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CATAWISSA–The offensive line surged, backs ran hard and South Williamsport did exactly what it hoped, consistently moving the chains and chewing up the clock.
South ran 36 first-half plays Saturday at Southern Columbia and the Tigers just eight. By game’s end that total was 64-17. And yet Southern led by 35 at halftime and won this District 4 Class AA semifinal, 41-7.
It seems incredible, but Southern has made the incredible look routine over the last 32 seasons and is headed to its 30th district final during that time after taking South’s best shot. The Mounties produced a spirited effort, but the Southern machine keeps running as smooth as ever as the four-time defending state champions earned a spot in next Saturday’s final against rival Mount Carmel.
“That definitely will effect the morale or the momentum of a team also when they hold onto the ball, moved it and got first downs and we get it and in a couple of plays put it in the end zone,” Southern coach Jim Roth said. “The backs that we have, they all have that capability. They’re all very capable of making big plays any time they touch the ball.”
Reigning 2A Player of the Year Gavin Garcia ran for 108 yards and three touchdowns on just four carries. Braeden Wisloski ran for 60 yards and a score on five carries and Blake Wise hit Jake Rose with a 55-yard touchdown. Southern scored on three straight second-quarter plays and on five of their eight during the first half while building a 35-0 advantage.
The Tigers averaged a whopping 14.3 yards per play. It was Southern doing Southern things. Still, the score does not reflect the strength South displayed against a team which is 71-1 the past five seasons. The fact that South held the ball as long as it did, ran as many plays as it did and churned out 15 first downs against a ferocious defense speaks volumes.
It was not the result South wanted, but the Mounties represented themselves quite well in their final game and left the field having no regrets about their effort.
“They all played very hard. You love them and I’m so proud of them,” South coach Chris Eiswerth said. “I told the guys there’s four teams standing in Double A and we’re on of them, so we have to go after this and they really gave it everything they had.”
Clayton Swarthout ran for 83 yards and joined teammate Lane Lusk in the 1,000-yard club, making that duo the first since Wade Morehart and Patton Bartholomew to top 1,000 yards in the same season at South. Landon Lorson ran for an eight-yard touchdown, led the team in tackles and commanded the offense well. Jake Casella was a beast in the second half, recovering two fumbles and blocking a kick. The all underclassmen line of Lucas Long, Austin Bowersox, Chris Confer, Evan Tortellet and Owen Bird, along with tight ends Casella and Connor Apker, blocked well.
Obviously, South did a lot of good things. Not a lot of teams can say they produced 15 first downs or ran 64 plays against Southern. Yes, South wanted the win but they created a series of small victories in defeat. The Mounties came a long way this season, too, rallying from a 1-2 start and winning six of their last eight games while avenging a regular-season defeat in emphatic fashion in the quarterfinals when they routed Wellsboro, 36-7. South reached districts for a 10th straight season, won a playoff game for a second consecutive season and is 12-6 over these last two years while overcoming a lot of adversity along the way.
“That’s really rewarding. This staff has worked extremely hard, as well as all the players,” Eiswerth said. “I can’t say enough about them and the players and all the support that we’ve gotten. It’s really special.”
South looked like it was putting together a special drive to open the game. The Mounties showed no fear and ran hard at Southern, converting a fourth-and-one while moving the ball from its 27-yard line to the Southern 36 on 11 plays which consumed nearly seven minutes. Rose, however, changed the game’s complexion on the 12th play when he intercepted a hurried pass under heavy pressure. Rose then zigged and zagged his way across a broken field, breaking free at midfield and going the rest of the way down the right sideline while completing a highlight-reel 80-yard return.
Rose was a starting linebacker the past two years until Southern moved him into the secondary at midseason. He has made a nice home there and his interception lit a fuse which the offense so fanned into an inferno.
“Any time you score a defensive touchdown or a special teams touchdown that’s a big momentum shift,” Roth said. “They were obviously moving the ball on the ground, running the ball well and that’s a huge play. At any level, but especially at high school that certainly will effect the momentum at that time.”
