Central Bucks East Perseveres for Connor in a 42-26 Victory over Cheltenham

Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

Michael Pietrangelo | August 31, 2024

Doylestown- Two years ago CB East football coach John Donnelly had to deliver some heart-shattering news to his players on the passing of their former teammate and brother Connor Boyle, who fought a courageous three-year battle with osteosarcoma. Osteosarcoma is a type of bone cancer that begins in the cells that form bones. Unfortunately, it most often occurs in the long bones that make up the arms and legs, though it can occur in any bone. It tends to occur in children and young adults. Fast forward to last night and Matt and his wife Lisa Boyle (Connor’s parents) are keeping their son’s memory alive and his wish to raise awareness regarding Osteosarcoma thus generating more funding and research to find a cure. Last night’s game was held in honor of the Iron Patriot himself. Matt Boyle was on hand to carry out the ceremonial coin toss as well as give the team some pregame motivation. The students and community have been raising money for Team Connor. If you wish to donate, I have left the link here. #teamconnor #perseverance

As fans began to pack the stadium you could feel the energy level begin to rise. It was a sea of yellow in honor of Connor. The players were laser-focused and locked in. You could tell they wanted it. The Panther’s confidence level in pregame warmups was electrifying. Both sides seemed well-prepared and pumped up for battle. East won the toss and elected to defer until the second half.

On the first play from scrimmage, Panther’s sophomore quarterback Kendall Jackson and running back Jared Higginbotham muffed the handoff, and senior Logan Simkiss laid the running back out as sophomore LB Mike Price scooped up the loose ball. Moments later the sophomore running back found the endzone from a yard out for his first rushing touchdown of the night. After a Brody Wojnicki PAT, the Patriots took a 7-0 lead. Moments later after another miscue from the Panthers the Patriots capitalized on great field position and sophomore running back Mike Price found the endzone for his second rushing touchdown with 7:47 left in the first quarter. A two-point conversion by the Patriots extended their lead to 15-0. Not to be outdone, the senior wide receiver took the ensuing kickoff to the house. After a blocked PAT the lead was cut to 15-6. The first quarter would end knotted at 15-6.

A few minutes into the second quarter with 9:56 left in the half, sophomore running back Mike Price found pay dirt again. This time his third rushing touchdown came from 27 yards out as he raced unscathed to the endzone. Another Brody Wojnicki PAT extended the lead to 22-6. The ensuing kickoff was bobbled by the Panther’s return man and quickly recovered by the Patriots. Both teams would exchange drives with nothing to show for it. The Patriots even fumbled and the Panther’s sophomore linebacker Cody Biddle-Pete scooped it up for the fumble recovery. The Patriots would hold the Panthers again on fourth down and cause a turnover on down. Three plays later sophomore running back Mike Price took the handoff around the end, stopped, looked up, and floated a beautiful ball to junior wide receiver Reuben Bell for a 41-yard passing touchdown. What can’t this kid do? After a Brody Wojnicki PAT the Patriots took a 29-6 lead with 5:40 left in the half. Cheltenham couldn’t find answers for the stout Patriot defense until junior halfback Jared Higginbotham rushed untouched 10 yards into the endzone. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful but the lead was cut to 29-12 which is where we would stand heading into the half.

The second half started with a hold by the Panther’s defense that set up another Jared Higginbotham touchdown. Higginbotham took the rock 35 yards to the house after trucking a defender. The successful two-point conversion cut the Patriot lead to 9 with a 29-20 score with 7:25 left in the third quarter. A little over four and a half minutes ticked off the clock and at 1:32 left in the third quarter, Mike Price scampered 16 yards to the house for his fourth rushing touchdown of the night. The two-point conversion was stopped but the damage was done, and the lead extended to 35-20.

Moments into the fourth quarter, Mike Price capped off his evening with his 5^th rushing touchdown of the night with 7:10 left in the game. Cody Wojnicki hit the PAT, and the lead rose to 42-20. The Patriot defense held tight for a few more series before Sophomore quarterback Kendall Jackson took the ball in from 2 yards out to give the Panthers a little hope and shorten the lead to 42-26 with 3:44 left in the game. The defense held strong and didn’t yield another score the rest of the way. The final drive for the Patriots ended in victory formation as they ran out the clock to secure the win for Connor! After the game,

Milestones and Achievements

-Mike Price stat line

Rushing-34-191 5 TDs

Passing- 1-1 41 1 TD

-Sophomore running back Mike Price tied the school record for rushing touchdowns in a game with (5). The record was set in 1979 but not duplicated again until 2009.

-Set record for most touchdowns scored in a game (6) 2024

*Congratulations to Mike Price on his Player of the Game award after such a dominating performance