Gingrich, East stars, knock on the door but can’t get through in loss to West
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MECHANICSBURG — It’s not like Donovan Gingrich hadn’t ever connected on a ‘Hail Mary’ before. He threw one up that Conrad Weiser teammate Evan Rittle came down with just before halftime in a win over Solanco last season.
The Scouts quarterback, this time playing for the East squad in the PSFCA Big School All-Star Game, needed another miracle Sunday night.
With the wind at his back, he fired from beyond midfield, the ball settling right at the goal line, where West defensive back Cameron Gates of West York came down with it, securing his team’s 17-12 win over the East at Cumberland Valley’s Chapman Field.
It was the last of a series of near-misses for the East offense, which moved the ball up and down the field and knocked on the door repeatedly, only to get turned back in the red zone four times.
“We had our chances,” said East coach Dave Hahn of Manheim Central. “That’s the struggle of getting (only) four practices in and trying to play a game like this, against good players.”
Gingrich and East QB partner Demaj Jalloh of Central Dauphin East connected with their targets time after time, combining to complete 29 passes for 333 yards.
Once inside the 10, the West defense stiffened, and the East offense couldn’t convert. It ran 11 plays inside the 10 yard-line in the final quarter and scored on just one of them, Jalloh’s 1-yard run with 2:57 remaining to trim the West lead to five points.
Otherwise, the East came up empty after twice moving to the 6 and once after moving to the 5. It was also turned back on downs in the first half after moving to the 11.
“It’s more (a matter) of clicking (on offense),” Gingrich said. “Defense, you can kind of just play. For offense, you have to know where everybody’s going to be, stuff like that. Everything needs to be sharp. We haven’t played with each other (much), so it was kind of choppy.”
Each side had only four practices sessions; there just wasn’t enough time to iron out the wrinkles in the goal-line offense, where execution is at a premium.
“I’m proud of these guys, to do what they did in four practices,” Hahn said. “I thought they gave a great effort. When it didn’t look good at the beginning, they never gave up; they just kept playing. They battled.”
The West came away with a field goal on its first possession, then built a 17-0 lead on the strength of two game-changing defensive plays.
Cornerback James Zigler of McDowell jumped a sideline route, stole a pass from Jalloh and took it back 46 yards for a touchdown and 10-0 lead early in the second quarter.
Four plays later the West defense struck gold again when Jayden Zandier, the two-time All-State tailback from Exeter, was taken out on a high-low tackle and fumbled the ball. It bounced right into the hands of Altoona linebacker Mark Harrington, who took it back 40 yards for a TD.
Two defensive touchdowns in less than two minutes changed the game and put the East in a 17-point hole.
The East had all kinds of breakout weapons and utilized them in the passing game but its offensive line couldn’t provide Zandier with any running room. Zandier had six touches in the running game but was repeatedly hit in the backfield; he finished with just 20 rushing yards.
Gingrich enjoyed more success, completing 10-of-18 passes for 107 yards; he provided the East’s first score, on a 1-yard touchdown run that capped the first possession of the second half, a 15-play, 80-yard drive.
Gingrich was one of four Berks players in the game, along with Zandier, Conrad Weiser placekicker Alex Malone and Twin Valley lineman Aris Drake.
Gingrich also handled punting duties. Zandier was utilized to return kickoffs. Malone, who shared kicking duties with Brody Wojnicki of Central Bucks East, saw his only scoring chance thwarted when his 23-yard field goal attempt in the final seconds of the first half was blocked. Drake started at right tackle and went the whole way on the offensive line.
The East’s biggest threats were at receiver. Rayshawn Scott of Roman Catholic finished with a game-high 10 receptions for 136 yards; he is committed to play at West Chester. Caleb Newsome of Nazareth had seven catches for 117 yards; he is committed to play at Lafayette.
“I had weapons all over,” Gingrich said. “If my No. 1 guy one isn’t open, I have a second guy that’s going D-1, D-2.”
