Berks Catholic falls to Loyalsock despite big night by Josiah Jordan
By Andrew Clauser— MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
Coming into the season Berks Catholic coach Rick Keeley knew he would need his star player, Jay Jay Jordan, to make big plays to keep his team on the winning side.
His star responded Friday night but it was not enough to overcome the big plays from Loyalsock as the Saints fell 34-21 at Forino Sports Complex.
Trailing 14-0 in the second quarter, the Saints got that lift from Jordan with a 10-yard TD reception from William Hess.
That was not all. Later in the second quarter Jordan gave his team the play of the night, an electrifying Pick Six from 46 yards out.
What looked like a big pass play was stolen by Jordan as he wrestled the ball out of the receiver’s grip. The return was even better as he dodged several tackles on his way to the end zone to tie the game. Jordan also had a big fourth-and-1 run deep in Saints territory to keep a drive alive late in the third quarter.
Junior quarterback William Hess had a solid debut for the Saints, finishing 12-of-15 for 103 yards and one touchdown. Despite a fumble, he was efficient in the passing game.
However, it was the big momentum-shifting plays that buried the Saints. Their defense struggled to contain Loyalsock running back Davion Hill, who gashed them for 243 yards on the ground, 95 yards off two receptions and three scores.
The Saints hung around as they pulled within six with 7:17 left in the game with a nine-play drive capped by a 9-yard touchdown run by fullback Devin Garcia. However, they could not stop Hill on the subsequent possession as he broke free for a 46-yard run followed by a 7-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 34-21.
The Saints were able to get into Lancers territory late in the fourth but fell a half-yard short of the first down marker with 2:05 left on a fourth-down run.
Berks Catholic looks to bounce back as it heads to Executive Education Charter Friday at 7pm. The Saints won last year’s contest 46-12 at Forino Sports Complex in the first of a home-and-home series.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Loyalsock | 7 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 34 |
| Berks Catholic | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Loyalsock | Hill, 71 pass from Gee (Anderson kick) | 10:14 |
| 2 | Loyalsock | Hill 14 run (Anderson kick) | 11:53 |
| 2 | Berks Catholic | Jordan, 10 pass from Hess (Kurtas kick fail) | 9:12 |
| 2 | Berks Catholic | Jordan 46 INT Return (Blythe run) | 4:15 |
| 2 | Loyalsock | Patterson, 47 pass from Gee (Anderson kick) | 1:22 |
| 3 | Loyalsock | Hill, 2 run (Anderson kick) | 1:55 |
| 4 | Berks Catholic | Garcia, 9 run (Kurtas Kick) | 7:17 |
| 4 | Loyalsock | Hill, 7 run (Anderson kick) | 5:29 |
Team statistics
| Loyalsock | Berks Catholic | |
| First downs | 11 | 13 |
| Rushes-yards | 28-261 | 41-133 |
| Passing yards | 198 | 103 |
| Total yards | 459 | 236 |
| Passes | 9-13 | 12-15 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1 | 1 |
| Punts-average | 2-31 | 2-37 |
| Penalties-yards | 3-20 | 4-20 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Loyalsock: Hill 19-243, Gee 9-18.
Berks Catholic: Armistead 11-46, Garcia 11-45, Jordan 11-41, Blythe 4-12, Pennington 2-6, Hess 2- (-17)
PASSING
Loyalsock: Gee 9-13-198-1
Berks Catholic: Hess 12-15-103-0
RECEIVING
Loyalsock: Hill 2-95, Patterson 2-68, Cavanaugh 1-13, Glunk 3-11, Andrews 1-11
Berks Catholic: Jordan 5-39, Geddio 4-31, Armistead 2-23, Polinsky 1-10
INTERCEPTIONS
Berks Catholic: Jordan.
