Boone rolls past Muhlenberg for J.D. Okuniewski’s first win
2023 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Matt Hagy — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
The patience finally paid off for Daniel Boone first-year head coach J.D. Okuniewski.
Behind a 30-point second quarter, Daniel Boone defeated Muhlenberg by 51-14 Friday night at Brazinsky Stadium in Birdsboro.
The win was the first for Okuniewski as the Blazers head coach after dropping the first two contests of the season.
Things were not always smooth in the contest for the Blazers as the Muhls shocked the home crowd when quarterback Aaden Lopez lofted a 79-yard touchdown pass to Michael Miller on third-and-9 on the first possession of the game.
Special team struggles, which became a theme on the night for Muhlenberg, started with a blocked extra point and a short kick that gave the Blazers a short field.
The Blazers converted on a fourth-and-14 when quarterback Dean Rotter found Ethan Kryman over the middle for 19 yards, leading to a Haydn Moyer touchdown from 2 yards out.
Rotter swiftly guided the Blazers down the field on their next drive and made it a 14-6 game with a 15-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Anthony High on the first play of the second quarter.
The Muhls’ misfortune continued to escalate one drive later when a low snap on a punt deep in their territory rolled into the end zone and was recovered by High to extend the Blazers lead to 22-6 following a two-point conversion.
Seeing the Muhls punting struggles, Daniel Boone rushed punter Javier Mayden on his next attempt and wrapped him up at the Muhlenberg 4-yard line. That set up Rotter easily sneaking in from 4 yards out on the first play of the drive and the Blazers tacked on another two-point conversion to bring the score to 30-6.
Connor Reed capped the Blazers big second quarter with a 20-yard Pick Six for a touchdown which made it 37-6 at the half. Daniel Boone added two more second half touchdowns to close out their dominant win.
With his first win under his belt, Okuniewski and his Blazers (1-2) turn to face Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 3 contender Garden Spot on the road Friday. Muhlenberg (0-3) travels to Lebanon to open Section 2 play.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Muhlenberg | 6 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 14 |
| Daniel Boone | 7 | 30 | 14 | 0 | 51 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Muhlenberg | Miller, 79 pass from Lopez (kick blocked) | 10:00 |
| 1 | Daniel Boone | H. Moyer, 2 run (Aidukis kick) | 5:57 |
| 2 | Daniel Boone | High,15 pass from Rotter (Aidukis kick) | 11:56 |
| 2 | Daniel Boone | High, recovered fumble in end zone (Reed run) | 10:53 |
| 2 | Daniel Boone | Rotter, 4 run (Rotter run) | 7:25 |
| 2 | Daniel Boone | Reed, 20 interception return (Aidukis kick) | 2:08 |
| 3 | Daniel Boone | Welker, 6 pass from Rotter (Aidukis kick) | 7:52 |
| 3 | Daniel Boone | Lacey, 54 run (Aidukas kick) | 4:35 |
| 4 | Muhlenberg | Torok, 2 run (Dodson pass from Cipolla) | 10:33 |
Team statistics
| Muhlenberg | Daniel Boone | |
| First downs | 7 | 14 |
| Rushes-yards | 18 -(-15) | 23-78 |
| Passing yards | 128 | 140 |
| Total yards | 113 | 218 |
| Passes | 7-22-1 | 11-14-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-1 | 3-0 |
| Punts-average | 3-32.0 | 1-40.0 |
| Penalties-yards | 11-99 | 12-100 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Muhlenberg: Torok 4-15, Lopez 2-11, Ortiz 3-(-2), Miller 7-(-5), Mayden 1-(-15), TEAM 1-(-19).
Daniel Boone: Lacey 2-66, Rotter 10-41, Moyer 5-17, Reed 2-(-2), McKenzie 2-(-13), TEAM 2-(-31).
PASSING
Muhlenberg: Lopez 6-19-1– 103, Cipolla 1-3-0– 25.
Daniel Boone: Rotter 11-14-0–140.
RECEIVING
Muhlenberg: Miller 2-85, Dodson 2-28, Archie 1-5, Cruz 1-5, Hoffman 1-5.
Daniel Boone: High 3-35, Welker 2-31, DiGiacomo 2-25, Heffner 2-23, Kryman 1-19, Reed 1-7.
INTERCEPTIONSDaniel Boone: Reed.
