Tonight I returned home to Hickory High School's Hornet Stadium for Homecoming 2019 where the Hornets hosted the Grove City Eagles.
In my preview I said that oddsmakers had Grove City as a pick favorite. But I also said that this would likely be a trap game on the road for the Eagles. You couldn't have asked for better weather for homecoming. The Eagles were playing without Dillon Winger, who is on the shelf with a sprained left knee.
Grove City won the coin toss, but deferred to the second half.
And just 30 seconds in, the tone was set when Matthew Cannone fired a tailback option pass to Ramarion Whitehead for a 52 yard touchdown strike to make it 7-0 Hornets. But by the midpoint of the first quarter, Grove City answered with a 13 yard touchdown run by Curtis Hovis to tie things up at 7 apiece after one.
Hickory took the for good in the second quarter when Ramarion Whitehead caught another touchdown pass, this time from Michael Henwood from 18 yards out to make it 14-7 Hornets at the intermission.
Early in the second half, Daiveon Say caught a 39 yard touchdown pass from Logan Breese to get the Eagles within one (the PAT was blocked) after three.
But in the fourth, Nathan Richards caught a 27 yard touchdown pass from Henwood to extend the Hornets lead to 21-13.
Things got tense in the final two minutes when Zack Martin found pay dirt from four yards out to get the Eagles within two. They went for the tie, but the pass was broken up. Grove City would have to execute an onsides kick. They recovered it, but there was laundry on the field. The ball did not go the required minimum ten yards, and three Michael Henwood kneel downs later, it was over. The final score was Hickory 21, Grove City 19.
Michael Henwood was the recipient of the Player Of the Game t-shirt courtesy of O'Neill Coffee and Steve's Teez.
It's a happy homecoming in Hermitage with the Hornets win over previously undefeated Grove City!
Friday, September 27, 2019
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Previewing Hickory v. Grove City
Tomorrow night I plan to be at Hornet Stadium for the game between the homestanding Hickory Hornets and the visiting Grove City Eagles.
It is homecoming in Hermitage tomorrow night.
Last week Grove City celebrated a happy homecoming with a 31-16 win over rival Slippery Rock. Meanwhile, Hickory ruined homecoming in Greenville with a 28-7 victory.
The two teams come in evenly matched in nearly every statistic. Oddsmakers have made Grove City a pick favorite over the Hornets. However, this could be your classic trap game on the road that the Eagles need to be aware of going into the contest.
Hickory head coach Bill Dungee has won all four of his games in Mercer County since joining the hive at Hickory. His lone loss came in Crawford County three weeks ago when they lost to Conneaut.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have live coverage of the homecoming game in Hermitage with Mark Slezak and Bob Greenburg at the mike.
It is homecoming in Hermitage tomorrow night.
Last week Grove City celebrated a happy homecoming with a 31-16 win over rival Slippery Rock. Meanwhile, Hickory ruined homecoming in Greenville with a 28-7 victory.
The two teams come in evenly matched in nearly every statistic. Oddsmakers have made Grove City a pick favorite over the Hornets. However, this could be your classic trap game on the road that the Eagles need to be aware of going into the contest.
Hickory head coach Bill Dungee has won all four of his games in Mercer County since joining the hive at Hickory. His lone loss came in Crawford County three weeks ago when they lost to Conneaut.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have live coverage of the homecoming game in Hermitage with Mark Slezak and Bob Greenburg at the mike.
Sunday, September 22, 2019
Recapping Sharpsville v. Sharon 21 September 2019
Last night, I went to McCracken Field in Sharpsville for the rivalry game between Sharpsville's Blue Devils and Sharon's Tigers. The rivalry is Mercer County's oldest, dating back to 1899.
You could not have asked for better weather for the matchup, nor could you have also asked for any wind. The weather was perfect and the winds were calm.
Sharon was playing without the services of Javionne Smith, who was on the shelf with a broken arm. Sharpsville was without Tyler Clary, who was on the shelf with a separated shoulder.
This game was a rare Saturday night game for me to cover for this blog. It was made possible because Penn State football was idle. Sharon won the coin toss, but deferred to the second half.
And Sharon quarterback Lane Voytik set the tone in the first quarter with an early touchdown on a one yard keeper. Brady Ortiz would add a 35 yard rushing touchdown to make it 14-0 Tigers after one.
Sharon would score 20 more points in the second quarter, first on a 27 yard rushing touchdown by Tyvell Richardson. Next came a 50 yard touchdown reception from Lane Voytik to Ty Eilam. Corte Williams would add a 59 yard punt return touchdown to make the halftime score 34-0 Tigers. At that point, I was expecting that Blue Devils partisans would boo their team off the field as the teams headed to the locker room.
But in the second half, Sharon would not let up. Richardson found pay dirt again on a 78 yard kickoff return to make the score 40-0 Sharon and enforce the mercy clock the rest of the night. The last touchdown was scored by Brett Salsgiver from 5 yards out to make the final score 46-0 Sharon. The Tigers' Corte Williams was the player of the game.
