Beaver back means lights out for Spartans
Laurel (7) vs. Beaver (40)
Written: Oct 13, 2014
By Shawn Fox
New Castle News
BEAVER — A power issue delayed the start of Saturday night’s Laurel-Beaver Area football game for nearly an hour.
Once the lights came on, the Bobcats’ Darius Wise went off.
Beaver’s electrifying sophomore running back scored five of his team’s six touchdowns as the Bobcats knocked off the Spartans, 40-7, in a Midwestern Athletic Conference game on homecoming at Pat Tarquinio Field.
“The big difference in the game was the inability to tackle No. 2 (Wise),” Laurel coach Brian Cooper said. “He had a great game for them. The bottom line was we never really stopped them defensively.”
Wise, who returned to action after being injured in Week 4 against New Brighton, finished with a game-high 204 yards rushing on just 10 carries to go along with his five TDs.
“Darius brings a spark to our team,” Beaver coach Jeff Beltz said. “He’s been out for a couple weeks, and we were anxious to get him back. Darius is a great athlete.”
Wise’s big night short-circuited the Spartans’ playoff hopes, dropping them to 2-4 in the MAC and 2-5 overall. The top four teams in the conference are guaranteed a playoff berth. Laurel currently sits in sixth place with two regular-season games remaining.
“I think that knocks us out,” Cooper said. “We’ve been very competitive. Our record doesn’t show how well I think we’ve played. We’ve been in a lot of games. Just a couple things here and there cost us games. We’re going to keep working and keep getting better. We’re going to finish the season strong.”
The Spartans took the opening kickoff and marched 70 yards in eight plays, all of which came on the ground. Clayton Sharek capped the drive by going in from the 2. Noah Wertz’s kick gave Laurel a 7-0 lead at the 7:36 mark of the first quarter.
Wise began his touchdown parade on the Bobcats’ first possession, as he scored from a yard out to cap an 11-play, 70-yard drive. Luke Scheidemantel’s PAT kick knotted the game at 7-7 with 2:58 remaining in the opening stanza.
“After a great opening drive by Laurel we were able to get in a rhythm on offense,” Beltz said. “The kids responded.”
Laurel looked poised to re-take the lead on its next possession, driving from its own 31-yard line to the Beaver 17. But on third-and-eight from the 17, Wise picked off a Jake McDougal pass to end the threat.
Wise gave Beaver the lead for good with 3:40 remaining before the half, as he scored on a 23-yard run.
The Spartans had a chance to cut into the deficit just before the half, but Wertz’s 32-yard field goal was partially blocked, leaving Laurel trailing, 14-7. Wertz also was just short on a 55-yard field goal in the third quarter.
“We came out in some different looks and we were able to move the ball,” Cooper said. “We didn’t capitalize on a couple opportunities. You get down there a couple of times, you get a turnover and then you get no points there right before halftime. It didn’t cost us the game, obviously, but at the same time it would have put us in much better position going into the second half.”
Wise scored on runs of 72 and 30 yards in the third quarter to hike the Bobcats’ lead to 27-7 after three, before teammate Julian VanDusen scored on a 52-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Wise closed out the scoring with five minutes remaining in the game, as he intercepted a McDougal pass and returned it 80 yards for the touchdown.
Laurel’s best chance to score in the second half came early in the fourth quarter. The Spartans drove to the Bobcats’ 2, but were stuffed for a yard loss on fourth down.
The issue with the bank of lights in the south end of the field pushed the scheduled 7:30 p.m. start time until 8:28 p.m. Despite the delay, neither coach felt it adversely effected his squad’s play.
“These guys were primed to play tonight,” Cooper said of his team. “You can’t control those things. All you can do is control your mental state and your attitude. The kids did a great job of doing that.”
Said Beltz, “It was unnerving, but I think both teams did a nice job of handling it. It had nothing to do with Laurel’s first drive. I think both teams showed maturity and responded well.”
Laurel will host Ellwood City Lincoln on Friday in a MAC contest.
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