By Brian Carroll –
On paper, the matchup between Strath Haven and Haverford looked like a coin flip. With both teams running ball-control Wing-T offenses, one could make a case that this contest could come down to who has the ball last, who would minimize turnovers and penalties, or who might be able to pop just one or two big plays in the passing game. Those who watched the action this past Friday evening were treated to all of this and more in what turned out to be a highly competitive, emotional rollercoaster of a high school football game as Strath Haven eked out a 28-14 victory.
Panther fans could not have asked for a better start to the game, with #80 John Reilly recovering a fumble on the third play, and #5 Kasey Hudson following a terrific block from #53 Pat Burke for a 25-yard scoring run. From there, both teams traded clock-chewing drives for almost the entirety of the first half, but the defenses stood tall. Haverford threatened after Joe McGinley’s sack forced a fumble near the edge of the red zone, but 4th down pressure from #84 Tyler Slaughter and #57 Zack Milligan (2 sacks) squashed the threat early in the second quarter. But in the final minute of the half, Haverford’s #13 Josh McGonigle connected twice with #25 James Fahy on a well-thrown wheel route for a 44-yard gain, and followed it up with a 13-yard touchdown strike that left the home crowd in stunned silence for a 7-7 halftime tie.
After Haven’s Chase Shuster (2 punts inside the 20) pinned Haverford deep in their own territory, Haverford’s go-to fullback #9 Henry Yez (117 rushing yards, TD) found his sea legs for most of a 12-play, 86-yard scoring drive that gave the Fords their first lead. With momentum in the visitors’ favor and the Panthers’ spirits reeling, Haven’s big-play senior #11 Jalen Starr stepped up with a 71-yard kickoff return deep into Fords territory. A questionable penalty set the Panthers back momentarily, but a 4th down connection from #8 Jake Plunkett to John Reilly for 24-yards set up #3 Landon Barlow’s (89 rushing yards, 2 TDs) game-tying touchdown run early in the 4th quarter. 
After Starr then recovered a fumble forced by #4 Yousif Ali, Haverford’s defense again stood tall. But Shuster’s excellent punt into a stiff wind pinned Haverford inside their own 20, and set the stage for some late game magic. The Panthers took over on the midfield stripe with 6:06 to play, and watched Barlow and Hudson sledgehammer paths behind the excellent blocking of Ali, Milligan, Slaughter and #55 Logan Knaub for the next 11 snaps. Barlow’s second scoring plunge of the night gave the Panthers a 21-14 lead with just 1:24 remaining and had the home crowd roaring. But Haverford still had life with the ball, two timeouts, and a track-record of scoring quickly through the air at the end of the first half. This time, however, the Panthers would have none of it, as Kasey Hudson sat down on an out-route and returned his first interception of the season for a 32-yard touchdown, and then leading tackler #7 Cole Haly sealed it with another pick on a well-covered wheel route.
In addition to stretching their win streak to four games, the 28-14 victory against the bigger, physical Fords should be a huge boost in confidence for the Panthers. Without any eye-popping individual statistics, the Panthers showed that a truly full-team effort can still get the job done. The defense forced four turnovers, the kicking and return teams were outstanding, and the offense made the plays they needed in big moments against a well-coached opponent. And with four big challenges remaining, Strath Haven will need every bit of that same effort with the Central League title and District 1 playoff positioning in the balance. For now, though, Panther fans should take a day and enjoy a hard-fought victory over an impressive Haverford squad.
