The Funding Zone
 
SAFR: Safer Through Science
 

Cardinals Soar Past Patriots 35-0

Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub, News

| November 12, 2022

HC Bret Stover congratulates his team after their 35-0 victory.

Fort Washington- Over the course of 72 hours Hurricane Nicole managed to persuade many programs across the state to adjust their playoff schedules for safety concerns in Pennsylvania, though some administrations were more eager than most to stay the course Friday night. Thank goodness Nicole seemed to take a break for a few hours and allowed my game of the week to be played without a hiccup.  In the second round of the District One playoffs the visiting eighth seeded Patriots of Great Valley (8-4,5-2) took on the number one seed Upper Dublin Cardinals (12-0,6-0). The Cards were paced by players of the game, senior quarterback Colin O’Sullivan who completed 75% of his passes for 299 yards & 3 TDs & senior running back Nyfise McIntyre who rushed for 125 yards on 23 carries (5.4 avg.) & 2 TDs.  Upper Dublin showed why they are the number one team on PFN’s rankings for 5A as they controlled the game from opening kickoff and never looked back. On their first three possessions they put up 21 points.  Senior running back Nyfise McIntyre got the party started only 2 minutes in when he scampered 14-yards to the end zone after two beautifully set up passes from O’Sullivan to senior wideouts DJ Cerisier and Griffin Pensabene respectfully.

Great Valley was under duress all evening as they only mustered 15 total rushing yards. After the Cardinals defense forced the Patriots to punt, three plays later O’Sullivan found one of his favorite targets again. DJ Cerisier hauled in a 10-yard out spun away from his defender and raced untouched 62-yards to the house. After the Austin Pendleton extra point was good, the lead extended to 14-0 with 6:50 left to play in the quarter.

Great Valley again, had no response for that smothering UD defense that saw DT Kyree Butler have such an effect on the offense that they had to triple team him in some cases to even move the ball.  On the Cards next possession, they found themselves posted at the 22-yard line and within striking distance of extending their lead by three scores. With the clock winding down and 1:28 left in the quarter O’Sullivan dropped a dime into the endzone where only an outstretched Starling Reaves could nab it and boy oh boy did he catch it.

Reaves made probably one of the best catches I’ve seen this season and was able to get both feet down though he only needed one according to PIAA rules. After the Austin Pendleton extra point the Cards had a comfortable 21-0 lead as the time expired in the first quarter.  The second quarter saw the Patriots buckle down on defense slightly and refused to allow another Upper Dublin point and even forced a few punts until we were sitting at the 25 second mark in the half. Colin O’Sullivan saw something in the defense, made an adjustment at the line, & then found senior wideout Chris Kohlbrenner who had been streaking across the middle and raced 62-yards to paydirt.

The Austin Pendleton point after made the score 28-0 as we marched into the half.  The third quarter was relatively quiet and saw UD eat up clock on the ground. Great Valley QB Braeden Melia who finished 13 of 23 for 121 yards completed a few nice passes during the third to seniors Jack Coffey (3-49) & Jackson Callaghan (4-41). The fourth quarter saw the cardinals defense just be relentless and even blocked a punt. Through 12 games the defense has yielded only 93 points which is an average of 7.75 points per. Through the first two rounds they haven’t given up any. The Cards have outscored their opponents 70-0.  With 10:30 to go in the game, senior running back Nyfise McIntyre capped his 125-yard evening with his second touchdown from 3-yards out.

The Pendleton point after made it 35-0 which is how this one would end.   The Patriots may have only mustered 136 yards of total offense but they finished out the year 8-4 overall, won a playoff game, & have much to look forward to next season. Upper Dublin remains undefeated and moves on to the semifinal round against the 5th seeded Colonials of Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-2) who beat the 4th seeded Chester Clippers last night 30-12. The intrigue of this semifinal matchup has my blood pumping extra fast as PW is the team who ended the Cardinals playoff run last season in an overtime thriller 42-36.

 

UD 21 7 0 7 – 35

GV  0 0 0 0 – 0

Rushing

UD: McIntyre 23-125, 2 TD, Fields 5-20, O’Sullivan 1-1, Shyne Roberts 1-2, Cornbluth 1-3.

GV: Coffey 9-19, Pellicciotta 2-4, Kiselak 1-0, Melia 6-(-8)

Passing

UD: O’Sullivan 12-16-299-3-0.

GV: Melia 13-23-121-0-0, Kiselak 0-1-0-0-0.

Receiving

UD: Pensabene 4-51, Reaves 3-65, TD, Cerisier 2-81, TD, Kohlbrenner 1-62, TD, Zamborsky 2-39.

GV: Callahan 4-41, Coffey 3-49, Newell 2-18, Crouse 2-13, Masiowski 2-0.

 

*Player(s) of the Game:

Colin O’Sullivan 12-16 299 yards 3 TDs

Nyfise McIntyre 23-125 yards 2 TDs

 

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
QwikCut
 
GoRout
 
Rainbow Lettering
 
x