Unbeaten Hamburg, Xander Menapace, pass Kutztown
By Chris Deantonio — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
Running back Pierce Mason and quarterback Xander Menapace guided Hamburg to a 42-7 win over Kutztown Friday night in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 game on Hawk Hill.
Five different players scored for Hamburg,.
While Mason got the scoring started with two touchdowns on his first five carries, Menapace and his receivers scored on several big plays, including a 62-yard touchdown to Cohen Correll in the second quarter.
“We’re always going to take what a team gives us,” said Hamburg coach Matt Hoffert. “The passing game was open, so we were hitting it, but Pierce (Mason) was still doing his thing.”
Mason did most of his damage in the first half, racking up 96 yards and two touchdowns before the break. He finished with 120 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. He also caught one pass for 26 yards.
Mason did leave the game with an apparent leg injury in the fourth quarter. No information on his condition was available immediately after the game.
Menapace tossed two touchdowns in the first half on back-to-back completions. The first was on a 14-yard pass to Mason Semmel and the second on a 62-yard pass to Correll.
After missing a few early receivers, Menapace settled in and completed 17-of-23 pass attempts for 261 yards and three touchdowns.
Correll was his primary target all night long, as he hauled in nine catches for 154 yards and a touchdown. Correll had four catches for 100 yards in the second quarter alone.
Mason’s big night was almost even bigger as Hamburg threatened to score again at the end of the half, but he fumbled the ball at the 4-yard line, and Kutztown recovered the ball.
The Cougars did find success on the ground, with quarterback Jacob Lafferty running 21 times for 119 yards, and Brenden Ackley carrying the ball 17 times for 69 yards.
Kutztown scored on the opening drive of the second half. Dakota Thomas capped off a 12-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.
Thomas finished with 54 yards and a touchdown on eight rushing attempts.
The Hawks scored the final two touchdowns of the game in the fourth quarter. Ty Werley caught a 28-yard pass from Menapace, and Derek Ruiz scored on a 15-yard run.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Kutztown | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Hamburg | 7 | 21 | 0 | 14 | 42 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Hamburg | Mason, 31 run (Blatt kick) | 10:45 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Semmel, 14 pass from Menapace (Blatt kick) | 10:29 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Mason, 32 run (Blatt kick) | 5:02 |
| 2 | Hamburg | Correll, 62 pass from Menapace (Blatt kick) | 2:52 |
| 3 | Kutztown | Thomas, 2 run (Stump kick) | 5:40 |
| 4 | Hamburg | Werley, 28 pass from Menapace (Blatt kick) | 11:56 |
| 4 | Hamburg | Ruiz, 15 run (Blatt kick) | 6:28 |
Team statistics
| Kutztown | Hamburg | |
| First downs | 15 | 16 |
| Rushes-yards | 57-248 | 17-145 |
| Passing yards | 14 | 261 |
| Total yards | 262 | 406 |
| Passes | 2-6-1-14 | 17-23-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-0 | 2-1 |
| Punts-average | 3-28.7 | 1-43 |
| Penalties-yards | 4-43 | 10-93 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Kutztown: J. Lafferty 21-119, Ackley 17-69, Thomas 8-54, Swoyer 8-18, Gruber 1-4, Team 2-(-16).
Hamburg: Mason 8-120, Ruiz 3-36, Menapace 5-(-1), Team 1-(10).
PASSING
Kutztown: J. Lafferty 2-6-1-14.
Hamburg: Menapace 17-23-0-261.
RECEIVING
Kutztown: Ackley 1-9, E. Lafferty 1-5.
Hamburg: Correll 9-154, Werley 2-38, Semmel 2-27, Brady 1-6, Mason 2-26, McFarland 1-7.
INTERCEPTIONS
Hamburg: Ruiz.
