Published: September 23, 2007 01:05 am         

It’s only just begun and it can only get better

The score, it could be argued, was a bit deceiving.

But Allegany’s domination in the second half was not, and it was witnessed by nearly 10,000 fans on a perfect Friday night for football at Greenway Avenue Stadium.

And to the one noticeable person who missed it, head coach Tom Preaskorn, the Campers had a message: This one was for you.

So are all the others.

“It was a good win for Tom,’’ were the first words out of the mouth of interim head coach Tim Foley after the Campers’ 33-18 win over Mountain Ridge.

Preaskorn is a major in the West Virginia National Guard now stationed in Iraq.

“This one’s for Tom, and every one is for Tom,’’ said Foley. “I don’t care what anyone says. They’re all for him.”

It’s clear that all the Campers keep Preaskorn in their thoughts and prayers. And the best way to bring a smile to their head coach’s face a half a world away is to play the way they did against the Miners in the first meeting between the two schools.

The first half couldn’t have been more even. That’s what made the second half, and Allegany’s 27 straight points, all the more stunning.

Foley said it wasn’t a case of major adjustments or personnel changes. It was simply a matter of execution.

“We really didn’t do too much in the first half,’’ he said. “We felt like we were missing some blocks, and this was the first game we’ve put the ball on the ground (four fumbles, three lost). In the first half we felt like we lost two touchdowns because of our fumbles.”

“We challenged our players at halftime and told them what we had to do to win the game. And they went out and did it.”

Allegany lost a fumble in the fourth quarter, but by then it didn’t matter. The damage was already done and it was 33-12.

Mountain Ridge coach Roy DeVore knows his team has some work to do. Mistakes came at the wrong times and worst places for his Miners.

“We made some big mistakes in the second half that we never overcame,’’ he said. “You can’t do that against a team like Allegany.”

Turn the ball over against Allegany, and you’ve got your hands full. Turn it over and give them a short field to boot, and it’s almost always curtains. That’s what the Miners did, turning it over on downs at their 13 after a botched punt in the third quarter, and losing a fumble on a kickoff at their 14 early in the fourth.

Both led to quick touchdowns. The first broke the 12-12 tie; the second capped the 27-0 spurt and made it 33-12.

Allegany had six second-half possessions, with the average start being the Mountain Ridge 36.

The nailbiter turned one-sided for a number of reasons. The biggest, in the second half, was the Camper line play.

• Offensively, Allegany ran 51 times for 341 yards, and had only three runs for negative yardage for the game;

• Defensively, after allowing 177 yards rushing in the first half, the Campers gave up only 53 in the second, with 47 of those coming on Matt Farris’ touchdown dash in the final minutes;

• The Miners had only two first downs in the second half.

“I didn’t think their size on the line would wear us down, but I think it did,’’ DeVore said. “We weren’t making the contact like we should have. They were doing a lot of stemming up front and basically shut us down.

“There’s a lot of stuff we need to work on, but I’m happy with where we are. I’m not happy with the loss, but I’m happy with where we are right now. We have some work to do, and we’ll get after it and get it done, and go after Frankfort next week.”

In the first half, Allegany’s Sean Collette and Mountain Ridge’s Stephen Whetstone took turns breaking into the secondary on big gainers.

Whetstone finished with 16 carries and 124 yards. Collette ran 13 times for 123 yards and scored the first touchdown.

“They took Jake Twigg away from us and we had success running Collette on sweeps and double dives,’’ said Foley. “You stay with what’s working, so we weren’t going to change.”

Twigg, who had 233 rushing yards and five TDs entering the game, was featured more in the second half and finished with 12 carries, 61 yards and the go-ahead touchdown midway through the third quarter.

Now, for both teams, it’s back to work. Friday is history, but not something to forget. Especially the turnout, which featured long lines at ticket booths and a crowd and atmosphere that rivaled a number of Homecoming games.

“It was great,’’ Foley said. “Our kids wanted the game and so did Mountain Ridge. A very good crowd and great atmosphere, and something I think you’re going to see all the time now between Allegany, Mountain Ridge and Fort Hill.”

DeVore agreed.

“I can’t say enough about our fans that came out to support us. It was a sea of red and black behind us,’’ he said. “I thank them for coming out. Sorry they’re disappointed, but there will be other games.

“We’ll keep working hard and make some adjustments. We get in the playoffs, we’ll be back down here again.”

And so will the fans. On both sides. Because Friday night was just the start. It’s only going to get better.

Mike Mathews is a Cumberland Times-News sportswriter. He can be reached at mmathews@times-news.com.