Lampeter-Strasburg dominates Berks Catholic
(This story was produced by LNP/Lancasteronline, and published in partnership with MikeDragoSports.com.)
By John Walk — LNP/Lancasteronline
Friday night got off to a rough start for the Lampeter-Strasburg football team. Five plays in, Berks Catholic linebacker Devin Garcia intercepted a pass and returned it to the 11.
The visiting Saints were ultimately stopped on downs at the 2 and Lampeter-Strasburg marched 98 yards over nine plays for the game’s first score. It set the tone for the Pioneers’ 30-7 win in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 4 matchup.
With the Homecoming victory, L-S (4-0, 6-1) remains in a first-place tie with Wyomissing, which hosts Cocalico Saturday at 1:30.
The Saints (2-2, 2-5) were limited to four first downs and 118 total yards; they did not score until the final minute.
“After that first interception, the first (defensive) stop was huge,” L-S senior Hunter Hildenbrand said. “Ninety-eight yard drive. After that, we knew we had our foot right on their throat. We just kept it going.”
Hildenbrand did a bunch for L-S, combining for 185 offensive yards through three carries and three receptions, one of them a 45-yard score, to go along with an interception on defense.
“He’s like a jack of all trades type of player for us,” L-S coach Victor Ridenour said of Hildenbrand. “He’s just got a good feel for the game. That (45-yard) post he caught for a touchdown, that was him and Trent (Wagner) communicating on the field. I had something else called. But they have the freedom to checkdown to another play if they see something they like.”
Wagner completed 5-of-8 passes for 104 yards with a score through the air and on the ground, and the Pioneers’ run game tallied 262 rushing yards on 32 carries, powered by feature back Carson Coleman (21 carries, 84 yards, two TDs).
Berks Catholic, a District 3 Class 4A semifinalist a year ago and not far removed from seven straight trips to district finals, had its two-game win streak snapped. The Pioneers, last year’s Class 4A runner-up, has won six in a row, holding opponents to an average of less than seven points over that stretch.
The Saints came in averaging 232 rushing yards a game and were held to 111, with Josiah Jordan (14 carries, 64 yards) mostly bottled up before leaving near the start of the third quarter with a lower body injury. He did not return.
The L-S defense also had three takeaways, six tackles for loss and two sacks.
With the Pioneers already up 6-0, Hildenbrand lined up at quarterback for the first four plays of a five-play drive. It proved effective when Hilbenbrand busted loose for a 66-yard run, with Wagner scoring on 1-yard keeper on the next play to push the score to 13-0 a few minutes into the second quarter.
Peter Fiorello converted his first field goal of the season from 37 yards out to push the L-S lead to 16-0 going into halftime.
L-S made it 23-0 a few minutes into the third quarter on the 45-yard TD strike from Wagner to Hildenbrand.
On the next play from scrimmage, Berks Catholic quarterback Will Hess rolled out and attempted a pass, but just as the ball left his hand, L-S D-lineman Luke Hines snagged it for the interception. Two plays later, a Coleman 5-yard TD run made the score 30-0.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Berks Catholic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Lampeter-Strasburg | 6 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 30 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Lampeter-Strasburg | Coleman, 3 run (kick failed) | 4:30 |
| 2 | Lampeter-Strasburg | Wagner, 1 run (Fiorello kick) | 9:32 |
| 2 | Lampeter-Strasburg | Fiorello, 37 FG | 0:01 |
| 3 | Lampeter-Strasburg | Hildenbrand, 45 pass from Wagner (Fiorello kick) | 8:08 |
| 3 | Lampeter-Strasburg | Coleman, 5 run (Fiorello kick) | 6:39 |
| 4 | Berks Catholic | Armistead, 8 run (Kurtas kick) | 0:18 |
Team statistics
| Berks Catholic | Lampeter-Strasburg | |
| First downs | 4 | 11 |
| Rushes-yards | 43-129 | 33-266 |
| Passing yards | 7 | 99 |
| Total yards | 136 | 365 |
| Passes | 2-1-2 | 5-11-3 |
| Fumbles-lost | 2-1 | 1-1 |
| Punts-average | 4-19.0 | 1-18.0 |
| Penalties-yards | 4-20 | 3-31 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Berks Catholic: Blythe 16-54, Jordan 10-50, Armistead 6-16, Garcia 2-6, Olivier 2-4, Bradley 4-3, Kurtas 1-4, Hess 2-(-8).
Lampeter-Strasburg: Coleman 22-97, Hildenbrand 3-79, Wagner 4-58, Mellinger 4-32.
PASSING
Berks Catholic: Hess 2-5-2–7.
Lampeter-Strasburg: Trent Wagner 5-11-3–1.
RECEIVING
Berks Catholic: Geddio 1-7, Jordan 1-0.
Lampeter-Strasburg: Hildenbrand 3-76, Frank 2-23.
INTERCEPTIONS
Berks Catholic: Garcia 2, Armistead.
Lampeter-Strasburg: Hines.
