Hamburg sacks Bermudian, earns first district football victory
By Pete Beck — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
In May of 1985 Bruce Springsteen released “Glory Days,” a song lamenting sentimental, middle aged journeys into the past. Later that same year the Hamburg Hawks earned their first District 3 playoff berth.
The Hawk’s finally caught some district playoff glory Friday night after a 36-year wait, beating sixth-seeded Bermudian Spring 31-27 in a Class 3A quarterfinal on Hawk Hill.
“I’m almost crying right now, I’m so happy,” Hamburg senior Mitchell Watt said after the program’s first district victory. “It means a lot.”
Watt was relieved because he knew the outcome could have been very different. After scoring 17 unanswered points to lead 17-7 at the half, the third-seeded Hawks (7-3), came out of the locker room ready to put the game away, and after a 23-yard pickup by running back Pierce Mason on the first play of the second half were in position to do that.
That changed in the blink of an eye.
Bermudian Springs defensive back Ethan Beachy scooped up a Watt fumble on the next play from scrimmage and returned it 72 yards for a touchdown, cutting the Hawks’ lead to three.
On the Hawks’ next offensive play Watt couldn’t get a grip on Xander Menapace’s handoff and the fumble was recovered by the Eagles (5-6), who scored seven plays later to take the lead 21-17 halfway through the third quarter.
“My head was kind of down, but I knew I had to keep going,” said Watt. “Whenever I make a mistake, I know I need to make up for it.”
It was evident that Watt’s individual effort raised the play of his teammates for the rest of the game. Watt carried the ball five times for 24 yards and the go-ahead score on Hamburg’s next possession. He also lead Hamburg’s pass rush as an interior lineman, helping the Hawks record 10 sacks.
“He’s been very reliable all year,” said Hamburg coach Jeff Chillot. “You can put him anywhere on the field and he knows what to do. He gets mad about things, but he doesn’t let it bother him, it’s always ‘next play’ and I think he thought of that himself tonight.”
Pierce Mason had 161 total yards, Menapace passed for 115 yards and two touchdowns and tailback Diohnny Ruiz scored on a 47-yard touchdown. Ruiz pushed his season total to 1,187 yards, 13 shy of Rasheed Warren’s prorgram record. He’ll get a chance to break that next week when the Hawks play at No. 2 Boiling Springs in a district semifinal.
Boiling Springs defeated No. 7 Lancaster Catholic 56-10.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Bermudian Springs | 7 | 0 | 14 | 6 | 27 |
| Hamburg | 0 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Bermudian Springs | Pacana, 11 yard pass from Beachy (Keller kick) | 6:15 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Ruiz, 16 yard pass from Menapace (Blatt kick) | 11:04 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Mason, 77 pass from Menapace (Keller kick) | 3:30 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Blatt, 24 FG | :04 |
| 3 | Bermudian Springs | Beachy, 72 fumble return, Keller kick | 11:18 |
| 3 | Bermudian Springs | Carlson, 8 yard from Beachy (kick failed) | 7:07 |
| 3 | Hamburg | Watt, 4 yard run (Blatt kick) | :56 |
| 4 | Hamburg | Ruiz, 47 run (Blatt kick) | 10:49 |
| 4 | Bermudian Springs | Pacana, 8 pass from Beachy (pass failed) | :44 |
Team statistics
| Bermudian Springs | Hamburg | |
| First downs | 16 | 12 |
| Rushes-yards | 40-116 | 27 – 232 |
| Passing yards | 111 | 115 |
| Total yards | 227 | 347 |
| Passes | 11-17-0 | 5-5-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 2-1 | 3-2 |
| Punts-average | 2 – 33.5 | 1 – 20 |
| Penalties-yards | 6 – 40 | 11 – 90 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Bermudian Springs: Pacana 11-80, Boyer 14-68, Schisler 2-2, Beachy 13 – (-34).
Hamburg: Ruiz 14-89, Mason 9-80, Watt 12-61, Menapace 2-2.
PASSING
Bermudian Springs: Beachy 11-17-0–111.
Hamburg: Menapace 5-5-0–115.
RECEIVING
Bermudian Springs: Pacana 6-61, Carlson 2-10, Boyer 1-17, Vandermark 1-12, Gautsch 1-11.
Hamburg: Mason 2-81, Ruiz 2-31, Watt 1-4.
