KITTANNING, Pa. – Thanksgiving dinner will be served just a tad later this year throughout Cresson and the Mainline area.
The Penn Cambria High School football team added another milestone to its historic season Saturday afternoon. The undefeated, District 6 champion Panthers set the tone early in a 30-7 victory over District 10 champ Hickory in a PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal at Armstrong Junior-Senior High School.
The win pushes Penn Cambria into the state semifinals, which means the Panthers will hold a Thursday morning practice on Thanksgiving.
PHOTO GALLERY | Penn Cambria advances to 3A state semifinal with 30-7 win over Hickory
“This year coming in, no football team in Penn Cambria history had won a D6 title,” Panthers junior quarterback Brady Jones said after scoring a touchdown, running for a pair of conversions and passing for another two-pointer. “That was one of our goals. We take it one play, one game at a time.
“Practicing on Thanksgiving morning was one of our goals and we achieved that.”
Penn Cambria (14-0) will play Avonworth, a 17-0 victor over Central Valley, Nov. 29or 30. Hickory closed an 11-2 season.
“One of our goals at the beginning of the season was to play on Thanksgiving morning,” said Panthers senior playmaker Gavin Harrold, who scored three TDs and caught a conversion pass from Jones “We get to do that and it feels great, but we’re still not done.”
Penn Cambria coach Nick Felus and his staff once again put together a game plan executed in game-winning fashion by the players.
The Panthers effectively rushed the football with Thomas Plunkett (16-77) and Mason Mento (13-35) producing physical runs, and Harrold gaining 151 yards.
Penn Cambria’s offensive and defensive lines had success against a big, physical Hickory line that had helped the Hornets outscore 12 previous opponents 490-161.
Felus’ defense forced four turnovers, with Marcus Eckenrode and Grant Gides intercepting passes, and Gides and Logan Price recovering fumbles. The Panthers offense didn’t have a turnover.
“First and foremost, this group is tough as nails,” Felus said. “They’re so resilient. We talked all week about wanting to play a physical brand of football. We did that on both sides of the ball.
“The game is won in the trenches. Two things you’ve got to do in playoff football. You’ve got to run the ball. You’ve got to stop the run. We did that today and we took care of the football.”
Penn Cambria won the coin toss, took the ball and then moved 78 yards in 16 plays that used up 7 minutes, 3 seconds of game clock. Jones capped the march with a 3-yard TD run and then ran in the conversion to make it 8-0 with 4:57 left in the opening quarter.
“Coming into this game, we had to be the most physical team,” Jones said. “Hickory is a great team. All credit to them. We knew coming in we had to send a message on that first drive.
“I thought we did that.”
Harrold agreed.
“That definitely made a statement,” Harrold said. “We’re not the biggest or the strongest, but we play with heart.”
Hickory answered with a 10-play drive capped by a 6-yard TD run by Kelvin Morrison (16 carries, 96 yards) as the first-quarter clock expired. Logan Standford’s extra-point kick pulled the Hornets within 8-7.
In the second quarter, Penn Cambria’s Harrold broke a 37-yard run to put the ball at the 2. After a short loss, Harrold ran 4 yards for a score.
On the conversion, Jones patiently held the ball as he ran to his right before finding Harrold for a conversion pass to make it 16-7 at 10:04.
“Hats off to Penn Cambria. They just dominated up front,” Hickory coach Bill Dungee said. “We were out of sorts from the beginning. The long drive kept our offense off the field and kind of put us behind the sticks.
“The things that have haunted us all year – the penalties, personal fouls – you can’t do that in the state playoffs against a powerful team, but hats off to them. Hats off to my seniors. We fought until the end, but they came out and dominated.”
The Panthers survived a scare midway through the second quarter. Jones shoveled the ball in Harrold’s direction, but it landed on the turf, where Hickory cornerback Jadon Phillips recovered at the Penn Cambria 19.
After the officials discussed the play, it was ruled an incomplete pass.
In the second half, the Panthers capitalized on a misplayed punt return. Price recovered the fumble at the Hickory 38-yard line. The Hornets later sacked Jones to apparently halt the drive, but an unnecessary roughness penalty gave the Panthers new life.
Harrold scored on a 1-yard run and Jones ran the conversion to make it 24-7 with 2:34 left in the third quarter.
“Coach always says, ‘First three minutes of the second half,’ ” Harrold said. “We came out, got a quick stop and we just pounded it down.
“Hats off to (Hickory), they’re a great team. We just wanted it more.”
Eckenrode’s interception on the first play of the fourth quarter set up another Panthers touchdown. Harrold scored from a yard out to make it 30-7 with 6:22 to play.
“Just making history,” Harrold said. “We didn’t even win a district championship before this year. To do that and then some is great.”
“We wanted to practice on Thanksgiving,” Felus said. “We’re going to do that. We’re not finished yet.”
