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First half once again tough on Huskies

By BRIAN CARSON

MANCHESTER The first half was once again a killer for Mifflin County in its non-conference football game with Northeastern on Friday evening.

The Huskies fell behind 14-0 after one quarter and couldn’t find any answers to stop Manny Capo and Jordan Lagana in a 35-13 loss to the Bobcats, dropping Mifflin County to 0-3 on the season.

Capo rushed for 158 yards and two scores with Lagana hauling in six receptions for 138 yards and three touchdowns to pace the Northeastern offense.

“We were dogs in a dogfight. I saw a lot of emotion in them tonight that I didn’t see the first two games, so the fact that we care and the emotion I saw on their faces tell me they care,” Mifflin County coach Scot Sechler said. “Believe it or not, these kids have bought in.”

 

The Bobcats took advantage early with two first quarter scores a little over two minutes apart. Capo finished a 7-play, 51-yard drive from two yards out to make it 7-0 with 5:17 to go in the first.

After Mifflin County failed on a 4th-and-3, Northeastern scored two plays later when quarterback Zack Sanderson hit Lagana for the 41-yard bomb for the 14-0 advantage with three minutes left in the period.

Northeastern put the game out of reach with three scores in the third quarter to make it 35-0.

The Bobcats placed the game on the shoulders of Capo and he didn’t disappoint. The junior ran every down of a 10-play, 79 yard drive that ended with his second two-yard TD run of the game.

Northeastern (3-0) finished the quarter with two Lagana TD grabs from 35 yards out. The first came with 2:34 left and the second just 45 seconds later.

The Huskies finally picked up the offense with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

Zack Bickhart snagged a 14-yard pass to close 4-play, 61-yard drive and help Mifflin County avoid the shutout. The key play of the drive was a 43-yard strike from backup QB Drake Schaeffer to Jayden Jackson.

Bickhart finished the game with six catches for 103 yards and an interception on defense. Jackson collected three grabs for 107.

“Zach had a great game. He really played well tonight in all three phases – offense, defense and special teams,” Sechler said.

The Huskies made it closer with a 10-play, 67-yard drive capped by a 3-yard run by fullback Rodney Henry. The score was an emotional one for Henry, because his dad, Rod, is seriously ill.

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“Rodney said I want my dad to see more touchdowns and we’re going to make sure he sees more touchdowns,” Sechler said.

Chris Sheetz was 10-for-20 for 174 yards and a touchdown in his first start. Sechler likes what he saw from his senior.

“Chris had some high throws but he had a good game. We have to get him more reps in practice this week,” Sechler said.

One bit of bad news for the Huskies came late in the second quarter when starting tailback Gage Schaeffer left the game after a hard hit and didn’t return.

Northeastern out-gained Mifflin County 370-285. The Huskies finished with 227 yards passing but only 58 yards rushing on 33 carries. The Bobcats had 209 yards rushing and 161 yards passing.

Mifflin County comes home on Friday, September 13, to face Mid-Penn Colonial League preseason favorite Northern York. Action gets underway at 7:00 p.m.

Northwestern 35, Mifflin County 13

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Mifflin County            0 0 0 13 — 13

Northeastern    14 0 21 0 – 35

First quarter

N—Capo 2 run (Afata kick), 5:17.

N—Lagana 41 pass from Sanderson (Afata kick), 3:00

Third quarter

N—Capo 2 run (Afata kick), 5:18.

N—Lagana 35 pass from Sanderson (Afata kick), 2:34.

N—Lagana 35 pass from Sanderson (Afata kick), 1:49.

Fourth quarter

MC—Z. Bickhart 14 pass from Sheetz (Yingling kick), 11:53.

MC-Henry 3 run (kick failed), 1:33.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING: MC—G. Schaeffer 10-32, Krepps 1-(-1), Hassinger9-1, R. Henry 1-3 TD, Sheetz 2-(-14), Z, Bickhart 1-27, Pennebaker 7-24, D, Schaeffer 2-(-21). Northeastern—Capo 25-158 2TD, Sanderson 3-11, Lagana 1-4, Toomey 1-2, Hays 2-34, Guinitta 1-0.

PASSING: MC—D. Schaeffer 1-1-43-0, Hassinger 2-6-9-0, Sheetz 10-20-174-0. Northeastern—Sanderson 7-16-162-1, Toomey 1-2-(-1).

RECEIVING: MC—Z. Bickhart 6-103, G. Schaeffer 1-(-3), Jackson 3-107, C. Bickhart 1-3, Krepps 1-6, Pennebaker 1-11. Northeastern—Lagana 6-138 3TD, Chatman 1-24, Hays 1-(-1).

TEAM STATISTICS   N  MC

First downs          16   12

Rushes-yards      33-209   33-58

Passing (comp.-att.-int.) 8-18-1 13-27-0

Yards passing         161    227

Total yards       370     285

Fumbles-lost          1-1     1-1

Penalties-yards     9-75     4-29

Punts-avg.             2-41.0 6-37.0

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