Southern ran just two first-quarter offensive plays, but Garcia took the second 42 yards for a touchdown and Southern led 14-0 despite having the ball for 38 seconds in that quarter. Garcia, who has produced 37 touchdowns four ways and will play at Kent State next fall, channeled his inner-Barry Sanders on his next carry. This time, it appeared South had Garcia hemmed in at the line of scrimmage, but Garcia dazzled on a series of stop and go’s, eluding nearly every white jersey and breaking free for a 22-yard score.
Garcia’s second touchdown started Southern’s string of three touchdowns on three plays. A series later, Wisloski, the state’s 100-meter state champion last spring, made a super jump cut after following his blockers and scored on a 38-yard touchdown. Blake Wise showed off his arm nearly two minutes later, hitting Rose in stride for a 55-yard touchdown which helped Southern inflict the mercy rule.
District 3 AAA champion Wyomissing snapped Southern’s 65-game winning streak six weeks ago when the Tigers were ravaged by injuries. Since then, Wisloski, hard-nosed fullback Wes Barnes and other key starters have returned. Once again, Southern is peaking at the perfect time.
“When you have three running backs the level of those three guys it just makes it very tough for defenses,” Roth said. “To get them all back in there healthy for the last few weeks has been huge and something we obviously needed coming into the playoffs. Hopefully they can continue to stay healthy and continue to have success.”
South’s running backs enjoyed a lot of success this season, running behind a strong offensive line. Lusk and Swarthout ran as hard as the linemen blocked and Lusk closed his scholastic career as the area’s rushing champion. Swarthout consistently bounced off tacklers throughout the second half, gaining hard-fought yards and reaching 1,000 yards as well. Swarthout ran for 56 second-half yards and his running set up Southás touchdown. South moved 50 yards on 10 plays with Lorson weaving through traffic along the left sideline and scoring less than five minutes into the fourth quarter.
“To have two players rush for over 1,000 yards is a credit to them and that offensive line. They did a great job,” Eiswerth said. “We moved the ball from the beginning to the end. We got a stop there at the end and they all came out and they really fought.”
Southern 41, South Williamsport 7
South 0 0 0 7-7
Southern 14 21 6 0-41
First Quarter
SC-Jake Rose 80-yard interception return (Isaac Carter kick), 4:46
SC-Gavin Garcia 42 run (Carter kick), :44.5
Second Quarter
SC-Garcia 22 run (Carter kick), 6:45
SC-Braeden Wisloski 38 run (Carter kick), 2:38
SC-Rose 55 pass from Blake Wise (Carter kick), :41.7
Third Quarter
SC-Garcia 11 run (kick blocked), 8:56
Fourth Quarter
SW-Landon Lorson 8 run (Lorson kick), 7:39
TEAM STATISTICS SW SC
First Downs 15 7
Rushes-yards 50-155 15-188
Passing yards 44 55
Total yards 199 243
Comp-Att-Int 5-14-2 1-2-0
Fumbles-lost 2-0 2-2
Penalties-yards 3-25 3-35
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: South, Clayton Swarthout 19-86; Lane Lusk 17-55; Landon Lorson 11-22, TD; Jake Casella 2-4; Caden Harris 1-(-12). Southern Columbia, Gavin Garcia 4-108, 3 TDs; Braeden Wisloski 5-60, TD; Wes Barnes 5-20; Blake Wise 1-0.
PASSING: South, Lorson 5-14-2, 44 yards. Southern, Wise 1-2-0, 55 yards, TD.
RECEIVING: South, Harris 3-21; Grant Bachman 1-15; Casella 1-8. Southern, Jake Rose 1-55, TD.
INTERCEPTIONS: Southern, Rose, Garcia.
SACKS: Southern, Michael Zsido.
RECORDS: Southern 11-1. South 7-4.