Hamburg takes command early, holds off Columbia rally
2023 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
(This story was produced by LNP/Lancasteronline, and published in partnership with MikeDragoSports.com.)
By Mike Pollis — LNP/Lancasteronline
COLUMBIA — Blaise Ernst and Tyler Shuey each rushed for over 100 yards as Hamburg held on for a 34-26 victory over Columbia Friday night in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 finale.
Ernst, a freshman, rushed for 156 yards on 27 carries and scored on an 11-yard run. Shuey rushed for 105 yards on 25 yards, with scoring runs of 9, 3 and 4 yards.
The Hawks (3-4, 6-4) amassed 342 rushing yards and 489 total yards. Shuey was held below 200 passing yards for just the second time this season. He completed 11-of-19 passes for a season-low 147 yards, with two interceptions.
Shuey extended his program single-season passing record to 2,566 yards and threw his record 22nd TD, to Mason Semmel. It looks like he’ll have a chance to extend those records next week.
Despite the win it appears Hamburg will fall short of a return to the District 3 Class 3A playoffs. It is likely headed for the Eastern Conference playoffs against Berks Catholic.
After a first half that saw Hamburg dominate, the second half featured one huge turning point after another that saw the game go down to the final whistle with a last-gasp effort by Columbia falling short.
Artie Poindexter’s 100-yard interception return for a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter pulled Columbia pulled within 27-26 before a botched extra-point snap left the Tide trailing.
A few minutes later Columbia (1-6, 2-8) got the ball back after a blocked field goal but a botched Shotgun snap that sailed over the head of quarterback Cameron McClair was recovered by Hamburg, setting up an 11-yard touchdown run by Tyler Shuey to provide the final margin.
Columbia’s passing game had its best drive late in the third quarter as McClair found a number of different receivers, finishing the drive off on the final play of the quarter with a fade pass in the corner of the end zone to Poindexter to cut the Hamburg lead to 27-20.
The Hawks, clinging to a seven-point lead, answered with a solid scoring drive, highlighted by a 35-yard pass from Shuey to Semmel and a number of bruising runs by Blaise Ernst, including a 9-yard touchdown run.
After Hamburg took a 21-0 lead, Columbia finally found a big play when McClair hooked up with Quincy Stewart down the right sideline for a 54-yard touchdown; it was the Tide’s initial first down.
The Hawks gave the ball right back with a fumble and committed two personal fouls and an offsides on defense to give Columbia a free 35 yards, setting up a touchdown pass from McClair to Loudon Rupp that cut the lead to 21-14.
Columbia opened the second half with the ball, trailing 14-0. The home team had a chance to turn the tide but instead failed to move the ball on three plays, went for it on fourth-and-long, and turned the ball over on downs at its own 41 after an incompletion.
Hamburg wasted no time in making Columbia pay as Shuey found Semmel on a short crossing route that he took down the left sideline for a touchdown and a 21-0 lead.
Columbia failed to get a first down in the first half. The Tide couldn’t find any rhythm. Columbia ran just 14 offensive plays, completing 1-of-6 passes, and rushing eight times for 18 yards.
Hamburg, meanwhile, had 15 first downs in the opening half while marching the ball up and down the field in building a 14-0 lead.
The Hawks finished with four turnovers.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Hamburg | 0 | 14 | 13 | 7 | 34 |
| Columbia | 0 | 0 | 20 | 6 | 26 |
Scoring summary
| 2 | Hamburg | Shuey, 9 run (Blatt kick) |
| 2 | Hamburg | Shuey, 3 run (Blatt kick) |
| 3 | Hamburg | Semmel, 41 pass from Shuey (Blatt kick) |
| 3 | Columbia | Stewart, 54 pass from McClair (McClair kick) |
| 3 | Columbia | Rupp, 8 pass from McClair (McClair kick) |
| 3 | Hamburg | Moore, 11 run (kick failed) |
| 3 | Columbia | Poindexter, 19 pass from McClair (kick failed) |
| 4 | Columbia | Poindexter, 100 interception return (kick failed) |
| 4 | Hamburg | Shuey, 4 run (Blatt kick) |
Team statistics
| Hamburg | Columbia | |
| First downs | 23 | 8 |
| Rushes-yards | 64-342 | 16-13 |
| Passing yards | 147 | 125 |
| Total yards | 453 | 138 |
| Passes | 11-19-2 | 7-23 |
| Fumbles-lost | 2-2 | 3-1 |
| Punts-average | 2-23.0 | 3-44.0 |
| Penalties-yards | 5-50 | 10-70 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Hamburg: Ernst 27-156, Shuey 25-105, Moore 8-48, Oviedo 3-35, Horvath 1-2.
Columbia: McClair 9-23, Campbell 3-3, Nichols 1-0, Poindexter 3-(-3).
PASSING
Hamburg: Shuey 11-21-2–147.
Columbia: McClair 7-21-3–128.
RECEIVING
Hamburg: Semmel 4-101, Brady 3-20, Correll 3-10, Ernst 1-16.
Columbia: Stewart 3-69, Poindexter 3-36, Simms 1-15, Rupp 1-8.
INTERCEPTIONS
Hamburg: Bentz 2, Moore.
