Freddy Lacey catch caps Muhls’ comeback victory
2025 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Sean McBryan — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
Muhlenberg didn’t win these types of games in recent seasons.
All the odds were against the Muhls: They were down 11 with eight minutes to go in another chippy game against an Academy Park team that beat them 53-38 last season.
They didn’t throw in the towel, clawing back to come away with a thrilling 42-37 victory Friday night in a non-league game in Laureldale.
| Final | |
| Muhlenberg | 42 |
| Acad. Park | 37 |
Facing a fourth-and-7 from the Knights’ 18 with 28 seconds left in the game and trailing 37-34, Freddy Lacey came down with a Randy Moss-esque game-winning touchdown catch on a perfect throw from Adriel Baez, cementing the most wins for the program in 12 years.
“I saw one-on-one coverage with Freddy and just let him go make a play,” Baez said. “Freddy went up and caught it for the win.”
“I told Coach (Adam) Burkart there was no safety over top of me,” Lacey said. “I had one-on-one coverage. If it’s not there to Mike (Miller Jr.), just hit me, I’ll be open. Like McDonald’s, I’m always open. I just prayed I could make that catch and win it for our team and that’s exactly what happened.”
The Muhls (8-1) have won their most games in a season since 2013, the last time they made the district playoffs. In the 11 seasons since they went 24-85 overall.
The win against Academy Park has all but sealed their next playoff trip and also gave them a chance to claim a share of the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 crown. Muhlenberg hosts Conestoga Valley, which beat Exeter 21-17 Friday, next week at Muhlenberg Stadium.
“Last year we were 4-7 and we said we were going to make a change,” Lacey said. “We wanted to put Muhlenberg back on top. That’s what we did, and we’re just gonna keep going and keep growing.”
Lacey joined Muhlenberg after transferring from Daniel Boone, one of the key moving pieces last season that has culminated in the Muhls’ turnaround. Cameron Small — more on him shortly — transferred in from Reading High and has broken records on the ground.
Rob Flowers became the Muhls head coach. Adriel Baez spent his freshman season getting more comfortable on a varsity field and has taken the next step this year. Miller, the swiss army knife, is the glue that holds it all together; he’s been a key contributor for the Muhls since he was a freshman.
“In the past, we would not have come out on the winning end of this game,” Flowers said. “We wouldn’t have come back from being down 11 points in the fourth quarter. But our kids are learning what it takes to finish and do things together.”
Academy Park’s frequent personal fouls and penalties — 23 for 230 yards — could have easily unraveled previous Muhlenberg teams. Instead, this group stayed poised.
“We’re a more disciplined football team,” Small said. “We knew they were trying to mess us up, so we just played through it.”
Small let his play do the talking, rushing for 301 yards and four touchdowns to become the sixth back in Berks history to reach 4,000 career yards.
“I don’t put too much attention on the individual numbers and records,” said Small, who has now rushed for 1,547 yards and 22 touchdowns this year. “My focus is to win, so when the records come with it, that makes that much better.
“We come every day to practice and put in the work. We trust each other 100 percent in the huddle. We believe in each other. So that’s a big part of why we’ve been successful.”
Each team punted to start the game and the Muhls muffed theirs, giving the Knights (4-5) a short field for a scoring drive that Jayden Barton finished with a 4-yard TD with 2:59 left in the first quarter.
Small scored his first touchdown just 16 seconds into the second quarter on an 11-yard TD run.
Myles Boone took a toss 57 yards for a score with 8:04 left before halftime to give Academy Park a 14-6 lead.
Small broke free for 72 yards on the Muhls’ next offensive snap before being brought down at the 10. Baez found Lacey for a shoestring catch with 5:47 left.
| SECTION 2 | League | Overall |
| Con. Valley | 5-0 | 9-0 |
| Exeter | 4-1 | 7-2 |
| Muhlenberg | 4-1 | 8-1 |
| Ephrata | 2-3 | 5-4 |
| E-town | 2-3 | 5-4 |
| Gov. Mifflin | 1-4 | 3-6 |
| Lebanon | 0-6 | 0-9 |
Academy Park then fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Muhls capitalized four plays later on Small’s 3-yard touchdown run to give them their first lead of the game at 20-14 with 4:38 remaining.
