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TIGERS CRUSH LATROBE, 47-0, IN
PLAYOFF OPENER

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The Tigers rolled to a 47-0 victory over Latrobe in the first round of the WPIAL Quad A playoffs at Newman Stadium on Friday night.  Junior tailback Alex Papson got the Tigers off to a good start with a 25-yard touchdown run, and senior halfback Grant Huckestein scored three times in the second quarter, two on passes from senior QB Justin Brozick, to pace the NA attack.  Brozick also connected with junior WB Matt Steinbeck on a 25-yard screen pass for a score as part of a 7-for-7 night.  Junior FB Seth Marx ran 21 yards for a final touchdown, and senior PK Jackson Cox added six extra points and a 38-yard field goal for the winning Tigers.

The Wildcats got the ball first on their own 20 after Cox’s kickoff carried return man Richard Hall into the end zone.  After two running plays gained five yards, Latrobe QB Eric Shaffer hit WR Ryan Matsko along the right sideline for six and a first down at the 31.  On a second and eleven, junior DE Justin Haser broke through and sacked Shaffer for a loss of six.  A third down play came up short and Tom Smetanka punted to Huckestein who returned the ball 16 yards to the Latrobe 48.  Three running plays gained only three yards and Brozick punted into the end zone.  Once again, Latrobe started from their own 20.  After Shaffer threw to WR Gavin Finley for a gain of five, Finlay ran left but was caught for a loss by senior LB Kyle Higgins.  On the next play, Huckestein caught Shaffer for another sack and a loss of seven to the 16.  Higgins then broke through to block Smetanka’s punt with the ball rolling out of the end zone for a safety.  NA took a 2-0 lead with 4:16 left in the quarter.  On the punt after the safety, Huckestein returned the ball 24 yards to the Wildcat 37.  On the first play, Papson ran right for 12 yards and a first down at the 25.  On the next play, it was Papson again around the right side outrunning the Latrobe defense into the end zone for the touchdown.  Cox added the point to give the Tigers a 9-0 lead with 3:38 remaining in the period.  After Hall returned the ensuing kickoff to the Latrobe 21, Haser caught Shaffer for a loss of three.  Shaffer scrambled for five on the next play with Finlay running a pitch out around right end for seven more and a first down at the 33.  After senior DL Ben Balzer broke through to knock down an attempted Shaffer pass, the Latrobe quarterback was stopped for a gain of just two at the 35.  On third down, Finlay ran left on a reverse but was stopped short of the first down.  Smetanka then punted to Steinbeck who raced 32 yards to the Latrobe 49 before being dragged down from behind.  On first down, Brozick lifted a long pass down the left side that senior TE Robbie Walchak wrestled away from Shaffer to pick up a gain of 26 yards and a first down at the Wildcat 23 as the first quarter ended.  The Tigers took the 9-0 advantage into the second stanza.

As the second quarter began, Papson took over.  The Tiger junior ran left for six to the 17 and then added five more around the right side for a first down at the Wildcat 12.  Two more runs by Papson put the ball at the Latrobe six.  On a third and four, Brozick threw to Huckestein right at the goal line and the Tiger halfback fell into the end zone for the score.  Cox again was true with the conversion as the NA lead went to 16-0 with 9:37 still left in the half.  Hall was able to return the kickoff only to the 15.  After two running plays gained nine yards, Shaffer ran left for a yard and a first down at the Latrobe 25.  On the next play, Shaffer hit Matsko across midfield but senior corner Blair Plivelic pulled the ball away to stop the completion.  Two additional plays gained only two yards and Smetanka punted out of bounds at the NA 25.  The Tigers then went on a 75 yard drive on seven plays to score again.  Huckestein ran the middle for eight and followed with a gain of seven more on the right side for a first down at the NA 40.  After Huckestein ran the middle for nine, Papson got six to the 45 for another Tiger first down.  On the next play, Brozick ran a keeper around the left side and managed to stay in bounds for a gain of sixteen and a first down at the Wildcat 26.  On the next play, Huckestein raced around the right side for sixteen more and a first and goal just inside the 10.  After a Latrobe time out, Brozick hit junior WR Dan Slivka for eight to the two.  Huckestein finished the drive with a blast up the middle and Cox again was perfect on the point as the Tiger lead went to 23-0 with 2:49 remaining in the half.  Hall again returned the kickoff but got only to the Latrobe 17.  On a second and six, Shaffer threw to Matsko for ten yards and a first down at the 31.  On the next play, Steinbeck stepped in front of a Shaffer pass at midfield and returned the ball to the Latrobe 13.  After Papson got four to the 9, Brozick hit Huckestein in the right flat and the Tiger senior ran it into the end zone for his third score of the game and 17^th of the season.  Cox’s point made it a 30-0 NA lead with just 1:18 left in the half.  Matsko returned the Cox kickoff to the Latrobe 23.  A second down pass from Shaffer to Finlay gained nine and a first down at the Wildcat 35.  After two plays gained only one yard, Haser again sacked Shaffer, this time for a loss of six.  After an NA time out with 7.6 remaining, Smetanka punted to Steinbeck who returned the ball six yards to the NA 41 as time ran out in the half.  The Tigers took a commanding 30-0 lead to the intermission.

