Springfield capitalizes on turnovers, shuts out Marple Newtown in rivalry win
Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub
Brendan Ricciardi | September 15, 2023
NEWTOWN SQUARE, PA — This game could have gone a lot differently, but it didn’t.
Marple Newtown looked like they were going to strike first after a great opening drive, but instead, they fumbled on the Springfield one yard line. That’s as close as they would get the entire rest of the game as Springfield shut them out with a 22-0 win.
A Marple Newtown offense that had scored 50, 56, and 47 simply had no answer for the Springfield defense in this one.
Springfield took advantage of that fumble that they recovered when Ryan Whitaker (not Whittaker, sorry about that one Ryan) hit Mike Friel on a perfect throw on 3rd and 18 for a 60-yard score. He couldn’t have put that throw in a better spot if he walked it to him.
What a throw from Ryan Whittaker and what a catch from Mike Friel!@SpringfieldFB jumps out to an early 7-0 lead after a 60-yard touchdown on 3rd and 18 @PaFootballNews pic.twitter.com/4BKUvEnp96
— Brendan Ricciardi (@BPRicciardi) September 15, 2023
After Marple Newtown got the ball back, they made it to around midfield before they had a decision to make. They decided to go for it on fourth down, but they were stopped and the Cougars took over possession once again.
Springfield worked the ball down the field and got it to the one yard line, and Nate Romano did the rest as he powered into the end zone. After a penalty on the PAT, Springfield elected to go for a two-point conversion which they converted to make it 15-0.
The game really hit a stalemate after that one for a while. Both teams were not budging on defense, and the game went to the half still at 15-0.
It would take until nearly the end of the third quarter for either team to get back on the board, as Springfield once again was able to get points after a Marple Newtown turnover. This sequence right here pretty much told the story of the game as Springfield’s Mike Miller recovered a fumble, and Ryan Whitaker hit Chris Dolan with another great touchdown throw to make it a three possession game at 22-0.
Springfield recovers a fumble as Mike Miller comes out with the ball!@SpringfieldFB didn’t waste any time as Ryan Whitaker finds Chris Dolan on another great throw to take a 22-0 lead with just a couple seconds left in the third @PaFootballNews pic.twitter.com/PcvbLdEIFy
— Brendan Ricciardi (@BPRicciardi) September 16, 2023
A game that in the beginning certainly looked like it was going to be jam-packed with action certainly fizzled out after the first few minutes.
With the win, Springfield improves to 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the Central League, with their only loss being a close 19-15 game against reigning co-champion Strath Haven. They’ll be back in action next Saturday at 1:00 as they hit the road to take on Lower Merion.
As for Marple Newtown, that has to be about as humbling of a loss as you can imagine. After scoring 153 points in your first three games combined, getting shutout at home against your biggest rival is a tough pill to swallow.
With that being said, it’s all about how you respond to that first sign of real adversity. They have a huge matchup coming up next Saturday at 2:00 on the road against Ridley as they look to respond.
Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews
