Jonathan Shay’s 5 TDs carry Dutchmen past Braves
2024 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
(This story was produced by LNP/Lancasteronline, and published in partnership with MikeDragoSports.com.)
By Jeff Reinhart — LNP/Lancasteronline
KINZERS — It’s not an easy chore prepping for Annville-Cleona’s Veer offense.
A short week of practice didn’t give Pequea Valley very long to get ready for the Dutchmen’s powerful Midline Option, let alone get ready to tackle battering ram Jonathan Shay.
| Section 5 | ||
| Sch. Valley | 4-0 | 5-2 |
| Hamburg | 3-1 | 5-2 |
| Lanc. Cath. | 3-1 | 4-3 |
| Berks Cath. | 3-2 | 4-4 |
| Ann.-Cleona | 3-2 | 4-4 |
| Pequea | 2-3 | 4-4 |
| Kutztown | 0-4 | 0-7 |
| Columbia | 0-5 | 0-8 |
Shay rushed for 188 yards and scored five touchdowns as Annville-Cleona won the trench battles and beat the Braves 41-31 in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 clash Thursday night.
“They did a really good job bringing their linebackers,” Shay said. “But once we were able to figure that out, we were able to succeed up front. We’ve had some injuries up front, and we’ve been working in some new guys. And because of another injury I knew I might get some more carries this week. I wanted to step up for that.”
He did. And then some.
Three of Shay’s TD runs capped back-breaking drives: His 16-yard rumble put a bow on a 10-minute drive which spanned the first and second quarters; his 31-yard TD sprint on fourth down on the first play of the fourth quarter came after the Dutchmen recovered a fumble; and his 28-yard TD jaunt for a 41-23 lead came after Annville-Cleona recovered a second fumble.
The 10-minute drive was a thing of beauty, with Annville-Cleona (3-2, 4-4) converting time and time again, including a pair of fourth-down calls.
“We just couldn’t get off the field,” Pequea Valley coach Mike Choi said. “They kept control of the clock and they shortened the game.”
And kept the Braves’ offense on the sideline from 0:31 of the first quarter until the 1:33 mark of the second quarter. It was an eternity for the Braves.
Shay was also all over the place on defense from his end spot. He had one of the Dutchmen’s two sacks, as Annville-Cleona picked up its third win in the last four games and snapped Pequea’s two-game winning streak.
“In my 24 years of coaching high school football, I’ve coached some Division I players and some really good high school players,” Annville-Cleona coach Matt Gingrich said of Shay. “He’s right up there with all of them.
“The biggest compliment I can give him is that he could play in Section 1. He could play in Section 2. He could play in any section in the league. He does everything for us. I don’t even know what to call him because we line him up everywhere.”
Even quarterback, although Shay didn’t take any snaps Thursday.
The third quarter was crazy. Already up 14-7 at the half, Annville-Cleona took a 21-7 lead when Shay had a 26-yard TD dash to cap the Dutchmen’s first drive of the second half.
“He did a great job in taking a pitch, and immediately getting downhill on us,” Choi said. “And once he got going, he was really tough to stop.”
Pequea (2-3, 4-4) warmed to the task and answered with a 29-yard TD run from Drew Tibbins to make it 21-14. Shay found the end zone again, this time on a 2-yard TD catch from Bryce Keller.
Keller was 5-for-6 through the air and tacked on 55 rushing yards. Most importantly, he made all the right reads in Annville-Cleona ‘s option game.
Gingrich was quick to point out that Keller did a nice job getting the pitch outside, especially when the Dutchmen needed it most.