I suggest that Sharpsville football and band boosters plan a pep rally on Friday afternoon in the gymnasium prior to the end of the school day so that everyone at Sharpsville High School get pumped up for their Homecoming game against the Lakeview Sailors.
Stay tune to this blog to find out where I will be for week six!
You could not have asked for better weather for the matchup, nor could you have also asked for any wind. The weather was perfect and the winds were calm.
Sharon was playing without the services of Javionne Smith, who was on the shelf with a broken arm. Sharpsville was without Tyler Clary, who was on the shelf with a separated shoulder.
This game was a rare Saturday night game for me to cover for this blog. It was made possible because Penn State football was idle. Sharon won the coin toss, but deferred to the second half.
And Sharon quarterback Lane Voytik set the tone in the first quarter with an early touchdown on a one yard keeper. Brady Ortiz would add a 35 yard rushing touchdown to make it 14-0 Tigers after one.
Sharon would score 20 more points in the second quarter, first on a 27 yard rushing touchdown by Tyvell Richardson. Next came a 50 yard touchdown reception from Lane Voytik to Ty Eilam. Corte Williams would add a 59 yard punt return touchdown to make the halftime score 34-0 Tigers. At that point, I was expecting that Blue Devils partisans would boo their team off the field as the teams headed to the locker room.
But in the second half, Sharon would not let up. Richardson found pay dirt again on a 78 yard kickoff return to make the score 40-0 Sharon and enforce the mercy clock the rest of the night. The last touchdown was scored by Brett Salsgiver from 5 yards out to make the final score 46-0 Sharon. The Tigers' Corte Williams was the player of the game.
I suggest that Sharpsville football and band boosters plan a pep rally on Friday afternoon in the gymnasium prior to the end of the school day so that everyone at Sharpsville High School get pumped up for their Homecoming game against the Lakeview Sailors.
Stay tune to this blog to find out where I will be for week six!
Thursday, September 19, 2019
Preview of Sharpsville v. Sharon
This Saturday night I plan to be at The Pines in Sharpsville as the homestanding Sharpsville Blue Devils host the visiting Sharon Tigers.
It will be a rare Saturday game for me to cover for this blog as my beloved Penn State Nittany Lions are idle this week.
The Sharpsville-Sharon rivalry is the oldest one in Mercer County, dating back to 1899. The 2019 renewal will feature a Tigers defense that has pitched consecutive shutouts and a Blue Devils defense that has allowed a combined 46 points through four games, so something has got to give on Saturday in Sharpsville.
The key matchup will be Sharon's passing attack that leads Mercer County in virtually all categories against the Sharpsville secondary.
Last week Sharon shut down the Slippery Rock Rockets' passing attack led by Vito Cortese and pitched a 14-0 shutout at Tiger Stadium. Ty Eilam and Lane Voytik (who played with a heavy heart following the recent death of his grandfather) shared player of the game honors. Sharpsville blew a 12-0 halftime lead and lost 20-12 to the Greenville Trojans.
The last two matchups were not decided until the final minutes. In 2017, Sharon denied Sharpsville on a two point conversion attempt to preserve a one-point win. The following year, Sharpsville placekicker Michael Herman booted a 24 yard field goal with under ten seconds left to give the Blue Devils a 23-21 win.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have radio coverage of the matchup with Mark Slezak on play-by-play and his longtime partner Bob Greenburg as color analyst.
It will be a rare Saturday game for me to cover for this blog as my beloved Penn State Nittany Lions are idle this week.
The Sharpsville-Sharon rivalry is the oldest one in Mercer County, dating back to 1899. The 2019 renewal will feature a Tigers defense that has pitched consecutive shutouts and a Blue Devils defense that has allowed a combined 46 points through four games, so something has got to give on Saturday in Sharpsville.
The key matchup will be Sharon's passing attack that leads Mercer County in virtually all categories against the Sharpsville secondary.
Last week Sharon shut down the Slippery Rock Rockets' passing attack led by Vito Cortese and pitched a 14-0 shutout at Tiger Stadium. Ty Eilam and Lane Voytik (who played with a heavy heart following the recent death of his grandfather) shared player of the game honors. Sharpsville blew a 12-0 halftime lead and lost 20-12 to the Greenville Trojans.
The last two matchups were not decided until the final minutes. In 2017, Sharon denied Sharpsville on a two point conversion attempt to preserve a one-point win. The following year, Sharpsville placekicker Michael Herman booted a 24 yard field goal with under ten seconds left to give the Blue Devils a 23-21 win.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have radio coverage of the matchup with Mark Slezak on play-by-play and his longtime partner Bob Greenburg as color analyst.
Friday, September 13, 2019
Recap of Sharon v. Slippery Rock 13 September 2019
Tonight I found myself at Tiger Stadium in Sharon as the homestanding Tigers hosted the visiting Rockets of Slippery Rock. It was a matchup in Region 5 2A under considerable cloudy skies as the sun set in the west in the early going.
Lane Voytik, the Tigers quarterback, was not only playing with a high ankle sprain that I was worried about going into the game, but he was also playing with a heavy heart following the recent death of his grandfather.
