Muhls can’t withstand hard-charging Mounts
2023 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Andrew Clauser — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
It is hard to find positives when a team is on the losing end of a lopsided score. It is especially hard when it happens more often than not during a season.
Muhlenberg was once again on the losing end of a one-sided game Friday night. This time it was at the hands of Ephrata, which cruised to a 59-0 non-league at Laureldale.
Ephrata’s Angel Collazo scored on a 51-yard interception return and a 51-yard punt return. Jeremiah Knowles caught a pair of touchdown passes from Sam McCracken. Brayden Brown rushed for 115 yards, 55 of it coming on a third-quarter TD.
The Muhls (1-8), who have been shut out three times in the last four games, were hurt by three turnovers.
Ephrata improved to 8-1 with its third straight win.
If there were positives to be gained it came from the Muhls defense which made a few stops early despite playing without three starting defensive backs. Muhls coach John Lorchak prepared his team for Ephrata’s numerous formations despite an inexperienced secondary.
“For the most part our secondary, mostly sophomores, had no experience at this level,” he said. “I thought they did a great job recognizing the formations and filling in for our injured starters.”
Lorchak also had praise for the rest of his defense.
“Our front seven did as good a job as they have done all year long,” he said. “They play tough and they compete.”
Throughout the night the Muhls struggled to gain any ground against the stingy defense of Ephrata, which is in a three-way tie for first place in Section 3 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League, along with Twin Valley and Garden Spot. The Muhls managed just 43 yards against a blitz-heavy Ephrata defense.
“These guys are young and they are learning,” said Lorchak. “They are in the infancy stage. Like an infant learning to walk from a crawl. They are adjusting every week.”
With one game left the Muhls look forward to Senior Night Friday at 7 against Conestoga Valley. It’s an important game for the seniors who put in the work the last few seasons. Lorchak’s message for his team is for the younger guys to show up and support the seniors for their last home game.
“There is still a good mentality that exists in our program as far as taking care of one another,” Lorchak said. “There are a lot of underclassmen who are still dedicating themselves to making sure the seniors get the help and recognition they deserve.”
Ephrata can secure at least a share of the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 title next week when it plays Elizabethtown.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Ephrata | 25 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 59 |
| Muhlenberg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Ephrata | Honberger, 27 FG | 7:00 |
| 1 | Ephrata | Knowles, 5 pass from McCracken (Brown run) | 3:22 |
| 1 | Ephrata | Knowles, 60 pass from McCracken (Honberger kick) | 1:28 |
| 1 | Ephrata | Collazo, 51 interception return (Honberger kick) | 0:36.6 |
| 2 | Ephrata | McCracken, 9 run (Honberger kick) | 0:06 |
| 3 | Ephrata | Collazo, 51 punt return (Honberger kick) | 9:40 |
| 3 | Ephrata | Brown, 55 run (Honberger kick) | 2:59 |
| 4 | Ephrata | Thomas, 3 run (Honberger kick) | 7:04 |
| 4 | Ephrata | Rodriguez, 4 run (kick failed) | 1:34 |
Team statistics
| Ephrata | Muhlenberg | |
| First downs | 10 | 1 |
| Rushes-yards | 31-247 | 21-20 |
| Passing yards | 111 | 23 |
| Total yards | 358 | 43 |
| Passes | 7-15-0 | 4-12-2 |
| Fumbles-lost | 3-1 | 1-1 |
| Punts-average | 0-0 | 3-30.6 |
| Penalties-yards | 9-65 | 3-15 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Ephrata: Brown 10-115, Thomas 6-43, Knowles 1-27, McCracken 7-25, Grant 2-15, Rodriguez 3-12, Keller 1-8, Pfautz 1-2.
Muhlenberg: Torok 12-18, Griffin 3-9, Madueno 1-0, Miller 3-(-3), Coley 2-(-4).
PASSING
Ephrata: McCracken 7-15-0—111.
Muhlenberg: Cipolla 2-7-2—12, Coley 2-5-0—11.
RECEIVING
Ephrata: Knowles 3-69, Brown 2-32, Pfautz 1-10, Collazo 1-0.
Muhlenberg: Madueno 2-11, Hoffman 1-8, Miller 1-4.
INTERCEPTIONS
Ephrata: Balmer, Collazo.
