For the second year in a row, the kicker for the Maryland Small Schools All-State Football squad’s first-team comes from Cumberland.
If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em?
You’ll have to forgive Fort Hill’s Caleb Morris and Allegany’s Justin Hymes if they don’t quite see it that way, nonetheless, the two players, who have been rivals themselves on the football field for most their own lives, will finally team up with Tavon Austin and several of his Dunbar Poets teammates on Saturday as representatives on the Baltimore regional team in the 2008 Maryland Crab Bowl, Maryland’s only statewide high school football all-star game and the first one since 2004.
Keyser spent most of the year coming up with big plays in the most dire of circumstances, and as a result two members of the 2008 Golden Tornado squad that finished unbeaten in the regular season at 9-0 have been named to the West Virginia Class AA All-State first team.
The Dunbar Poets stole a page from the Fort Hill script on how to pull out wins and drove 91 yards in the final two minutes to beat the Sentinels 20-19 with a touchdown and a two-point conversion with two seconds left for their third straight Maryland Class 1A state championship on Saturday afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium.
Marcus Lashley pounded for 200 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries and the swarming Fort Hill defense came up with four turnovers as the second-seeded Sentinels shut out third-seeded Joppatowne, 28-0, Friday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium to advance to the Maryland Class 1A championship game.
They haven’t experienced the most conventional route to get here, but the West Region champion Fort Hill Sentinels find themselves one win away from a return to the Maryland Class 1A state championship game next weekend at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium.
The Fort Hill Sentinels proved they could run the ball against Allegany with three long scoring drives and came up with big defensive stops in a 21-14 victory over the Campers for the Maryland Class 1A West Region championship on a cold and breezy Friday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Cumberland gets a second go around tonight at 7 p.m. as Fort Hill and Allegany meet in the playoffs for the fourth straight year in the Maryland 1A West Region Championship at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Marcus Lashley ran for two touchdowns and Eric Howser threw for two more as top-seeded Fort Hill rolled to a 35-0 win over fourth-seeded Boonsboro Friday, setting the stage for a rematch with Allegany next week for the West Region championship.
The “second season” begins tonight as playoff football sweeps through Maryland and West Virginia for the top three teams in the Times-News area poll.
The usual suspects have been rounded up for today’s Homecoming Game at Greenway Avenue Stadium between Allegany and Fort Hill:
One record fell and another was tied Friday afternoon as Bishop Walsh finished up the 2008 season by outpacing Hancock 59-36 at Brother Stephen F. Paul Spartan Stadium.
In what will be the final weekend of play for most area teams, two teams fight for a playoff spot, another seeks a record-setting win, while to others play for county bragging rights.
The Great American Rivalry Series, presented by the United States Air Force, returns for a fifth season. The Series, created to showcase top high school football rivalries across the nation, will feature the historically-heated contest between Allegany High School and Fort Hill High School on Saturday, Nov. 8.
Patrick Sines threw for one touchdown and ran for another, and Southern missed a game-winning field goal with three seconds to play in a 16-14 win that keeps the Huskies undefeated.
Mike Durr came up with the big play at the end of the first half, and Marcus Lashley and Garrett Dolly did the same in the second as third-ranked Fort Hill edged fourth-ranked Mountain Ridge, 24-21, in high school football Saturday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
It took a half to happen, but Bishop Walsh finally got past the mental mistakes to throw together an impressive second half in a 20-6 win over Southern Saturday at Brother Stephen F. Paul Spartan Stadium.
The unbeaten Keyser Golden Tornado made Halloween a night of horror for the Frankfort Falcons and used some tricks to treat itself to a 61-8 victory on a perfect fall Friday night for football at Frankfort Stadium in the 33th annual Mineral County Bowl.
Second-ranked Allegany used a 28-point burst in the final 5:04 of the first half to break open a three-point game and hand Northern a 45-16 defeat Friday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Fourth-ranked Mountain Ridge tries to gain ground in the Maryland Class 1A West Playoff picture while third-ranked Fort Hill looks to regain the top spot as the two teams meet tonight, at 7 o’clock, in high school football at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Mineral County goes to war this evening when the 34th edition of Keyser-Frankfort kicks off tonight in Short Gap at 7 p.m. on an otherwise quiet evening in high school football.
