Miscues doom Wildcats in loss to Avonworth
Shenango (20) vs. Avonworth (28)
Written: Sep 26, 2015
 By John D'Abruzzo
New Castle News
OHIO TWP. — Mistakes proved too costly for Shenango High’s football team last night.
Trailing non-conference Avonworth by a touchdown at halftime, the Wildcats turned the ball over three times and gave up a pair of scores during the third quarter. That was enough for the Antelopes as they held on for a 28-20 victory at Lenzner Field.
“We shot ourselves in the foot with all those turnovers,” Shenango coach Mike Commesso said. “But I’m still proud of how our kids fought and with their resiliency.”
Despite being a non-conference exhibition, both teams entered this showdown with undefeated records and were considered two of the top-ranked Class A teams in the WPIAL. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had Avonworth (4-0) ranked No. 3 and Shenango (3-1) at No. 4 in its weekly rankings.
“We wanted this game, a lot,” Avonworth star wide receiver Jamal Hughley said. “This team came in after beating Neshannock. We knew they were a good football team, but we just took it to them.”
Hughley, a senior, caught three touchdown passes from Avonworth quarterback Zach Chandler and finished the game with seven catches for 336 yards. He had touchdown receptions of 88, 63 and 57 yards, respectively.
“We didn’t have any answers for (Hughley),” Commesso said. “He’s a pretty special athlete. When (Chandler) zips the ball out there and he gets it into his hands, he knows what to do with it. He’s slippery, he’s fast and he’s a pretty special player.”
Avonworth’s offense, however, lived off of Chandler’s arm all evening. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound senior completed 17 of 29 passes for 430 yards and all four touchdowns. The Antelopes finished with 459 yards of total offense.
“We did a good job in the first half and making [Chandler] a little uncomfortable,” Commesso said. “In the second half, they did a nice job picking stuff up. Give them credit.”
Trailing 14-7 at the half, Shenango turned the ball over three times during the third quarter. The Wildcats tossed a pair of interceptions and coughed up a fumble.
“We needed to capitalize on those turnovers, but we didn’t capitalize on some other big plays,” said Avonworth coach Duke Johncour, whose team was the a WPIAL-runnerup in Class A last season. “We coulda, shoulda, woulda, but fortunately we had three turnovers and capitalized on a few of them.
“We expected a dog fight and we got it.”
The fumble proved to be the most costly.
Trailing 21-14 late in the third quarter, the Antelopes benefited from that turnover when Garrett Day followed with 26-yard touchdown reception from Chandler.
Shenango, however, also took advantage of an Avonworth turnover during that third quarter. Ricky Lanigan picked off Chandler, which helped set up an eight-play, 66-yard drive by the Wildcats. Senior Hunter Waskin, who scored a 43-yard touchdown run late in the second quarter, capped that third-quarter drive when he caught a 17-yard pass from quarterback Evan Kendall.
With a little more than four minutes remaining in the game, Shenango got its final touchdown when Jason Wallace scored on a 1-yard run to make it 28-20. Avonworth, though, ate up the rest of the clock and held on for the win.
“We knew they were a good football team,” Johncour said. “Their linebackers play aggressive and fast. They changed some things defensively and did a great job. They’re well-coached and it was a good game.”
Kendall finished the game completing 10 of 17 passes for 140 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
“It was a ranked team on the road and it was a non-conference game, so we have to get our sights back on our conference,” Commesso said. “We just have to regroup, fix some mistakes and keep getting better.”
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com)
SHENANGO AVONWORTH
15 First downs 13
184 Yards Rushing 53
18 Yards Lost 24
166 Net Rushing 29
17 Passes Attempted 29
10 Passes Completed 17
2 Passes Intercepted 1
140 Yards Passing 430
306 Total Yards 459
2-1 Fumbles-Lost 2-0
5-44.8 Punts-Average 5-34.8
8-60 Penalties-Yards 9-86
SHENANGO 7 0 7 6 — 20
AVONWORTH 7 7 14 0 — 28
Scoring plays
AVONWORTH — Jamal Hughley, 88-yard pass from Zach Chandler (Cole Pappas kick).
SHENANGO — Hunter Waskin, 43-yard run (Dylan Kleckner kick).
AVONWORTH — Hughley, 63-yard pass from Chandler (Pappas kick).
SHENANGO — Waskin, 17-yard pass from Evan Kendall (Kleckner kick).
AVONWORTH — Hughley, 57-yard pass from Chandler (Pappas kick).
AVONWORTH — Garrett Day, 26-yard pass from Chandler (Pappas kick).
SHENANGO — Jason Wallace, 1-yard run (kick failed).
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