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Wilmington rushes past Chestnut Ridge @CRLionsFootball @WilmingtonSD @Hounds4L @smcconahy44

Tagged under: District 10, District 5, Gameday Hub, News

| November 14, 2020

There was no stopping the Wilmington Greyhounds Friday night.

The “Hounds bullied the line scrimmage and rushed for 613 yards up a 56-29 victory over Chestnut Ridge.

“We were able to get things clicking offensively tonight, and that’s exactly what we wanted to see,” said Wilmington head coach Brandon Phillian. “Coming into this football game, we wanted to get back to being physical up front. Win in the trenches and control the line of scrimmage. I thought we did that tonight, and our line was sensational.”

This season marked the third straight year Wilmington has eliminated the Lions from the postseason.

“They’ve held the upper hand on us the last three years,” said Chestnut Ridge head coach Max Shoemaker. “We’ve battled them. We just haven’t had enough missiles on deck. Tonight we had them on their heels a couple of different times. Good teams find a way to turn the corner, and once they did, they got the upper hand on us.”

Chestnut Ridge went toe-to-toe with the favored Greyhounds for one half of football. In the end, however, Wilmington proved to be too much despite a spirited performance by the Lions.

Arguably the biggest play of the game came on the opening drive of the game.

The Lions took the opening kickoff and drove right down the field thanks to Logan Pfister’s 50-yard bomb to Joe Gardner on the game’s first play.

Facing a 3rd-and-goal from the ‘Hounds 6-yard line, Pfister couldn’t corral the snap, and Luke Edwards picked up the loose ball and raced 90 yards for the ice breaker.

“That was critical because it allowed us to play with the lead,” said Phillian. “We were able to stay at least one score ahead, from a momentum standpoint, that was huge.”

Pfister and the Lions weren’t rattled and proceeded to score on their next three possessions.

“We didn’t help ourselves tonight,” said Shoemaker. “At halftime, we were down two scores, but it was an even ball game. Had we converted, then that would’ve been a 14-point swing in our favor.”

Matt Whysong hauled in a 29-yard pass from Pfister, then took a reverse handoff 46 yards for a touchdown as Chestnut Ridge led 15-14 after a quarter.

 

Whysong had another big game for the Lions, collecting 125 yards of total offense (79 receiving, 46 rushing). Including a spectacular two-point catch following a bad snap on the Lions first touchdown.

Chestnut Ridge simply had no answer for the Wilmington ground game as the Greyhounds scored on their first eight possessions.

“We didn’t expect to have this type of offensive performance tonight,” said Phillian. “Chestnut Ridge is not only an outstanding football team but an exceptional football program. They are well-coached, and we had adjustments we were prepared to make. The difference was what our offensive line was able to do up front.”

Ethan Susen scored on runs of ten and 26 yards that put Wilmington ahead 21-15.

Chestnut Ridge battled back and took the lead when Pfister fought his way into the end zone from 11 yards out.

“When you’re playing a quarterback like Pfister, you can’t expect to stop him,” said Phillian. “He’s too talented, he’s a student of the game, and you can tell by the way he makes reads. He one of the best players I’ve coached against.”

Wilmington responded significantly to scoring the game’s next four touchdowns, all by Susen, who had a monster game rushing for 311 yards on 28 carries.

Susen scored on runs of 45 and two yards to close the first half, while his 35-yard jaunt put the ‘Hounds in front 49-22.

“Defensively, we were at a loss trying to figure out how to stop all their weapons,” said Shoemaker. “Their huge offensive line stymied us.”

The Lions were able to get one back when Pfister connected with Trevor Weyandt from nine yards out late in the third quarter.

Pfister completed 13-of-26 for 207 yards and two touchdowns with and an interception.

“Logan has been a tremendous player for us for the last three season,” Shoemaker said. “He’s our trigger guy. He showed again tonight what he’s capable of; he’s a special player.”

Their initial drive of the second half had promise but was snuffed out at the Greyhounds 13-yard line when Pfister was stopped for no gain on a 4th-and-1.

Wilmington then all but put the game away, driving 87 yards capped with Susen’s 35-yard run.

Darren Miller capped the scoring for the evening with a 28-yard run to open the fourth quarter.

 

Miller also had a huge game rushing for 247 yards on 21 attempts.

Wilmington advances to the semifinals, where they’ll meet the WPIAL Champion, either Beaver Falls or Sto-Rox.

“No matter who comes out on top tomorrow, we’re going to play not only a great football team but a great football program,” Phillian said.  “The winner of that matchup will no doubt be a solid opponent. We’re going to look forward to the opportunity to play one of them.”

Chestnut Ridge caps another successful season at 7-3.

“We lost to an outstanding football team tonight. “I told our kids that we had a great season too. We came up short tonight against a great football team. All three teams we lost to are now in the final four. That is certainly something they can be proud of,” Shoemaker concluded.

Game Highlights:

 

Wilmington 56 Chestnut Ridge 29

Score by Quarters

Chestnut Ridge – 15 7 7 0 – 29
Wilmington – 14 21 14 7 – 56

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

W – Luke Edwards 90 yd fumble return, (Dan Hartwell pat), 9:24

CR – Matt Whysong 29 yd pass from Logan Pfister, (Whysong from Pfister), 5:05

W – Ethan Susen 10 yd run, (Hartwell pat), 2:16

CR – Whysong 46 yd run, (Jack Moyer pat), 1:18

Second Quarter

W – Susen 26 yd run, (Hartwell pat), 10:43

CR – Pfister 11 yd run, (Moyer pat), 7:02

W – Susen 45 yd run, (Hartwell pat), 4:38

W – Susen 2 yd run, (Hartwell pat), 0:58

Third Quarter

W – Susen 4 yd run, (Susen rush), 9:51

W – Susen 35 yd run, (kick failed), 5:31

CR – Trevor Weyandt 9 yd pass from Pfister, (Moyer pat), 2:21

Fourth Quarter

W – Darren Miller 28 yd run, (Hartwell pat), 11:51

Individual Stats

Rushing: Chestnut Ridge – Nick Presnell 17-46, Pfister 9-31, Matt Whysong 1-46, Gage Dunlap 1-8, Team 1-(-4). Totals: 29-127. Wilmington – Susen 28-311, Miller 21-247, Caelan Bender 5-55, Team 3-0. Totals: 57-613.

Passing: Chestnut Ridge – Pfister 13-for-26, 207 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception. Wilmington – Bender 3-for-5, 36 yards.

Receiving: Chestnut Ridge – Matt Whysong 6-79, Joe Gardner 2-85, Weyandt 3-36, Nate Whysong 1-4, Jordan Mock 1-3. Wilmington – Susen 3-36.

Interceptions: Wilmington – Bender.

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