by Lem Satterfield
One thing Paul Brown will be able to
say when he graduates is that, in three years playing varsity football,
he never lost to Patapsco.
“We know a lot of them, they know a
lot of us,” said Brown, a Sparrows Point senior. “We never have any
problem getting pumped up for those guys.”
The 5-foot-9,
200-pound running back did his part to assure that his streak remained
intact, rushing for a game-high 117 yards and scores of 1, 2 and 6
yards in a come-from-behind, 35-7 Baltimmore County interdivisional
rout of his neighborhood rival.
T.J. Howell rushed for 113 yards
in the Pointers’ (3-0) fourth straight win over Pataspco (2-1), ending
a three-game winning streak. The visting Patriots ended a 22-game
losing streak with their season-ending, 13-8 victory last season on
Nov. 10.
For the first time, the Pointers feel as if they can
win a league title: Baltimore County has been divided its football
programs into 4A-3A, 3A-2A, and, 1A Divisions — the latter comprised
of Chesapeake, New Town, Owings Mills, Pikesville, Western Tech and
Sparrows Point.
“We can throw the ball a little better than in
the past or give the ball to many different backs. We’re very
versatile,” said Webber, adding that quarterback Jeff Semelka was
5-for-5 passing in last week’s 47-8 rout of Baltimore Lutheran.
“We
had some questions about our line in the beginning of the season, but
we answered them in the first week Dan Clark really solidified that
left tackle position,” Webber said.
“We moved Dunstin Shindle
to guard, where he’s probably our best lineman,” Webber added. “Jimmy
Stolba’s the other guard, and Ryan Pollay blocked [University of
Maryland-bound] Teddy Dargan pretty well. We’ve found some kids with
some heart.”
After losing to Patapsco three straight times, the
Pointers have won by 20-6, 28-0, and, 20-0, respectively, entering
Thursday’s game. The schools are seperated by less than four miles.
“I
have friends from there, but when you see them, you just want to talk
smack to them,” Heather Robinette, junior who serves as the Pointers’
team manager.
“We practice 10 times harder than any team
around,” Robinetted added. “There’s a lot of excitement for the game
and people expecting us to win. Lately, we’ve been showing them on the
field.”
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Sparrows Point linebacker Jay Beall played well, as did Stolba,
Ryan Nadeau and Tommy Jarrell, with fumble recoveries as the Pointers
held the Patriots to 84 total yards. Josh Greer came through with a
sack and also was successful on all five extra point kicks.
“This
is been between us and Sparrows Point every year. We see them on the
weekends, and talk some smack,” said right tackle Rob Caskey, a
6-foot-1, 245-pounder who is the lone returning starter to an
undersized offensive line that includes Dan Clark (6-2, 170), Jimmy
Stolba (5-7, 180), Dustin Schindle (5-10, 220) and Ryan Pollay (5-7,
195).
“It’s execution. Practice is the biggest thing,” said Caskey, whose
Pointers’ pushed backward a Milford Mill defense that included Dargan
in their season-opening victory.
“We came in thinking that we
were going to lose that game at the time,” Brown said. “We had big
heads for a little while after that game, but since then, we tell
ourselves that any team can beat us.”
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Sparrows
Point’s Josh Greer caused a fumble that was recovered by a teammate
with this sack of Patapsco quarterback Tom Lugenbeel as part of a
defense that limited the Patriots to 84 total yards of offense. Greer
also made all five extra point kicks, pacing the Pointers to a 3-0
mark and their fourth straight win over the visiting Patriots in
Baltimore County interdivisional action.
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Brown’s
family is close to that of the Patriots’ James Buettner (6-7, 275),
and he said he “played recreation ball with Jeff Timmons [6-1, 230]
back when I was five years old.”
But it was against Buettner,
Timmons, Trae Lindsey (6-6, 215), Akil Godsey (6-0, 235), Anthony Van
Dommelin (6-2, 275) and Nathan Sprouse (6-1,
220) that the Pointers generated 312 of their 430 total yards of
offense on the ground.
“Their linemen play as if they’re a lot
bigger than they are,” said Patapsco coach John Spencer. “I mean, we
had a lot of injuries today. We made four fumbles. But what it came
down to is that they beat us with some big plays. We couldnt stop them.”
The
Patriots did what they could early on, however, starting with Anthony
Vallar’s game-opening, 65-yard kickoff return, followed by Kevin
Kikola’s extra point kick, for a 7-0 lead.
“Anthony scooped it
right up and took off, and when that happened, we were feeling good,”
Spencer said. “That’s the way you start the game, but we couldn’t
finish. They blanked us from there.”
The Pointers scored on their next three possessions for a 21-7 lead at 11:55 of the second quarter.
First,
Patrick Potocki made it 7-7 with his 6-yard scoring reception from Jeff
Semelka, then Brown put the Pointers ahead for good, 14-7, with his
2-yard run. Another run by Brown, this time, from a yard away, gave
Sparrows Point a two-touchdown advantage.
“Our lineman, the
whole way, has stepped up,” said Brown. “We’re not big guys, we’re not
fast guys, but as long as we stick to the fundamentals, it all works.”
Plagued
by penalties throughout the latter part of the second quarter, and much
of the third, the Pointers went to the air with 1:32 left in the third
quarter.
The Pointers were up, 28-7 after Storm Neidinger took a
pitch from Semelka, faked as if he was sweeping to his right, then
stopped and tossed what receiver Sean Bentz called, “a perfect pass.”
Bentz
(6-foot, 160) hauled it in at the 15-yard line, stumbled, fought off a
final defender inside the 5-yard line, and kept his footing long enough
to cross the goal line for his first scoring reception of the year.
“We
don’t really pass that much, so when they called the play, my eye got
real big. When the ball was in the air, I was just praying, ‘please
don’t let me drop it,'” Bentz said. “But it was right on the money, in
stride. I got nervous, tripped, felt like I was going to fall. I was
nervous, but I kept my balance, even though there was a guy there. It
was a relief.”
With 5:11 to play, Brown’s 6-yard run provided
the final margin for the Pointers, whose fans wear white T-shirts to
the game, the backs of which display the running scores of all the
games. Sparrows’ Points scores on the right, Patpsco’s on the left,
with the year of the game in the middle.
“I love the crowd. I
love hearing my name being called. It’s like a college game, with our
band, the cheeleaders. I think we have the best crowd in the state,”
Bentz said. “It’s so inspiring.”
Sparrows Point 35, Patapsco 7
Patapsco 7 0 0 0 7
Sparrows Point 14 14 7 0 35
P- Vallar 65 kickoff return (Kikola kick)
S- Potocki 6 pass from Semelka (Greer kick)
S- Brown 2 run (Gree kick)
S- Brown 1 run (Greer kick)
S- Bentz 51 pass from Neidinger (Greer kick)
S- Brown 6 run(Greer kick)
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