Sweet Music carries Annville-Cleona over Camp Hill

(This story was produced by LNP/Lancasteronline, and published in partnership with MikeDragoSports.com.)

By David Bohr — LNP/Lancasteronline

ANNVILLE — It was a big night for the Annville-Cleona football team and its top rusher, Phoenix Music.

But it was also a big night for the Dutchmen’s other rushers as they defeated Camp Hill 42-13 in the District 3 Class 2A semifinals Friday, just the second district playoff victory in A-C’s history.

The top-seeded Dutchmen (8-3) will host third-seeded Trinity (7-4) in next week’s title game. Trinity defeated Delone Catholic 56-17.

Music led the way for the Dutchmen ground attack, which amassed 412 yards. With 24 carries for 169 yards and three touchdowns, Music pushed beyond the 2,000-yard rushing mark for the season. He scored the first two A-C touchdowns, a 4-yard run in the first quarter and a 45-yard run in the second for a 14-0 lead. He added a 4-yard score in the third.

The Dutchmen have long had a reputation for staying on the ground, especially during head coach Matt Gingrich’s tenure. But the plays they made the Lions (5-6) defend were anything but simple.

“They think we’re running the same plays, but we have a play for each gap and a counter off of it,” Gingrich said.

Not only do they have various plays, but also multiple backs who can hit those gaps.

The Dutchmen took complete control on a big run by one of their other running backs, Cael Harter. He took off on an 80-yard touchdown run with 5:49 left in the half for a 21-7 lead.

“It’s just a matter of time until a kid hits a crease, and it’s a good thing when you have a fast kid who wants to run the ball,” Gingrich said.

Harter finished with eight carries for 137 yards.

Quarterback Gavin Keller also added a rushing touchdown on a 5-yard keeper with 1:14 left in the second quarter for a 28-7 lead. Dominic Funk added a 21-yard scoring run with 6:00 left in the game for the final score.

Although Funk joined in on the scoring, he said he sees himself more as a linebacker than a runner, and as such was focused on stopping Camp Hill’s passing game.

“We definitely needed a good pass rush, because they love to pass the ball,” Funk said.

The Dutchmen had that pass rush, and sacked Camp Hill quarterback Drew Branstetter five times. Branstetter averaged more than 200 yards passing per game in the regular season but was held to 101 yards.

Keller, who had fewer than 40 pass attempts in the regular season, stayed true to form by attempting just two passes. He completed both — one to Alex Long, the other to Jonathan Shay — on separate touchdown drives.

Camp Hill never generated much of a ground game, accumulating only 15 rushing yards, though the sack yardage affected that statistic.

“We thought we might have an advantage up front, and they might have an advantage on the back end,” Gingrich said. “We were able to use our advantage. . . I was a lineman my whole life, and there’s nothing I love more than to suffocate the other team. This team embodies that.”