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closeCHAMBERSBURG — The offensive and defensive execution satisfied State College players and coaches. The halftime score caused some apprehension.
The Little Lions then played a third quarter that suggests they are prepared for postseason play.
State College secured the top seed for the District 6-8-9-10 Class AAAA playoffs and captured a share of the Mid-Penn Commonwealth title by scoring 19 third-quarter points during Friday’s 46-14 victory over Chambersburg at Trojan Stadium.
The Little Lions ended their regular season 8-2 overall and 4-1 in conference play. They should enter the postseason with confidence after out-gaining the improved Trojans 442-129. State College, which outgained Chambersburg 133-24 in the third quarter, will begin the postseason against DuBois at a time to be determined.
“That’s one of our best quarters,” defensive lineman Sean McWhirter said. “Everyone was on point. Our offense couldn’t be stopped and our defense couldn’t be stopped, either.”
The quarter makes it easy to forget State College only led 20-14 at halftime. Multiple special-teams gaffes, including a blown kickoff coverage that allowed ConRoy Smith to return a kickoff 94 yards and a muffed punt to help Chambersburg begin a drive from the Little Lion 10, kept the score competitive.
But a direct halftime speech by coach Al Wolski resonated with players and incited a rout.
“Our coach told us we had to go out there and establish dominance,” senior Alex Kenney said. “Thankfully, we did.”
They did indeed, beginning the half with a 10-play, 60-yard drive which ended with quarterback Matt Mazzarra’s 1-yard touchdown run. Behind a veteran offensive line, State College attempted nine running plays and used 4:39.
“We didn’t seem to panic,” Wolski said. “We felt we could move the football and we felt we could stop them on defense.”
The defense followed the drive by allowing just four yards on Chambersburg’s next three plays. State College’s second possession during the quarter proved brisk. The Little Lions attempted four plays, gaining at least 14 yards on three of them. Kenney gave State College a 32-14 lead by breaking two tackles and bouncing left on a 26-yard touchdown run.
The touchdown took the run-first Trojans out of their offensive game and Kenney scored again on a 72-yard interception return with 2:16 left in the quarter. The touchdown was Kenney’s third — he also scored on a 33-yard run in the second quarter — and increased his season-total to 22. Kenney has returned interceptions for touchdowns in the past three games.
“I thought sometimes we did a real good job against him,” Chambersburg coach David Carruthers said. “But other times we didn’t do a very good job. He’s quite a player.”
Kenney, who gained 81 yards on seven carries, wasn’t the only Little Lion to hurt Chambersburg. Mazzara gained 130 yards on 15 carries and scored the game’s first touchdown by scampering 23 yards on a fourth-down play on State College’s opening drive. Mazzara also combined with Dom Mills to complete 10 of 13 passes for 115 yards, which represented State College’s highest passing total since compiling 159 yards against Harrisburg on Oct. 2.
Four different players caught passes, including Ben Sallade, who grabbed three for 50 yards.
State College’s defense also played one of its best games. The first-team unit yielded just three first downs, including two in the final 20 seconds of the first half, and 69 total yards. The Trojans’ (5-5) longest offensive play was Smith’s 25-yard run on their first snap against Little Lion backups.
Chambersburg’s wing-T offense, which features a variety of toss plays, had compiled more than 400 rushing yards twice this season. The Trojans averaged 3.3 yards per carry Friday. Nine of Chambersburg’s running plays netted negative yardage.
“We were just focusing on our keys and everyone was playing their responsibilities,” McWhirter said. “Luckily we were able to make some plays.”
The unit has made plays the entire season. The Trojans represented the sixth opponent State College held to less than 20 points.
Stout defense is one reason the Little Lions can call themselves Mid- Penn Commonwealth champions for a second straight year. State College and Central Dauphin both went 4-1 in league play. The Rams edged the Little Lions 24-22 in September, but the teams share the title because of Central Dauphin’s loss to Altoona.
State College now hopes its steady Mid-Penn play and recently-created momentum will translate into a defense of its sub-regional title.
“This was the last regular-season game ever for the seniors,” Kenney said. “We came out with a lot of emotion and we’re just happy to be progressing to the playoffs now.”
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