Tigers pull away from DuBois after key penalty
Tigers pull away after key penalty
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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- What looked like it would be another nailbiter for the Hollidaysburg football team against DuBois in the postseason turned into a mercy-rule victory on a crucial penalty with less than two minutes to play in the first half.
Leading by just six, Vince Albarano's third-and-6 pass fell incomplete from the Golden Tigers' 30-yard line, but DuBois was whistled for defensive holding -- one of 12 penalties for 135 yards on the Beavers -- and Hollidaysburg was awarded a first down.
Albarano took advantage immediately, finding Ethan Coke for a 61-yard touchdown pass that put the Golden Tigers up two scores at the half. They rode that momentum into the second half and pulled away in a 42-22 victory at Tiger Stadium on Friday night in the District 2-6-9 Class 5A playoffs.
"That was a big momentum shift for us," Hollidaysburg coach Homer DeLattre said. "We went from a situation where we were going to be punting, and who knows what would have happened in that situation to taking over in the game. Momentum is a big part of the sport. It really changed the game."
Coke finished with five catches for 162 yards and two touchdowns, but it was Isaac Vent's big 66-yard touchdown run early that helped open up the passing game.
"That was a good run and a great job up front," DeLattre said. "He found the crease similar to last week when he broke a long run to get us rolling. Offensively, we did a lot of good stuff despite having some pass protection issues. For the most part offensively, we were pretty good. Running the football with him forces man coverage, and Vince does a good job finding those matchups and the open guys."
Play of the game: The penalty not only led to an immediate Hollidaysburg touchdown, it started the ball rolling on the DuBois coaching staff losing their composure in a game where the sideline was flagged three times for unsportsmanlike conduct.
"Unfortunately that happens in football," DuBois coach Rob Hanzely said. "Those are the things that are out of our control and out of our hands. I'm so proud of the way our kids reacted and responded and never gave up. They played their tails off. They worked their butts off all week. I'm proud of their effort tonight. We just fell short a little bit."
Player of the game: A week after J.J. Stultz had four touchdown catches for Hollidaysburg, it was Coke's turn to shine. The senior was wide open most of the night but also made a couple clutch first-down catches across the middle.
"When we run the football well, we force man coverage," DeLattre said. "When you have man coverage, there's going to be a matchup somewhere with the skill level of our guys. We also have a good tight end that can catch the ball, so they can't ignore that."
Unsung heroes: Brandon Dawson recovered a DuBois fumble on the Beavers' first possession of the second half, and Vincent Consiglio had an interception on their second to completely deflate any comeback hopes.
Most vital statistic: The Golden Tigers improved to 6-0 against DuBois over the past three seasons.
Most deceiving statistics: DuBois had more first downs (15-13) than Hollidaysburg, and the Golden Tigers only outgained the Beavers by 30 yards. Landon Duncan had 27 carries for 191 yards for DuBois, but 96 of those came on a touchdown run against Hollidaysburg's reserves.
Hollidaysburg running back Vent: "It felt great, and it's definitely a big win. Big shoutout to my offensive line. They made some holes out there for me and gave me a chance to execute. Vince Albarano threw a beautiful pass to me on a wheel route, and we executed. That's what we need to do to win. That play worked out perfectly. We just have to keep doing what we're doing and stick together as a team. We'll be good."
Hanzely: "We came in and had some things we knew we could be successful doing like running the football. We knew it was going to take a full game of trying to stay ahead of them and not let them jump out in front of us. We knew it would be tough to play from behind. They have some stellar athletes that are hard to contain."
Notable: Vent ran for a team-high 87 yards and two touchdowns and also caught a 37-yard touchdown pass on a wheel route. ... Albarano added a 5-yard touchdown run. ... Isaac Wallace, who started the year at quarterback, threw a two-point conversion pass to Tyler Rodgers. ... Hollidaysburg defeated Abington Heights, 24-23, thanks to a blocked extra point in 2024.
Records: DuBois (6-5); Hollidaysburg (8-2).
Next week: Hollidaysburg will take on Abington Heights, a 40-7 winner over Pittston Area, for the District 2-6-9 Class 5A subregional championship at a District 2 site.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
DuBois 7 0 0 15 -- 22
Hollidaysburg 13 8 21 0 -- 42
First Quarter
D--Wilmoth 2 run (Barnes kick), 5:02.
H--Isaac Vent 66 run (Walters kick), 4:44.
H--Vent 37 pass from Albarano (kick failed), 1:08.
Second Quarter
H--Coke 61 pass from Albarano (Rodgers pass from Wallace), 1:44.
Third Quarter
H--Albarano 5 run (Jones kick), 9:03.
H--Vent 2 run (Jones kick), 5:12.
H--Coke 52 pass from Albarano (Jones kick), 3:48.
Fourth Quarter
D--Duncan 96 run (Briggs pass from Kriner), 9:56.
D--Reasinger 2 run (Barnes kick), 3:08.
TEAM STATISTICS D H
First downs 15 13
Total yards 346 376
Rushes-yards 47-266 25-145
Yards passing 80 231
Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 8-19-1 7-11-0
Punts-avg. 3-38 3-28.3
Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1
Penalties-yards 4-20 12-135
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--DuBois, Duncan 27-191, Reasinger 9-58, Wilmoth 8-20, Schaffer 1-0, Gerg 1-(-2), TEAM 1-(-1). Hollidaysburg, Vent 13-87, Garlick 5-25, Albarano 2-11, Schneeberger 2-11, Sapko 1-5, Irwin 1-3, Richardson 1-3.
PASSING--DuBois, Wilmoth 7-18-1-75, Gerg 1-1-0-5. Hollidaysburg, Albarano 7-11-0-231.
RECEIVING--DuBois, Muhammad 3-22, Brackman 2-25, Glass 1-37, Reasinger 1-(-1), Duncan 1-(-3). Hollidaysburg, Coke 5-162, Vent 1-37, McGough 1-32.