By Matthew DeGeorge –
Jalen Starr lined up to field the kickoff at the 10-yard line of a George L. King Field that felt like it had the air sucked out of it.
Starr’s Strath Haven was trailing Upper Moreland by two touchdowns in the third quarter of its District 1 Class 5A playoff game. The Panthers were looking for a spark, for some verification that they were an eight-win team and the fourth seed of a tournament in which it has enjoyed deep runs the last few autumns. It was looking for a wakeup call.
Strath Haven’s Ryan Mudrick runs during a September game against Upper Darby. (PETE BANNAN/MediaNews Group)
Starr fielded the kick at the 18, bobbled once, hit his stride and delivered.
Starr’s 72-yard kick return set up a short field and jolted a ripe-for-upset Strath Haven from its doldrums. It triggered four unanswered rushing touchdowns – two from Ryan Mudrick, then two from Yosif Ali – in surviving the 13th-seeded Bears, 35-21.
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