Muhlenberg forced another punt and Small’s 48-yard dash put the Muhls on Academy Park’s 10 on the next drive. Two plays later Small scored on a 4-yard run to extend the lead to 26-14 with 59 seconds left.
It took only four plays and 38 seconds for the Knights to go 75 yards and score on quarterback Marquise Spross’s 33-yard strike to Daniel Gbeaday, cutting the Muhls’ advantage to 26-22 at halftime.
Barton broke free for a 75-yard touchdown run with 5:13 left in the third quarter and the Knights reclaimed the lead.
Academy Park added to its lead with 8:11 left in the game after Myles Boone scored on a 56-yard run to make it 37-26.
The Muhls responded with a nine-play, 80-yard drive finished by a 5-yard TD run from Small that took only 2:32. Muhlenberg was heavily assisted by penalties from the Knights on the drive.
Muhlenberg forced the Knights to punt on their next possession and started its next drive at its own 20 with 2:56 remaining in the game.
Small picked up a first down on the ground, Baez hit Lacey and Miller for two more, but the Muhls then faced a fourth-and-3 from Academy Park’s 26.
A hard count caused the Knights to jump offsides and gave the Muhls a first down.
Small gained 6 yards on the next play, but a botched snap lost 3 yards on second down, forcing the Muhls to spike the ball to stop the clock and bring up fourth down with 32 seconds left in the game from the 18-yard line.
Then Baez hit Lacey for the game-winner and, after the Knights picked up one first down on their final drive, Chase Zona sealed it with an interception.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Academy Park | 7 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 37 |
| Muhlenberg | 0 | 26 | 0 | 16 | 42 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Academy Park | Barton, 4 run (Pochette kick) | 2:59 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Small, 11 run (kick failed) | 11:44 |
| 2 | Academy Park | Boone, 57 run (Pochette kick) | 8:04 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Lacey, 11 pass from Baez (Small run failed) | 5:47 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Small, 3 run (Small run) | 4:38 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Small, 4 run (Small run failed) | 0:59 |
| 2 | Academy Park | Gbeaday, 33 pass from Spross (Gbeaday run) | 0:21 |
| 3 | Academy Park | Barton, 75 run (Porchette kick) | 5:13 |
| 4 | Academy Park | Boone, 56 run (Gbeaday run) | 8:11 |
| 4 | Muhlenberg | Small, 5 run (Small run) | 5:39 |
| 4 | Muhlenberg | Lacey, 18 pass from Baez (Small run) | 0:28 |
Team statistics
| ACAD. PARK | MUHLENBERG | |
| First downs | 18 | 28 |
| Rushes-yards | 39-366 | 52-370 |
| Passing yards | 73 | 146 |
| Total yards | 439 | 516 |
| Passes | 5-12-1 | 8-16-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 2-2 | 2-2 |
| Punts-average | 4-26.8 | 1-32 |
| Penalties-yards | 23-230 | 13-155 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Academy Park: Boone 13-149, Barton 11-138, Spross 13-66, Ross 1-15, Gbeaday 1-(-2).
Muhlenberg: Small 34-301, Miller 10-48, Baez 6-23, Faulkner 2-(-2).
PASSING
Academy Park: Spross 5-12-1–73.
Muhlenberg: Baez 8-16-0–146.
RECEIVING
Academy Park: Gbeaday 3-61, Boone 1-10, Abney 1-2.
Muhlenberg: Lacey 5-117, Miller 1-16, Small 1-7, Cantres 1-6.
INTERCEPTIONS
Muhlenberg: Zona.
