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Emmaus Stings Parkland in Rout

Tagged under: District 11, News, pfn

| October 26, 2024

“They came out and were fired up and made plays in all three phases of the game,” Emmaus head coach Harold Fairclough commented following his team’s 27-0 victory over bitter rival Parkland.

The Green Hornets were buzzing all night long in front of a home crowd on Senior Night. As Parkland took the ball to open the second half, quarterback Osmany Guzman threw to his left. Cole Moreau came up with the ball and trucked down the near sideline 35 yards for a touchdown that sucked all the air out of the Parkland sideline.

It was a decidedly rough start for Emmaus. Two penalties on their first drive for an ineligible man downfield and a false start backed the offense up. TJ Lawrence then made his presence felt, sacking Jerek Cooper and forcing a 4th & 24 from the six yard line.

Following the punt, Parkland took over on the Emmaus 31, in the perfect position to make something happen early. At this point, the Hornets defense showed it would be a force to be reckoned with all night. Lawrence was immediately met at the line of scrimmage for no gain and a pass down the far side on 4th & 10 turned the ball over on downs without the Trojans gaining a single yard.

Emmaus took two plays to reach Parkland territory, as Cooper took off up the middle on a draw, picking up 35 yards. Reilly Bechtel then cruised for 23 more. However, another flag would foil things for the Hornets. A holding call would ultimately lead to a 35-yard Will Buck field goal, which he banged through the uprights to give Emmaus a 3-0 lead.

On Parkland’s next possession, Bechtel caught Lawrence in the backfield for a loss of three. That forced another three-and-out and punt from the Trojans.

With the ball back in their possession, Cooper fired down the middle for Daniel Duggan, who made a spectacular over the shoulder grab, picking up 49 yards. On the next play, Cooper took off for a 23 yard touchdown run and Emmaus led 10-0 with 3:03 to play in the quarter.

Bechtel recorded another tackle for loss against Lawrence, which helped end Parkland’s third drive in a punt. After one quarter, Emmaus had held the Trojans to four total offensive yards. The normally hard running team from the other end of Cedar Crest Boulevard had run for just one net yard.

Emmaus, with all the momentum going into the second quarter, was ready for more. Bechtel ripped off a 23 yard pickup, moving the Hornets to the Trojans 36. Parkland finally staved off their bitter rivals with a Reid Andrush sack of Cooper. From his cornerback position, Nassim Adams came up with a tipped ball interception, giving his defense a reprieve.

The Trojans picked up their first first down of the night when Guzman found Leo Dauberman for a 13 yard completion. Success was short-lived, though, as Duggan again caught Lawrence in the backfield for a loss and Parkland was eventually forced to kick the ball away again.

By halftime, Lawrence had been held to eight rushes for negative three yards. A late effort saw Parkland march into Emmaus territory, but Zach Stevens picked off Guzman to end the threat. Parkland went into the half after Adams lost 15 yards on a punt return attempt, running backwards trying to outrun the coverage team.

Parkland’s fortunes did not turn in the second half after Cole Moreau’s pick six on the Trojans first play from scrimmage. With the score 17-0 in favor of the Hornets, Parkland drove near midfield. On 4th & 1, the Emmaus defensive line again closed, and the Hornets got the ball back on downs. Will Buck tacked on a 26-yard field goal to increase the lead to 20-0.

Coming into this game, Parkland had not won at Emmaus since 2014 and the series had not seen a shutout since 2007 when Parkland shutout the Green Hornets twice. Only the latter of those two notes would change.

Ben Dennis and Asher Dougherty combined to sack Guzman, ultimately forcing Parkland into a fourth and long situation. Neo Michel would come up with the ball after the punt snap went low and trickled back near the end zone. Emmaus took over on the 8 yard line and two plays later, Bechtel put the game on ice with a touchdown run up the middle.

Emmaus committed a defensive pass interference, which moved Parkland into Hornets territory on their next drive. The defense stood tall once again, though, as Stevens nearly had himself another interception. A fourth down pass for Adams went incomplete.

This would turn out to be Parkland’s final drive of the night. With 10:56 to play in the game, Emmaus went on a 13 play drive that consumed nearly the entire fourth quarter. Reilly Bechtel surpassed the 1,000 yard rushing mark on his way to a 13 carry night, seeing him amass 99 yards and a touchdown.

“That’s been a goal since my freshman year and I was finally able to hit it, so it means a lot,” Bechtel said of his accomplishment. He was quick to credit others, as well. “Shoutout to Mason Weber. He’s been working all year. I love that line.”

The normally strong running offense of Parkland produced just 25 yards, while Guzman was held to 95 through the air. For Emmaus, Jerek Cooper only completed one pass on the night, but the Hornets ran for 198 yards. The defense came up with three turnovers, showing their strongest performance of the season just in time for the playoffs.

Both teams now advance into the District XI 6A tournament. Emmaus will host Nazareth and Parkland will host Liberty. Both of those games are scheduled for Friday night.

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