Fort Hill scored 14 second half points to overcome a 12-0 halftime deficit and beat Keyser 14-12 Monday evening at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Steffen Bonnett scored on two long touchdown runs, and Allegany scored three second quarter touchdowns in a win over Mountain Ridge Monday evening.
Southern scored two first quarter touchdowns to build a 16-0 lead on its way to a shutout victory over Tucker County.
Bishop Walsh got its seventh win of the season Saturday after building a 20-0 halftime lead in a 36-18 victory over Conemaugh Valley at Brother Stephen F. Paul Spartan Stadium.
The second-ranked Allegany Campers controlled the ball and the clock with 330 rushing yards and turned in another strong defensive performance in a 27-7 victory over fifth-ranked Frankfort, spoiling the Falcons’ Homecoming Friday night at Frankfort Stadium.
Keyser, Allegany and Fort Hill look to shore up their reservations for the postseason, while Mountain Ridge and Frankfort fight for their postseason lives in an Friday evening of high school football.
Cory Garver, 2004 Times-News All-Area football performer for the Fort Hill Sentinels, continues to play a key role in the NCAA Division II national playoff run for the California-University of Pennsylvania Vulcans as the starting tight end and one of the leading receivers on the team.
Quarterback Daniel Streitbeck ran for one touchdown and passed for another, and he also had a long punt return for a score to lead the Mountain Ridge freshmen over Allegany 46-6 Tuesday evening at Miners Stadium.
Ryan Briner scored two touchdowns in the first quarter to get Fort Hill rolling to a 29-0 win over Mountain Ridge Monday at Miners Stadium.
Maryland School for the Deaf scored two defensive touchdowns in the first half in its win over Bishop Walsh Monday in Frederick.
Southern scored 35 points in the second and third quarter to pull away from Frankfort and finish with a blowout victory over the Falcons Monday evening.
Alex Baker scored two touchdowns and ran for 224 yards Monday evening in leading undefeated Northern to a win over Chestnut Ridge.
Josh McDannell ran for 152 yards and a pair of second-half touchdowns that enabled Chestnut Ridge to pull away from Northern and beat the Huskies 28-8 in high school football Friday night.
The Fort Hill Sentinels capitalized on Frederick Douglass mistakes and turned in perhaps their best defensive performance of the season in a 14-12 victory on Friday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Second-ranked Allegany stormed to its third straight victory by racking up over 500 yards off offense in rolling past the first-year Washington Patriots of Jefferson County, 55-13, Friday at Washington.
Bishop Walsh scored at least once in every quarter Thursday afternoon against St. James in a 34-16 win that moves the Spartans to 6-1.
Bishop Walsh will go for its second straight win after improving to 5-1 last week, while seeking revenge for a 35-12 loss last season when the Spartans visit St. James today at 3:30.
Steffen Bonnett scored three times and the Allegany defense shut down Mountain Ridge 36-0 Monday in junior varsity football at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Fort Hill scored once in three different quarters Monday evening in a win over Southern in junior varsity football at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Alex Baker and Matt Mason rushed for over 100 yards and Northern scored 21 straight points midway through the game to roll past Frankfort on Monday night.
Martinsburg scored a touchdown with two minutes to play to pull out a win over Fort Hill in a high-scoring freshman football game Monday evening.
Jared Mathews ran for two touchdowns while throwing for another in leading Bishop Walsh to a 27-14 win over Randolph Macon Saturday afternoon.
Mathews was an efficient 6-for-
Marcus Stuart’s touchdown late in the third quarter gave Mountain Ridge a bit of breathing room, and the fourth-ranked Miners put up 23 points over the final 17 minutes in pulling away for a 30-0 victory over Northern Friday night.
Sophomore signal caller Drew O’Neal easily had the best night of his young varsity career when he tossed four touchdown passes to lead Allegany to a 55-14 win over Hampshire Friday.
