Belle Vernon stands its ground, gets first win
By Bill Hughes
For the Observer-Reporter
newsroom@observer-reporter.com
BELLE VERNON – In a confidence-building win, Belle Vernon made a defensive stand in the last minute to beat Central Valley, 23-17.
“This is a good victory, and I am very pleased as we are trying to feel ourselves out from an identity standpoint,” said Belle Vernon coach Matt Humbert. “We told the players this would be a fourth-quarter-type deal, and I am cool with how it transpired.”
The Leopards (1-0) took the opening kickoff and moved down the field on the Warriors (0-2) with quarterback Curty Wade scoring from 21 yards out with 6:21 to go in the first quarter, and Preston Rathway’s extra point gave Belle Vernon the early 7-0 advantage.
The lead held until the first play of the second quarter when Jance Henry raced 57 yards to tie the game with 11:46 to go in the half.
However, Bell Vernon’s Kole Doppelheuer returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown to give BV a 13-6 lead with 11:32 left before the intermission.
Rathway’s extra point was blocked.
Central Valley took its first lead with 9:02 to go in the half when Steven Rutherford scored from a yard out, and the 14-13 score held into the third quarter.
Rathway gave the Leopards (1-0) a 16-14 lead with a 33-yard field goal with 7:02 to go in the third, and the score held until a key fourth down on the first play of the fourth.
The Leopards had the ball at the Central Valley 2, and Humbert chose to go for the touchdown.
The faith in his team paid off as Anthony Crews scored and Rathway’s extra point gave BV a two-score lead, 23-14, with 11:52 to go.
The Warriors trimmed the gap to 23-17 on a 30-yard field goal by Dom Pratt, with 6:11 to play, and it set up the late-game defensive stand by the Leopards.
Central Valley drove from its 28-yard line deep into the Leopards’ red zone, but quarterback Steven Rutherford’s pass attempts on both third and fourth down sailed through the end zone.
“You never want it that close, but a lot of positives come out of this,” said Humbert. “The cool thing is, look at how many guys we had out.
“We had guys stand up and mend the ship. This is a good team victory.”
The Leps gained 195 yards of offense on 46 plays while the Warriors gained 257 yards on 45 plays.
Central Valley was led by Henry, who rushed for 116 yards on only eight carries in the first half. He suffered an injury and did not return after halftime.
Belle Vernon heads to McKeesport Friday for a non-conference game.