he gets the credit he deserves. I knew coming in they were both good."

Sequence of the game: After Plummer scored on a 21-yard touchdown run to make it 17-3 with 1:16 left in the first half, Bellwood's defense got a quick three-and-out on the Bald Eagle offense and used a couple timeouts.

The Blue Devils were able to get in field goal range in just three plays, which set up a Miles Smearman 33-yard field goal to end the first half. The field goal put Bellwood up three possessions at 20-3 at halftime.

Player of the game: Plummer had gains of 42, 29, 21, and 20 yards on his way to a 128-yard, 11-carry performance to go with a touchdown.

Unsung heroes: Bellwood's defense only gave up 10 points to a Bald Eagle team that's usually very dangerous on offense.

The only touchdown they allowed came in the fourth quarter on a 54-yard pass from Mason Nagle to Avery Frank with 3:09 remaining. Crist and Curtis Shedlock both had interceptions.

Most vital statistic: Down 20-3 at halftime, Bald Eagle Area ran 16 plays on offense in the third quarter and ran off 10 minutes of clock, but weren't able to get any points out of either possession.

Lovrich: "I thought it was a really good start to the playoffs. We played a really good team. (Bald Eagle) is a lot better than a 5-5 team. I was really happy with our kids tonight."

Nagle: "Bellwood is a very good football team. They capitalized on opportunities, and we didn't tonight. If we do, we might be talking a little bit differently right now. They're very experienced. They're senior-heavy. That plays a big factor in things."

Plummer: "When you play in a conference like the LHAC, and you go against them in the playoffs, you can't take anyone lightly. Coach really emphasized executing today, and we did that."

Notable: Bellwood quarterback Bradyn Partner was 7 for 9 for 85 yards for the night. Backup QB Bryson Guyer got time in the fourth quarter and made the most of it with a 23-yard touchdown pass to Jeffrey Waite in his only pass attempt. ... Bald Eagle Area had seven different players catch a pass for the night. ... Mason Nagle was 8 for 15 for 149 yards with a touchdown pass and two interceptions.

Records: Bald Eagle Area (5-6); Bellwood-Antis (8-3)

Next week: Bellwood-Antis will travel to No. 2 Richland for the Class 2A semifinals. The Rams defeated Southern Huntingdon, 44-8, on Friday.

Richland has eliminated Bellwood three times in the postseason since 2020.

"They've been the team that's kind of been the thorn in our side," Lovrich said. "The kids will be really fired up."

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Bald Eagle Area 0 3 0 7 — 10

Bellwood-Antis 3 17 0 14 — 34

First Quarter

BA–Smearman 29 field goal, 3:32.

Second Quarter

BA–McCartney 4 run, (Smearman kick), 8:01.

BEA–Penland 27 field goal, 4:26.

BA–Plummer 21 run, (Smearman kick), 1:16.

BA–Smearman 33 field goal, :00.

Fourth Quarter

BA–Crist 3 run, (Smearman kick), 10:11.

BA–Waite 23 pass from Guyer, (Smearman kick), 6:34.

BEA–Frank 54 pass from M. Nagle, (Penland kick), 3:09.

TEAM STATISTICS BEA BA

First downs 12 15

Total yards 280 349

Rushes-yards 29-130 34-241

Yards passing 150 108

Pass (comp.-att.-int.) 9-18-2 8-10-0

Punts-avg. 2-43 3-33.3

Fumbles-lost 1-0 0-0

Penalties-yards 5-42 6-50

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING--Bald Eagle Area, Kleisath 18-80, Clark 3-23, X. Nagle 5-9, Quimby 1-8, M. Nagle 1-7, Cane 1-3. Bellwood-Antis, Plummer 11-128, McCartney 13-80, Crist 2-22, Partner 2-6, Evans 3-4, Cherry 1-3, Dorminy 2-(-2).

PASSING--Bald Eagle Area, M. Nagle 8-15-2-149; Cane 1-2-0-1; D. Nagle 0-1-0-0. Bellwood-Antis, Partner 7-9-0-85; Guyer 1-1-0-23.

RECEIVING--Bald Eagle Area, Frank 1-54, J. Johnson 1-43, D. Nagle 1-19, Danneker 2-18, Cane 2-16, I. Johnson 1-1, Kleisath 1-(-1). Bellwood-Antis, Dorminy 3-41, Waite 2-40, Plummer 2-23, Shedlock 1-4.