Jaxon Detterline closes in on the goal line for Central Friday night against Bellwood.
By John Hartsock
jhartsock@altoonamirror.com
ROARING SPRING — After winning four consecutive District 6 Class 3A championships over the past four seasons, the Central High School football program may have begun this year taking a few things for granted, according to first-year head coach Jerry Albright.
The Dragons were caught flat-footed in their season opener, losing 18-7 on their home field to Bellefonte, but Central took that as a wake-up call and has gone on to post three consecutive victories since, including a 30-12 Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference triumph over previously unbeaten Bellwood-Antis Friday night on the Roaring Spring Athletic Field.
“I think we may have started this season resting on our laurels a bit from what the teams of the past few seasons had accomplished,” Albright said. “We lost our first game, but since then, we have practiced hard, we have played hard, and we have regrouped.”
Senior quarterback Eli Muthler had another big game for Central Friday night, completing 20 of 37 passes for 217 yards and three touchdowns, while running for another score, as Central improved to 3-1 overall and in the conference.
After spotting Bellwood (3-1, 3-1) a touchdown on sophomore back Bradyn Partner’s 7-yard run to cap off the Blue Devils’ 74-yard opening drive of the game, Central responded with Muthler’s 33-yard first-quarter touchdown pass to senior wideout Thaide Mickel down the seam, before Muthler ran 3 yards for a second-quarter TD and hit senior wideout Jay Hoenstine with a perfectly-thrown 5-yard pass into the back right corner of the end zone late in the second period to stake the Scarlet Dragons to a 23-6 lead at intermission.
“After we gave up that first TD of the game, I thought that it was crucial the way that we responded on offense,” Muthler said. “We were able to make plays, and put points on the board.”
Play of the game: Muthler’s well-thrown touchdown pass to Mickel jump-started Central’s offense.
Player of the game: Muthler’s potent passing arm helped Central get untracked after the Scarlet Dragons had fallen behind early.
Unsung heroes: Senior running back Braydon Beach rushed for 122 yards on 13 carries for Central, keeping Bellwood’s defense honest against the pass-happy Dragons. Senior linebacker Lukas Black came up with two big stops — one in each half — with Bellwood’s offense trying to move the chains on fourth down-and-one situations. Black also had a two-point conversion run, and threw to senior tight end Jaxon Detterline for two more points after another Central touchdown.
Most vital statistics: While completing eight passes to Hoenstine for the third consecutive game, good for 78 yards and the touchdown, Muthler also spread the ball around, as six different Central receivers caught at least one pass. Muthler hit senior wideout Kyle Klotz with an 8-yard TD pass late in the fourth quarter to put Central ahead, 30-6.
Albright: “Our goal tonight was to control their running game, and force them to throw the ball as much as possible. Our defense stepped up and made plays tonight, and when Eli Muthler gets enough time in the pocket to throw, he’s always going to find an open receiver.”
Bellwood-Antis coach Nick Lovrich: “Whenever a team has a quarterback the caliber of Muthler, you know that he’s going to make plays. Their receivers made plays as well. Overall, they made plays tonight, and we didn’t.”
Beach: “We were pretty balanced offensively tonight with both the run and the pass, and defensively, we were well-prepared.”
Black (on his fourth-down stops): “We were reading their guards on defense. Our defensive line did a great job tonight, and so did our linebackers and our players in the secondary.”
Notable: Colin Gibbons intercepted a pass for Bellwood-Antis, while Kort Conley recovered a fumble for Central … Griffin Kyle caught six passes and Gibbons had five receptions for Bellwood, which got a 12-yard touchdown run from senior quarterback Holden Schreier right before time expired.
Records: Bellwood-Antis (3-1), Central (3-1)
Next week: Bellwood-Antis hosts Tyrone on Friday night; Central plays Bishop Guilfoyle Academy at Hollidaysburg’s Tiger Stadium.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Bellwood-Antis 6 0 0 6–12
Central 8 15 0 7–30
First Quarter
BA–Partner 7 run (run failed), 8:13.
C–Mickel 33 pass from Muthler (Black run), 2:23.
Second Quarter
C–Muthler 3 run (Detterline pass from Black), 7:46.
C–Hoenstine 5 pass from Muthler (Steele kick), 1:27.
Fourth Quarter
C–Klotz 8 pass from Muthler (Hummel kick), 3:13.
BA–Schreier 12 run, 0:00.
TEAM STATISTICS BA C
First downs 13 19
Total yards 334 366
Rushes-yards 38-197 25-149
Yards passing 137 217
Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 14-21-0 20-37-1
Punts/avg. 2-24 1-50
Fumbles-lost 2-1 0-0
Penalties-yards 4-25 9-75
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING–Bellwood-Antis, Partner 10-64, Gibbons 9-60, Pellegrine 7-29, Pellegrine 7-29, Schreier 4-16, Kyle 1-(-1). Central, Beach 13-122, Mickel 4-18, Muthler 6-5, Musei 1-3, Harbaugh 1-1.
PASSING–Bellwood-Antis, Schreier 14-21-0-137. Central, Muthler 20-37-1-217.
RECEIVING–Bellwood-Antis, Kyle 6-32, Gibbons 5-43, Pellegrine 2-56, Shawley 1-6. Central, Hoenstine 8-78, Beach 4-16, Mickel 3-47, Klotz 3-26, Baird 1-34, Detterline 1-16.