Sharon won the coin toss, but they deferred to the second half.
The first quarter was a defensive struggle, with neither side able to gain an early advantage through the first 12 minutes of the contest. But then, just 12 seconds into the second quarter, Lane Voytik through a touchdown pass to Ty Eilam from 31 yards out to draw first blood for the hosts. As I watched the Tigers celebrate, I was probably thinking that Voytik was looking up to the heavens and said, "This one's for you, grandpa."
The touchdown made the halftime score 7-0 in favor of the host Tigers.
In the late stages of the third quarter, CJ Parchman hit pay dirt when he caught a 19 yard touchdown reception from Voytik to make the score 14-0 Sharon. That's how the game would end.
Eilam and Voytik were both named co-players of the game for tonight. The win capped an emotional week for Lane Voytik and his family. I suppose that Tigers coach Jason McElhenny gave Voytik the game ball tonight knowing that Voytik wanted to play tonight when he didn't really have to play following the death of his grandfather.
Next Saturday evening I plan to be at the Pines in Sharpsville as the Tigers take on the Sharpsville Blue Devils. Stay tuned to this blog for my preview post of the matchup.
Lane Voytik, the Tigers quarterback, was not only playing with a high ankle sprain that I was worried about going into the game, but he was also playing with a heavy heart following the recent death of his grandfather.
Sharon won the coin toss, but they deferred to the second half.
The first quarter was a defensive struggle, with neither side able to gain an early advantage through the first 12 minutes of the contest. But then, just 12 seconds into the second quarter, Lane Voytik through a touchdown pass to Ty Eilam from 31 yards out to draw first blood for the hosts. As I watched the Tigers celebrate, I was probably thinking that Voytik was looking up to the heavens and said, "This one's for you, grandpa."
The touchdown made the halftime score 7-0 in favor of the host Tigers.
In the late stages of the third quarter, CJ Parchman hit pay dirt when he caught a 19 yard touchdown reception from Voytik to make the score 14-0 Sharon. That's how the game would end.
Eilam and Voytik were both named co-players of the game for tonight. The win capped an emotional week for Lane Voytik and his family. I suppose that Tigers coach Jason McElhenny gave Voytik the game ball tonight knowing that Voytik wanted to play tonight when he didn't really have to play following the death of his grandfather.
Next Saturday evening I plan to be at the Pines in Sharpsville as the Tigers take on the Sharpsville Blue Devils. Stay tuned to this blog for my preview post of the matchup.
Thursday, September 12, 2019
Previewing Sharon v. Slippery Rock
Tomorrow evening I will be at Tiger Stadium in Sharon as the homestanding Sharon Tigers play host to the visiting Slippery Rock Rockets.
Sharon is coming off of its first win of the Jason McElhenny era after they shut out Fairview 42-0. They will look to get to the .500 mark tomorrow night, however, the Rockets, coming off of a 35-6 victory over Franklin, might have something to say about that.
Two weeks ago at Hickory, I was worried about the ankle injury that Lane Voytik sustained in an opening week loss at Wilmington. He played, bad ankle and all, and nearly got the Tigers into the end zone to potentially force overtime, but Hickory's defense swatted the pass down to the turf and held on to win. I am still worried about Voytik's ankle, even though he still needs 109 yards to become Mercer County's all-time career passing leader.
Vito Pilosi of the Rockets, one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in District X, has one of the top passer ratings in the District when you use the NCAA model (164.8). He can also run the ball as well, as his style of play mirrors that of current Baltimore Ravens rookie quarterback Trace McSorley.
One of the key matchups in this game will be the Sharon Tigers' passing attack against the Rockets' secondary. Sharon leads the area in passing yardage with an average of 173.8 yards per game, while the Rockets have allowed 195.3 yards on average per game.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have radio coverage of this matchup, with Mark Slezak and Bob Greenburg calling the action from Tiger Stadium.
Sharon is coming off of its first win of the Jason McElhenny era after they shut out Fairview 42-0. They will look to get to the .500 mark tomorrow night, however, the Rockets, coming off of a 35-6 victory over Franklin, might have something to say about that.
Two weeks ago at Hickory, I was worried about the ankle injury that Lane Voytik sustained in an opening week loss at Wilmington. He played, bad ankle and all, and nearly got the Tigers into the end zone to potentially force overtime, but Hickory's defense swatted the pass down to the turf and held on to win. I am still worried about Voytik's ankle, even though he still needs 109 yards to become Mercer County's all-time career passing leader.
Vito Pilosi of the Rockets, one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in District X, has one of the top passer ratings in the District when you use the NCAA model (164.8). He can also run the ball as well, as his style of play mirrors that of current Baltimore Ravens rookie quarterback Trace McSorley.
One of the key matchups in this game will be the Sharon Tigers' passing attack against the Rockets' secondary. Sharon leads the area in passing yardage with an average of 173.8 yards per game, while the Rockets have allowed 195.3 yards on average per game.
SportsRadio 96.7 will have radio coverage of this matchup, with Mark Slezak and Bob Greenburg calling the action from Tiger Stadium.
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