HS FOOTBALL: Second-half comeback leads Rams over Devils, 38-19
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL - Shenandoah Valley’s Mikey Elchisak attempts to elude Vo-Tech defender #28 Gage Cragle during Friday’s game at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Shenandoah.
SHENANDOAH – Shenandoah Valley Head Coach Dave Bench told the Sentinel at media day he hoped the Devils could start off on the right foot. They did, sort of.
The Devils scored on their first three drives, leading the Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech Rams 19-8 at one point and 19-14 at the halftime break.
“That was a lot better performance than last year,” Bench told the Sentinel, referring to last year’s matchup where the Devils trailed 14-0 early and fell 48-17. “We came out strong.”
Mikey Elchisak picked up two touchdowns on the ground for the Devils along with another run by sophomore quarterback Ethan Bench.
While the first three drives were strong, the Devils stalled out later as the Rams defense lit up in the second half.
“We made sure our kids knew that there’s a long second half,” Vo-Tech Head Coach Mark Varner told the Sentinel. “We have always been a second half team. We don’t cramp up. We always outlast every team and that’s what we did.”
The Devils, Varner said, caught the Rams off guard initially, too, with a different set than they ran in last week’s scrimmage at Jenkintown.
“It took us a little bit to understand what they were trying to do and how to play that,” Varner said.
Regarding first half mistakes, Varner said “We just shored them up.”
“We came down and we ran the ball, we kept the pressure on and the kids made some spectacular plays,” he added.
One of those spectacular plays put the nail in the coffin, as CMVT’s #3 Axton Koser picked off an Ethan Bench-thrown pass and returning it for 6 late in the 4th quarter.
Dave Bench said depth has been an issue for the team.
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL – CMVT’s Keegan Moyer rushes during Friday’s game. 
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL – Vo-Tech wideout #6 Blake Sponenberg eludes Shenandoah Valley’s #2 Gene Sinkus during Friday’s football game at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Shenandoah. 
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL – Vo-Tech’s #0 Tyson Brown eludes Shenandoah Valley’s Seth Krammes en route to a touchdown at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Shenandoah. 
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL – Vo-Tech’s #56 Levi McCarty congratulates #0 Tyson Brown after a touchdown against Shenandoah Valley at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Shenandoah. 
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL – Vo-Tech’s #9 Wyatt Bodnar, #24 Liam Patraw, #6 Blake Sponenberg, and Shenandoah Valley’s #3 Todd Seiger, #11 Andrew Czerny, and #10 Dylan Getz all vie to recover an onside kick during Friday’s game at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Shenandoah.
“We’re very thin and the guys that are behind [our starters] are new players,” Bench said. “We need to get those new players up-to-speed so we can get more breathers or some guys just play one side of the ball.”
“Some dropped passes hurt us a little bit, too,” Bench added. “We’ll have to regroup Monday and focus on Minersville.
The Rams took the victory 38-19.
The Devils are on the road at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Minersville next Friday.
Full Photo Gallery
About Author