Junior WR Lucas Hook returned a short second half kickoff for ten yards to the NA 39.  On first down, Brozick threw down the middle to Slivka for a gain of 15 and a first down at the Latrobe 46.  On the next play, Brozick went to the air again and found Steinbeck open for a gain of 18 and another first down at the Wildcat 21.  After Papson got three on a draw, Brozick was hit for a loss of two to the 20.  A procedure penalty moved the ball back to the Latrobe 25.  After an NA time out, Brozick threw a middle screen to Steinbeck who raced into the end zone for another NA touchdown.  Cox’s point extended the lead to 37-0 and the mercy rule kicked in.  After Hall was forced out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff, the Tigers were called for a personal foul for a hit out of bounds.  Latrobe started at their 38.  After a running play was stopped for no gain, two incomplete passes forced another Smetanka punt that sophomore WR James Kleinhampl returned to the NA 30.  On first down, junior QB Michael Buchert raced around the right side for 23 yards and a first down at the Wildcat 47.  On second and nine, Marx broke through the middle for 26 and another first down at the Latrobe 20.  The Wildcat defense stopped a running play for no gain and two incomplete passes brought up a fourth and ten.  Cox came in a lifted a field goal just inside the right post with the 38-yard kick giving NA a 40-0 lead with 4:24 left in the quarter.  After junior Alex Greenblatt kicked off to Matsko who returned the ball to the Latrobe 21.  After a gain of two by Shaffer, NA was called for another late hit and the penalty of 15 yards gave the Wildcats a first dwon at the 42.  On the next play, Marx broke through to sack Shaffer back at the 38, a loss of four.  Two plays gained only six yards and Smetanka punted again with the ball rolling dead at the NA 6.  After a loss of one on first down, Marx ran up the middle for sixteen and a first down at the Tiger 21 as the quarter ended.  The Tigers took the 40-0 lead into the final quarter.

With the clock running and the Tiger reserves in the game, NA went on a 12 play, 94 yard drive to score again.  Senior halfback David Humphrey was stopped after a short gain on first down, and Marx gained four on the next play to the 26.  On third and five, Buchert ran the right side for ten and a first down at the 36.  Humphrey then got eight up the middle and added six more on the next play for another NA first down at the 50.  Sophomore halfback Jared Lux came in to the game and immediately gained 12 and another first down at the 38.  On the next play, Lux ran for eight and followed with a run to the left side for seven more and a first down at the Latrobe 23.  On the second and eight, Marx broke up the middle and raced into the end zone for the score.  Greenblatt added the point as NA increased the margin to 47-0 with 6:55 remaining in the game.  Latrobe’s Bryar Pletcher returned the kickoff to the 21.  On first down, Don Rossi ran left for sixteen yards to the 48.  On the next play, the quarterback exchange was fumbled but Latrobe recoverd after a loss of three.  Daniel Ferguson gained eight on the next play to the NA 47.  It was the first time in the game that Latrobe was in NA territory.   After a loss of two, Smetanka’s punt was blocked by sophomore Kevin Clemens with the ball downed at the Tiger 42 with 3:32 left.  Sophomore Nick Passodelis gained four on first down, but the Tigers fumbled on the next play with the ball recovered by the Wildcats at the NA 46.  On the next play, Latrobe gave it right back on another fumble at the Tiger 48.  Sophomore Anthony Peluso gained a yard and sophomore Vinnie Congedo another yard before senior quarterback Greg Adams took a knee as time ran out.  The Tigers completed the 47-0 victory to advance to the WPIAL Quarterfinals next week.

It was a dominating performance by the Tigers.  NA outgained Latrobe by a final count of 395 to 85 with the Tigers picking up 21 first downs to just seven for the Wildcats.  Individually, Brozick was seven for seven for 114 yards and three touchdowns.  Huckestein gained 46 yards on six runs with a rushing TD and also caught two passes for fifteen yards and two more scores.  Huckestein also ran back two punts for 39 yards giving him 120 all purpose yards in the game.  By the way, Huckestein also picked up a sack from his linebacker position.  Steinbeck caught two passes for 50 yards and a touchdown while returning a pair of punts for 53 yards and an interception for 37 more.  Papson gained 67 yards on ten runs with Marx running for 66 and a TD on just four carries.  Higgins led the defense with four unassisted and one assisted tackle along with the blocked punt.  For his efforts, the North Allegheny Sports Network named Grant Huckestein as the Wright Automotive Player of the Game.  The blocked punt by Higgins was selected as the Wright Play of the Game brought to you by Wright Suzuki.

With the win, the Tigers advanced to the quarterfinals and a date with rival North Hills, a surprise 19-7 winner over McKeesport on Friday night.  The date, site, and time will be announced by the WPIAL  and will be posted on the website as soon as we find out.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show.

Game Statistics
Photo Gallery

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY – 47  LATROBE – 0

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

 GAME STATISTICS

Statistics Courtesy of Steve Heckmann

Any questions or comments should be directed to Athletic Director Bob Bozzuto at:  bbozzuto@northallegheny.org