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Sharon Rolls Past Mercyhurst Prep

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

| August 24, 2024

Erie – Sharon scored 55 first-half points as the Tigers blew out Mercyhurst Prep 55-6 Friday night at Mercyhurst University’s Saxton Field.

Two things are clear from Friday night: Sharon looks like a team poised to make a run in the District 10 AAA playoffs – and the other is that the young Lakers squad needs to grow up fast before their season gets too old.

The contest was the first between the teams since the 2018 District 10 3A semifinals, where the Tigers nipped the Lakers 29-28 at Meadville.

While the same drama didn’t occur on the field, Mercyhurst Prep experienced drama off the field; five players who would have been returning starters were dismissed from the school in July.

Losing those players proved costly, as Sharon scored early and often to take a 55-0 lead in the halftime locker room.

“The guys played hard; you could tell early in the week that this crew was ready to play,” said Sharon’s head coach, Jason McElhaney. “We had a great week of preparation, and you could tell they were a little salty and ready to go. I’d be doing us a disservice if I didn’t mention how our scout crews did a great job this week.”

Sharon took the football and scored on a 6-play 80-yard drive when Ethan Englemore, making his debut as the Tigers starter, tossed a 32-yard touchdown pass to Bishop Root to open the scoring.

“It felt pretty good for my first start,” said Englemore. “I was a little nervous going into the game, but after the first couple of plays, I knew we’d be fine. We executed really good. I trust my receivers, and I know my line is going block, so I just have to put it out there and let them run to it.”

 

On their next possession, Sharon went 80 in three plays, with Terrian White scoring on a 22-yard run. AaNavyon Brown had a 58-yard gain on the drive for his only carry of the night.

Picking up where they left off on the first series, Englemore and Root again connected, this time for a 46-yard touchdown, making it 21-0 after a quarter.

Early in the second stanza, Brock Ondo, who transferred from Kennedy Catholic, caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Englemore following an 82-yard drive.

“There are areas on our team where I think we have depth,” McElhaney said. “We feel really good about what different guys can do for us. We wanted to use some tempo and get the ball in the hands of our receivers and running backs. I’m proud to see those things come together.”

Englemore completed 5-of-9 passes for 181 yards and three touchdowns in his first varsity start. Bishop Root caught three passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns.

“I thought Ethan played well today. He settled in, and it’s good for him to have experienced players around him, McElhaney said. “We don’t have to ask him to throw the ball 30 times. We can play within him, and we know the schedule gets more difficult. The first start will always create jitters, but I thought he handled it well.”

Special teams then took over the contest. Sharon scored on an 11-yard blocked punt return by Ra’Keem Hughes, Cassisus Hosey recovered a blocked punt in the end zone, and Care’mez Norris took a punt back 59 yards for a score.

 

“We did not do well on special teams last season, said McElhaney. “We wanted to ensure that we not only survived special teams’ plays but could turn them into a positive. We have too many good players not to excel in that phase of the game.”

Late in the first half, Ike Friday capped a 6-play 77-yard drive with a 1-yard run. Friday rushed for 91 yards on nine carries.

Mercyhurst Prep thwarted the shutout in the closing minutes when Vinnie Feliciano scored on a 95-yard run. Thanks to the long run, Feliciano rushed for a game-high 162 yards on 17 carries.

“I’ll be frank with you, we got our rear ends kicked,” said Mercyhurst Prep head coach Jeff Root. “We’re young, and we’re going to take this as a learning experience moving forward. We’ll improve as the season progresses and we head towards the playoffs.”

Sharon will now play host to Cathedral Prep – an 18-6 winner over Erie High.

“It’s a good start. It’s game one, and we got off on the right foot, and we’re coming out of this game healthy,” McElhaney concluded. “We know the level of competition goes way up next week. We know they’re one of the best programs in the state and not just this half. We scheduled that game because we want to find out about ourselves.”

Game Highlights:

 

Sharon 55 Mercyhurst Prep 6

Score by Quarters

Sharon – 21 34 0 0 – 55

Mercyhurst Prep – 0 0 0 6 – 6

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

S – Bishop Root 32 yd pass from Ethan Englemore, (Yusef Kanaan pat), 10:07 – 6-80

S – Terrian White 22 yd run, (Kanaan pat), 6:20 – 3-80

S – Root 46 yd pass from Englemore, (Kanaan pat), 3:32 – 2-51

Second Quarter

S – Brock Ondo 30 yd pass from Englemore, (Kanaan pat), 11:38 – 5-82

S – Cassisus Hosey recovered block punt in end zone, (Kanaan pat), 9:12

S – Care’mez Norris 59 yd punt return, (Kanaan pat), 6:47

S – Ra’Keem Hughes 11 yd blocked punt return, (Kanaan pat), 5:00

S – Ike Friday 1 yd run, (kick failed), 0:30 – 6-77

Fourth Quarter

MP – Vinnie Feliciano 95 yd run, (rush failed), 1:59 – 1-95

Individual Stats

Rushing: S – Friday 9-91, AaNavyon Brown 1-58, White 1-22, Root 1-9, Englemore 1-5, Hosey 4-15, Xavionne Wilbon-Venable 4-11, Ja’azia Abram 3-16, Team 4-(-6). Totals: 28-221. MP – Vinnie Feliciano 17-162, Everett Cotterill 4-(-7), Clay Wojrecki 1-2, Tate 1-7, Quanie Brown 2-(-1), Team 1-(-8). Totals: 23-155.

Receiving: S – Root 3-118, Bryson Roberson 1-33, Ondo 1-30, Hughes 1-13, Heath Miller 1-11. MP – Tyshaun Tate 2-3.

Passing: S – Englemore 5-for-9, 181 yards, 3 TD, Abram 2-for-5, 24 yards. MP – Cotterill 2-for-6, 3 yards.

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