Third-ranked Fort Hill used an oppressive pass rush and a diverse offense to slug the Jefferson Cougars with a 38-6 pounding Friday night in Cougar Stadium at Jefferson High School.
Preston Hartman threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more Friday evening in a 49-0 Keyser victory over Berkeley Springs.
Bryson Knox, Kody Sanders and Brandon Pritt scored touchdowns and the Southern defense kept Petersburg bottled up all night as the Rams overpowered the visiting Vikings.
Garrett County hosts two games this evening as Allegany and Mineral county stadiums take a break from football for the weekend.
Greg Hendershot threw for a touchdown and ran for a touchdown during a 21-point second half that lifted the Bishop Walsh jayvees over the Allegany freshmen, 21-2, in high school football on Tuesday.
Allegany’s Steffen Bonnett scored three touchdowns to lead Allegany over Frankfort 40-14 Monday evening at Frankfort Stadium.
Zach Boch scored two touchdowns as Mountain Ridge rallied from a first quarter deficit to score 28 unanswered points in a win over Hampshire.
Ryan Briner scored twice and ran for 103 yards on eight carries Monday as Fort Hill beat Jefferson in junior varsity action.
Alex Baker scored two long touchdowns to help keep the Northern junior varsity team undefeated with a win over the Fort Hill freshmen.
Banged up J.D. Hook put an end to an eventful fourth quarter when he capped a long Allegany drive with a nine-yard touchdown run in the closing seconds to send the Campers to a 23-21 win over Mount St. Joseph’s Saturday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
In their first game in their new stadium, the Mountain Ridge Miners battled back from a 14-point deficit in the first half and celebrated Homecoming with a 36-34 overtime victory over Frankfort on Friday night.
Quarterback Preston Hartman hooked up with John Purdy for a 37-yard touchdown pass to get things started, and Hartman, Purdy and the top-ranked and undefeated Keyser High Golden Tornado didn’t stop until it was time to shake hands as it rolled past Hampshire, 56-6, Friday night at Stayman Field.
The Northern seniors celebrated a big Homecoming win over Bishop Walsh Friday evening after going for 345 yards of offense, while limiting the Spartans to 35 rushing.
Tucker County scored on Southern’s first play from scrimmage, and then returned a kickoff in the final minute of the first half to distance itself from Southern in a 17-point win Friday evening.
Garrett Clay and Matt Propst both ran for two touchdowns, and Hunter Ware threw for two in a 40-0 win for Fort Hill over Berkeley Springs.
Brandon Clay ran for 97 yards on 10 carries and scored the deciding touchdown in Keyser’s win over Mountain Ridge in freshman football.
Alex Baker rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries to lead the Northern junior varsity football team to a 13-8 win over Allegany Monday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Friday’s scheduled high school football game at Greenway Avenue Stadium between Fort Hill and McKinley Tech, a public school in the District of Columbia, will not be played because the McKinley Tech team has been instructed by District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) not to make the trip to Cumberland.
Bishop Walsh scored three touchdowns on interception returns Monday afternoon in a 25-6 win over St. James.
The weather for Bishop Walsh’s Homecoming game improved from the beginning of the contest to the end.
The Spartans couldn’t say the same about their play, but thrived without doing so to collect a 35-6 win over Annapolis Area Christian School Saturday at Brother Stephen F. Paul Spartan Stadium to stay undefeated at 4-0.
So many choices. So few plays.
That was part of the dilemma for the Keyser Golden Tornado Friday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Moorefield’s Tucker Smith, Liberty Raleigh’s Russell Bailey and Mount Hope’s Da’Von Marion shared honors Monday as The Associated Press state high school players of the week.
Fort Hill scored three touchdowns in the second quarter to put away Hampshire 38-0 in junior varsity football action Monday evening at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Hunter Ware threw for 191 yards and four touchdowns, with three going to Zach Godlove, as unbeaten Fort Hill whipped Musselman in freshman football Monday evening.
