A good vibe: Composed Mounties control tempo in win over rival Eagles

Guy Cipriano

- gciprian@centredaily.com

PHILIPSBURG — Philipsburg-Osceola seniors Zack Czap, Cody Pepperday and Steve Rusnak gathered along the Memorial Stadium fence to greet lines of followers.

CDT/Christopher Weddle

Philipsburg-Osceola's Zack Czap is wrapped up by Bald Eagle's Brock Bathurst and Stevie Eisenhuth on Friday, September 4, 2009. CDT/Christopher Weddle

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Too many good things happened on this clear Friday to spend postgame moments under cover.

The Mounties reversed a result weighing on their minds for more than a year as they opened the season with a tidy 21-9 home victory over Bald Eagle Area.

“You can’t even begin to explain how big it is,” said Czap, a versatile senior who scored all three touchdowns. “That’s huge. That’s our season started off right there. We have to keep things rolling off that.”

The victory had convincing undertones. The Mounties, who started a disappointing 2008 with a 22-6 loss in Wingate, didn’t commit a turnover and took the ball into BEA territory nine times. Friday’s victory represented a stark contrast to last year’s sloppy opening.

“It’s good that we are playing this quality of football early,” said Pepperday, who plays center.

P-O’s blemishes were difficult to detect.

The Mounties received favorable field position early, taking the ball to BEA’s 43 on their opening drive and forcing the Eagles into a quick three-and-out. P-O started its second drive on BEA’s 38 and moved it 18 yards on a slick run by Cody Curtis. Powerful pulling allowed Czap to score from 6 yards less than six minutes into the game.

Clever blocking by a line consisting of Pepperday at center, junior guards Andrew Mann and Justin Shimmel and senior tackles Jason Supko and Matt Randolph allowed P-O to showcase multiple offensive options. Rusnak led P-O with 90 yards on 18 carries, but Czap (57), Curtis (49) and Coval (47) also rushed for more than 45 yards. Three players — Rusnak, Czap and Coval — lined up at quarterback and attempted passes.

“Honestly, we didn’t get it done up front,” BEA coach Jack Tobias said. “They could have done anything they wanted offensively. It didn’t matter how many options they had. We need to get off the ball hard. Their offensive line played a great game and it showed.”

The Eagles trailed 6-3 at halftime as a 17-play, 74-yard drive that used 8:07 netted a 23-yard field goal from Kyle Kinley with 10:30 remaining in the second quarter.

Three fumbles, including one they lost, and one interception on their first six offensive plays of the second half prevented the Eagles from establishing momentum.

Six after plays after sophomore Mike Marcinko intercepted a Justin Taylor pass, Czap scored on a 6-yard run to give P-O a 14-3 lead. BEA’s Brock Bathurst followed a wedge to return the ensuing kickoff 63 yards. But Coval recovered a fumble two plays later. The Mounties parlayed the turnover into an 8-play scoring drive that included Coval’s 33 sprint behind Pepperday and ended with Czap squeezing in from the 1.

“We didn’t put the ball on the ground during two weeks of camp or in our scrimmages and we put the ball on the ground tonight,” Tobias said. “We have to be more secure when we handle the ball. We have to make better decisions. It was just mix-ups. It seemed like any time that we got a spark, we turned around and shot ourselves in the foot with something stupid.”

P-O coach Jeff Vroman understands the feeling. The Mounties committed three turnovers and compiled 111 penalty yards during last year’s opener. The Mounties recovered both of their fumbles Friday and committed just four penalties.

“First game sometimes it’s mistakes that make a difference,” Vroman said. “I thought that was a big key.”

P-O’s defense also displayed improvement, holding a large BEA offense to 137 total yards. The Eagles scored their lone touchdown when Taylor connected on a 13-yard screen pass to Cody Hicks with 5:02 remaining.

“This was big,” Vroman said in a raspy voice with his two daugthers by his side. “Last year we got off on a wrong note. It builds some momentum going into your season. I’m proud of the kids and proud of the way they played. I thought they played well.”