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Central Bucks South Grinds Out Victory Over North Penn

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

| October 5, 2024

Defense wins ballgames. The old adage rang true in this monster matchup of unbeatens in Warrington. The North Penn Knights had six drives in the second half to try and tie the game, but the Titans held them to no or negative yardage almost every single time. Meanwhile, Central Bucks South grinded away all night long, getting just enough done on offense to earn a 14-6 victory.

“The defense played relentless. The defense was ridiculous,” said quarterback Owen Pinkerton, “All the defensive linemen were on it every play. It was pretty crazy the pressure we had on their quarterback. The relentless pressure was what did it.”

The Titans got the ball first. Kaden Kube ran for 16 and dual threat quarterback Owen Pinkerton scrambled for 12 more. CB South was across midfield in just two plays and looking to punch the ball into the end zone early. The North Penn defense stiffened, though, forcing a fourth-and-ten at the Knights 37. In no-man’s land, Tom Hetrick had his offense go for it. Jack Silvers had other ideas, as he pressured Pinkerton, forcing an incompletion and turnover on downs.

North Penn tried to duplicate the early ground game. However, Josiah Allen, Aiden Ashley, and Matt Pownall would not gain more than six yards from scrimmage all night long. After a first down at midfield, the Knights punted on their first drive.

The Titans took over on their own 36, but were quickly backed up by tackles in the backfield by Cole D’Ambrosio and Azarias Fortson. Owen Pinkerton then uncorked his first completion of the night, a 52 yard hookup with Danny Gies, the hero of two weeks ago to secure the Central Bucks Cup against CB West. That completion flipped the field and CB South had driven deep into North Penn territory for the second straight drive. Aiden Eves came through for the Knights, sacking Pinkerton and a fourth and long pass for Matt Harmon went incomplete.

The teams stayed scoreless after a quarter. Eddie Bowen, leading tackler for the Titans, put a damper on the next North Penn drive, sacking Matt Bucksar. The ensuing punt gave the Titan field position on their own 40.

Agreat diving catch by Dom McCusker helped Central Bucks South move deep into North Penn territory. It appeared North Penn was going to stand tall again, as Nate Schepian got Kaden Kube in the backfield twice for short losses. On fourth-and-four, Pinkerton ran around the left side and got the edge, beating defenders into the near corner of the end zone for the first score of the night. The Titans finally broke through and had a 7-0 lead with 6:34 to play in the half.

North Penn responded with its longest drive of the night, moving from their own 20 to a 1st & Goal situation on the CB South 5. Bucksar showcased his arm, completing passes of 13 and 24 yards to Aiden Eves. In a demoralizing twist, though, the Titans defense bent, but would not break. Three consecutive runs from the five yardl ine resulted in just one yard, forcing a decision on fourth down. Coach Dick Beck opted for the field goal, and Ryan Bocklet connected to make the halftime score 7-3.

The second half was full of opportunities for North Penn to get back in the game, but each was thwarted by the Titans suffocating, swarming defense or a near miss. On the opening drive, Bucksar just missed Matt Pownall for what would have been a 20 yard gain into CB South territory. Two plays later, Matt Harmonn made an awesome leaping interception grab deep in his own territory.

After forcing a punt, the Knights got close again. On 2nd & 20, after a holding call, Bucksar completed one for 30 yards to Pownall. After moving to the edge of the red zone, Bucksar had two consecutive incompletions. On fourth down, coach Beck again opted for the field goal. This time, Bocklet hit from 38 yards out and cut the lead to 7-6 with 5:24 to play in the third.

On their next drive, the Titans ran over six minutes off the clock, marching 79 yards over ten plays. Braylen Cape was the feature back of the second half and ripped off a 26 yard gain. With 11:14 to play, Cape capped the drive with a five yard touchdown run, extending the CB South lead to 14-6.

Jim Wade went on an absolute tear in the fourth quarter, sacking Bucksar three times. The first helped force a three and out with ten minutes to play. In a key missed chance, Bucksar and Morgan Brown nearly connected for 40 yards, but the ball fell incomplete.

Owen PInkerton nearly slammed the door on the game, as he saw Danny Gies get open behind the secondary over the middle. However the ball sailed through Gies’ fingers on what would have been a sure trip to the house. Christian Johns-Wallace fell on a fumble just moments later, and North Penn was back in business at its own 43 with 8:03 to play.

That’s when Jim Wade struck again with a three yard sack of Bucksar on fourth and long. The Titans would come up short on fourth-and-three, but Wade hit Bucksar again on the next drive, forcing a 4th & 17. The Knights got a series of second chances at the hands of penalties. The 4th & 17 pass was incomplete, but illegal participation was called. Then, a holding penalty wiped out a Bucksar run near midfield. Eventually facing 4th & 22, Bucksar was sacked again.

CB South took over on the North Penn 5-yard line. Owen Pinkerton appeared to race the ball in for a touchdown, but fumbled into the end zone, giving North Penn one more shot with 54 seconds to play. A pass interference flag moved the ball into CB South territory at the 43, but the final play of the game was a mess. Bucksar was hit again and fumbled. The fumble was nearly run back for a score, but was then fumbled again and fallen on to end the game.

The Central Bucks South offense produced just 153 yards on the ground and 52 through the air. North Penn was held to 126 offensive yards, as Bucksar went 7/11 for 112. South ran 28 plays in North Penn territory; on the other hand, North Penn only ran 11 in Titans territory.

“This is a huge win. We feel like we dominated. We feel like we can beat anybody. The defense played relentless and the offense did what we needed to do.”

CB South will host Abington next Thursday night, while North Penn will host Pennsbury.

Read more about this game on LSVSports.com

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