The usual suspects were on the scene for the Bishop Walsh offense, but the defense was even more efficient in holding Rappahannock down during a 47-16 win for the Spartans Saturday at Brother Stephen F. Paul Spartan Stadium.
The Allegany Campers sent a message Friday night at Frostburg State University, and it was likely received loud and clear.
An unusual ending led to familiar outcome Friday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
A safety on a high snap on a punt attempt with 5:52 remaining in the third quarter provided the Southern Rams the margin of victory as they won their first game of the season with a 14-12 decision over Hampshire Friday at Rams Stadium.
Matt Wilmer finished with 275 yards of total offense and scored three touchdowns as Keyser pulled away from Northern in the second half of their victory Friday night in Accident.
Frankfort scored 27 points in the first quarter and cruised the rest of the way, defeating Berkeley Springs Friday evening at Berkeley Springs High School.
Jockeying for Maryland 1A West playoff spots intensifies this evening when Allegany meets Mountain Ridge, 7 p.m., in high school football at Frostburg State University.
Jarrod Harper scored three touchdowns as the Mountain Ridge freshmen overpowered Allegany, 38-0, Thursday afternoon at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Northern limited Hampshire to just 16 offensive yards in a Monday evening shutout.
Hunter Ware fired three touchdown passes and Jaron Watkins scored three times to power Fort Hill to a convincing 44-6 win over Keyser in freshman football Wednesday at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Aaron Leasure scored two touchdowns as Allegany scored 28-straight points in a 28-8 win over Southern Monday night at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
Fort Hill battled back from a 21-7 deficit to force overtime, but came up just short as Hedgesville beat the Sentinels Monday in Hedgesville.
Jeremy Green had deeper pockets than Fort Hill’s defense when it came down to big plays as the senior running back led Keyser to a 13-7 win over the Sentinels Friday at Stayman Field.
After suffering a disappointing loss to Smithsburg last week, Northern erased all doubt early Friday by blowing out Williamsport in Accident.
After a trying first half, Mountain Ridge put it all together in the second, dominating Catoctin and rolling to a 42-16 victory Friday night in high school football at a rainy Bobcat Stadium.
The most anticipated matchup of the early season goes on display this evening at Stayman Field when 1-0 Fort Hill travels to play 1-0 Keyser at 7 o’clock.
Southern built at 12-0 lead before Moorefield got on the board in the fourth quarter, and by then it was too late as the Rams won 12-8 in their junior varsity football season opener Thursday.
Brady Spillman and Andrew Truex scored two touchdowns as the Berkeley Springs freshmen beat Keyser 25-13.
Travis Bush threw for three first-half touchdowns and the Patriots remained unbeaten with a 40-13 victory over the Miners in Cumberland Area Youth Football League Division I play.
Carter Imes (8 carries, 88 yards) scored on a 47-yard run in the third quarter and Chris Fram booted the extra point to lift the Warriors past the Steelers at Clark Field.
Aaron Broadwater was 5-for-8 with 143 yards passing, threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third to power Northern.
Quincy Redmon scored three touchdowns and Brandon Reed had three touchdown passes for Bishop Walsh.
Alex Baker rushed for 136 yards on nine carries and scored four touchdowns as the Northern junior varsity football team opened its season with a 42-14 victory over Mountain Ridge on Wednesday at Northern.
Ryan Briner averaged more than 20 yards a carry with the help of two long touchdown runs as the Fort Hill beat Allegany, 19-6, in the season opener for both jayvee football teams Monday evening at Greenway avenue Stadium.
Justin Sachs ran for two touchdowns and Brian Bills ran for one and threw for another to power Frankfort to a season opening victory over visiting Hampshire.
Jason Wright scored a fourth-quarter touchdown in a defensive struggle as the Mountain Ridge freshmen edged the Bishop Walsh jayvees at Westmar.
Fort Hill exploded in the fourth quarter, turning a 13-0 lead into a 41-0 blowout, as the Sentinels got the best of Allegany in the freshman football season opener for both teams Monday evening at Greenway Avenue Stadium.
