H.S. FOOTBALL: Greencastle-Antrim shows off its depth in big win over James Buchanan
MERCERSBURG >> It was apparent right off the bat that the James Buchanan Rockets were out-matched Friday night.
The two teams came into the game sporting polar-opposite records, and the Greencastle-Antrim Blue Devils smashed the Rockets, 49-0.
The Blue Devils (6-1, 2-1 MPC) showed off the reason for their success, smothering the Rocket offense. Eight different Greencastle players ran the ball, totaling 213 rushing yards on 29 carries and displaying their depth and strength of their offensive line. The Devils put up 34 points in the first half alone, which allowed them to replace the starters in the second half and coast to the victory.
"I thought we played a lot of kids," Greencastle coach Chuck Tinninis said. "They all got a chance to play. And now we move on."
It wasn't all the ground game for the Blue Devils, either. Quarterback Spencer Meyers threw for a 97 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 40-yard bomb to running back Demetrius Burton and had a 17-yard pass to a wide-open Zachary Koons.
For the Rockets (0-7, 0-4 MPC), the game was an uphill struggle marred by overthrown and dropped passes and mistakes in moments which could have given them momentum. Starting quarterback Remi Spoonhour completed only three passes while throwing an interception, and the Greencastle defense held James Buchanan's leading rusher, Seth Carbaugh, to just 44 yards on 12 carries.
Spoonhour's three completed passes exposed a small weakness in the Devils' stout defense.
Greencastle gave up a few large plays on missed coverages and tackles, but it rebounded from those mistakes every time. The defense itself made a few big plays of its own, exploding through the Rockets' offensive line countless times and putting pressure on Spoonhour.
G-A's defense also put up points of its own when cornerback Derek Measell intercepted a deep pass and returned it 54 yards for a score thanks to quick blocking from his linebackers.
JB coach Andrew Stoner was appreciative of the effort his team gave.
"We still need to clean some things up," Stoner said. "We didn't score any points. We gave up too many points, but effort-wise, I thought the effort was there, and sometimes that's where you need to start."
Greencastle 49
James Buchanan 0
Greencastle1420150—49J. Buchanan0000—0
First Quarter
GA — Demetrius Burton 40 pass from Spencer Meyers (Austyn Smith kick), 10:50
GA — Kyrin Zimmerman 20 run (Smith kick), 4:15
Second Quarter
GA — James Hines 1 run (kick failed), 8:34
GA — Zachary Koons 17 pass from Meyers (Smith kick), 4:24
GA — Bailey Parker 1 run (Smith kick), 0:55
Third Quarter
GA — Caleb Schaeffer 15 run (Matt Christman run), 6:40
GA — Derek Measell 54 interception return (Smith kick), 5:31
GAJBFirst downs178Rushes-yards29-21324-58Passing7-23-02-23-2Passing yards9772Total yards310130Punts1-443-30Fumbles-lost1-11-0Penalties-yards2-302-6
Individual statistics
Rushing — GA, Meyers 3-27, Measell 4-51, Parker 4-41, Hines 8-44, Burton 4-32, Levi Mentzer 1-5, Kyrin Zimmerman 2-12, Joseph Burns 3-20. JB, Seth Carbaugh 12-44, Remi Spoonhour 5-1, Clay Sanders 3-0, Caden Ficks 2-7, Evan Stoner 2-6.
Passing — GA, Meyers 7-21-97-0, Cade McDowell 0-2-0-0. JB, Spoonhour 3-19-72-1, Sanders 0-3-0-1.
Receiving — GA, burton 2-40, Tyler Jeffreys 2-20, Measell 1-48, Koons 1-17, Parker 1-9, Brae Peck 1-7. JB, Clay Ziemba 1-37, Carbaugh 1-24, Caden Ficks 1-12.
Interceptions — GA, Measell, Isaiah Peck.