Lancers score early and often against OLSH
Neshannock (41) vs. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (14)
Written: Sep 20, 2014
By Shawn Fox
New Castle News
CORAOPOLIS — Neshannock High always talks about setting the tone early in games.
It’s safe to say the Lancers did that — and much more — last night against Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
Coach Fred Mozzocio’s squad raced out to a 34-0 lead at the half on the way to a 41-14 victory in nonconference play at Robert Morris University’s Joe Walton Stadium.
“At the beginning of the game we started out slowly,” Neshannock senior wide receiver-defensive back Rocco Fazio said. “Once we figured out who they were, we kicked it into high gear and started to play our style of football.”
Neshannock, ranked fourth in the state in Class A in the latest Pennsylvania Football News rankings, controlled all three phases of the game against the Chargers. Fazio was the embodiment of that domination as he rushed for a touchdown, returned a kickoff for a touchdown and had an interception on defense.
“Rocco had a great game, both offensively and defensively,” Mozzocio said.
After holding OLSH to a three-and-out on its first possession, the Lancers, now 4-0 on the season, marched to the end zone using a mix of rush and pass. Eli Owens polished off the 10-play, 44-yard drive by scoring from 2 yards out. Seth Dueitt’s kick gave Neshannock a 7-0 lead with 4:39 remaining in the first quarter.
The Lancers again turned to their defense to set up the offense, as Fazio picked off a Billy DePaul pass to give his team the ball at the OLSH 37-yard line.
Neshannock made the turnover hurt, as Frank Antuono connected with Tyler Perry on a 27-yard TD pass. Dueitt’s kick gave the Lancers a 14-0 lead at the 8:48 mark of the second quarter.
“We came out and tried to set the tone defensively,” Mozzocio said. “We wanted to play good, solid defense. The defense gave us some short fields on interceptions and we got some pressure on the quarterback. Then came the flurry of touchdowns.”
OLSH, which competed in the Big Seven Conference prior to moving to the Black Hills Conference this year, put together its best sustained drive of the game following the Antuono-to-Perry hookup.
Taking over on their own 22-yard line, the Chargers (0-4) moved the ball near midfield. Facing a fourth-and-one from its own 49, the OLSH drive was stymied when Zach Barnes tackled Matt Schnarre in the backfield for a yard loss to give the football back to the Lancers.
“That was a big play,” Mozzocio said. “They went for it on fourth down, and Barnesy came up with a big play. Barnes is one of those guys. He’s a three-year starter for us and his name never gets mentioned, but he brings his lunch pail every day and does his job. He’s one of the top players around, and he showed it on that play for sure.”
Neshannock once again made the big defensive play pay off as Antuono capped an eight-play, 48-yard drive with a 5-yard TD run up the middle. Dueitt’s boot gave the Lancers a 21-0 lead with 2:06 remaining in the first half.
Another Lancers interception, this one by Dueitt, set up the offense once again. And again, Neshannock made the Chargers pay as Antuono connected with Jimmy Medure for a 29-yard touchdown pass to give the Lancers a 28-0 lead with 57 remaining in the second quarter.
Neshannock, however, wasn’t finished in the first half. After forcing OLSH to punt, Fazio took a handoff from Antuono and raced 55 yards for a score. The kick failed, but the Lancers held a 34-0 lead heading into the lockerroom.
“It was a long run, but I couldn’t have done it without my linemen,” Fazio said.
Fazio began the second half like he ended the first, as he returned the second-half kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown. Dueitt’s kick made it 41-0, bringing the mercy rule into play.
“It was all on the front line opening the gap for me, and I just took the gap,” Fazio said.
OLSH scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in the fourth quarter on runs by Joey Sebes (48 yards) and Schnarre (21 yards) to set the final.
Neshannock will host Western Beaver on Friday in Big Seven play.
“We’ll be keyed up and ready to go, just like we were tonight,” Mozzocio said. “They’re a tough, hard-nosed football team. This one’s over now. We’ll enjoy it tonight and wake up tomorrow and get ready to play Western Beaver.”
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com)
NESHANNOCK OLSH
11 First downs 12
172 Yards Rushing 248
42 Yards Lost 17
130 Net Rushing 231
13 Passes Attempted 15
8 Passes Completed 3
0 Passes Intercepted 2
110 Yards Passing 9
240 Total Yards 240
2-2 Fumbles-Lost 3-2
0-0 Punts-Average 2-31.5
1-5 Penalties-Yards 5-50
NESHANNOCK 7 27 7 0 — 41
OLSH 0 0 0 14 — 14
Scoring plays
NESHANNOCK — Eli Owens, 2-yard run (Seth Dueitt kick).
NESHANNOCK — Tyler Perry, 27-yard pass from Frank Antuono (Dueitt kick).
NESHANNOCK — Antuono, 5-yard run (Dueitt kick).
NESHANNOCK — Jimmy Medure, 29-yard pass from Antuono (Dueitt kick).
NESHANNOCK — Rocco Fazio, 55-yard run (kick failed).
NESHANNOCK — Fazio, 86-yard kickoff return (Dueitt kick).
OUR LADY OF THE SACRED HEART — Joey Sebes, 48-yard run (kick good).
OUR LADY OF THE SACRED HEART — Matt Schnarre, 21-yard run (kick good).
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