Stream Pennsylvania High School Football on the NFHS Network
 
 

Central Valley rolls past Avonworth @CoachLyonsCVfb @cvqbclub @AvonworthFB

Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News

| October 23, 2021

Pittsburgh – Central Valley scored three touchdowns in the first 8:28 and never looked back as Warriors rolled past Avonworth 43-6 Friday night.

“Our guys came into this game with a chip on their shoulder, and they were locked tonight from the opening kickoff,” said Central Valley head coach Mark Lyons. “When the leaves start changing, we know we’re getting close to November football, and that’s important to us.”

Central Valley took advantage of excellent field position throughout the first quarter to jump out to a 21-0 lead.

Serafino DeSantis’s kickoff pinned Avonworth inside their 10-yard line. Following a three-and-out, the Warriors began their opening drive at the Antelopes 27-yard line.

Antwon Johnson threw a 20-yard completion to Jayvin Thompson to the 1-yard line before Johnson capped the drive with a 1-yard run.

“I thought our kicker Serafino DeSantis did a tremendous job, and he’s come into his own,” said Lyons. “We spend a lot of time with our special teams to figure out the best place to place the ball with our kickoff team. We work hard on special teams, and it pays off in games like this, as you saw with that opening kickoff.”

Bryce Wilson then intercepted Nate Harper, returning it inside the red zone.

Landon Alexander, who rushed for a game-high 157 yards on 23 carries, scored from 12 yards out.

“Landon gets better as the game goes on,” said Lyons. “The more touches he gets towards the end of the game, the better things get for us.”

Following the tip drill, Rykan Jeter intercepted a Harper pass at the Avonworth 25-yard line, and the rout was on for the Warriors.

Central Valley extended their lead to 21-0 with 3:32 to play in the first quarter when Thompson scored on a 2-yard run.

Avonworth created a pair of turnovers themselves in the second quarter but to no avail. The Lopes recovered a fumble at the Warriors’ 32-yard line only to turn the ball over on downs.

Later in the first half, Neo Miller intercepted a Johnson pass, but Avonworth was forced to punt.

“They’re a great football team,” said Avonworth head coach Duke Johncour. “When you allow them to start three drives inside our 30-yard line. That is not how you want to start the game. We were able to move the ball effectively, but we couldn’t punch it in when we needed to.”

Alexander would score his second touchdown of the night from seven yards out with 3:02 to play that left the Warriors one touchdown shy of mercy rule at the half.

The big play of the drive came on a 37-yard pass from Johnson to Thompson.

Rykan Jeter ended the first half by grabbing his second interception of the game.

“I feel like our secondary has gotten better every week,” said Lyons. “They’ve been flying under the radar, but they have been putting in great work. I thought they were well prepared, and our defensive staff did a great job. They’re starting to ball-hawk and understand angles a lot better.”

Central Valley would enact the mercy rule on their second half’s opening possession when Bret FitzSimmons broke loose for a 38-yard score.

FitzSimmons rushed five times for 51 yards and a touchdown.

“It became a numbers game because they were playing two high safeties, and that opened the ground game,” said Lyons. “When they started bringing extra guys into the box, we felt like we could hit something over the top. When they spread like that, we had to take advantage and impose our will upfront.”

Warriors closed the scoring when Johnson connected with Thompson for a 28-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, giving Central Valley a 43-0 lead.

Antwon Johnson completed 4-for-7 passes for 107 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Jayvin Thompson had three catches for 85 yards with a touchdown.

Avonworth was able to get a touchdown in the game’s closing seconds when Luke Hilyard scored on a 1-yard run with one second to play.

 

“That’s a good team we played, but we’ll learn from this tonight and fine moving forward,” Johncour concluded.”

Nate Harper led Avonworth, going 13-for-27, passing for 78 yards, but he threw three interceptions. Harper also rushed for 26 yards. Ian Syam chipped in 34 yards rushing on 14 carries.

Avonworth will try and bounce back next weekend as they travel to Quaker Valley.

Central Valley will look to finish their regular season undefeated when they host Hopewell.

Game Highlights:

 

Central Valley 43 Avonworth 6

Score by Quarters

Central Valley – 21 8 7 7 – 43
Avonworth – 0 0 0 6 – 6

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

CV – Antwon Johnson 1 yd run (Serafino DeSantis pat), 9:49

CV – Landon Alexander 12 yd run (DeSantis pat), 5:58

CV – Jayvin Thompson 2 yd run, (DeSantis pat), 3:32

Second Quarter

CV – Alexander 7 yd run, (Matt Merritt rush), 3:02

Third Quarter

CV – Bret FitzSimmons 38 yd run, (DeSantis pat), 9:16

Fourth Quarter

CV – Thompson 28 yd pass from Johnson, (DeSantis pat), 9:38

A – Luke Hilyard 1 yd (no pat attempted), 0:01

Individual Stats

Rushing: Central Valley – Alexander 23-157, Merritt 3-11, FitzSimmons 5-51, Thompson 1-2, Johnson 1-1. Totals: 33-222. Avonworth – Ian Syam 14-34, Harper 8-26, Biagiarelli 5-28, Hilyard 2-8. Totals: 29-96.

Receiving: Central Valley – Thompson 3-85, Alexander 1-22. Avonworth – Peyton Faulkner 7-37, Brandon Biagiarelli 1-10, Neo Miller 1-7, Gus Newhouse 4-24.

Passing: Central Valley – Johnson 4-for-7, 107 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception. Avonworth – Nate Harper 13-for-27, 78 yards, 3 interceptions.

Interceptions: Avonworth – Miller. Central Valley – Bryce Wilson, Rykan Jeter (2).

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
PA Football News Scoreboard presented by NFHS Network
 
GoRout
 
Showcase by Circle W Sports
 
Football Legends board game
 
 
x