Chartiers-Houston cramps Union’s style
Union (14) vs. Chartiers-Houston (20)
Written: Sep 04, 2010
 By JOE SIMON
j_simon@ncnewsonline.com
Union coach Stacy Robinson might seriously consider hooking up an IV on the Scotties’ sideline.
Year after year, cramps always seem to hurt Union at the worst times.
It happened again last night in a 20-14 loss to Chartiers-Houston in the season opener at Socs Roussos Field.
Senior quarterback Andre Jones started to cramp up late in the game, and the injury proved costly. Jones played an outstanding game, rushing for 129 yards and two touchdowns, but he was on the sideline during the most crucial part of the game.
The Scotties trailed 20-14 with less than 4 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and were driving inside the Buccaneers’ 30-yard line. Union had a first-and-10 at the 26 when Jones was helped off the field, the second time that cramps caused him to leave. His backup, Joe Salmen, was picked off by Daniel Lis on second-and-10, a play that all but sealed Union’s fate.
While the Scotties had one last chance with 26 seconds remaining, Union couldn’t convert from the 28 on the final play of the game.
“I don’t know what it is, but the cramps are like an epidemic ever since I’ve been here,” Robinson said. “Once the adrenaline wears off, sometimes the kids start getting tired and cramping up. It cost us the game today.”
Early on, it didn’t appear the fourth quarter would matter much as the Buccaneers went up 14-0 within the first 5 minutes. Lis, a junior quarterback, scrambled away from pressure and ran 72 yards for a touchdown on Chartiers-Houston’s first drive. Union was forced to punt after a three-and-out, and junior running back Mykel Dorsey scampered 68 yards to give the Buccaneers a 14-0 lead.
There were several missed tackles by the Scotties on both scores, something that plagued Union throughout the game.
“We weren’t hitting with authority,” Robinson said. “We just weren’t bringing people down. You can practice tackling all you want, but it comes down to whether you want to bring the man down or not. It’s a desire to get the man down. ... I don’t know what happened — I’ll have to see the film — but I know there were a lot of missed tackles. Number 7 (Lis) looked like the old Michael Vick running up and down on us, and I just didn’t expect that.”
Union didn’t quit after the early adversity. The Scotties executed an option perfectly, and Jones broke free and outran everyone for a 70-yard touchdown. The kick was blocked to make the score 14-6 to end the first quarter.
The game remained 14-6 until Union dug into its bag of tricks. Jones pitched the ball to Drew Robinson on what looked to be a running play. Robinson then heaved a 47-yard pass to a wide-open Clifford Clark, who was tackled at the 4. Jones scored two plays later to tie the game at 14.
Robinson, a sophomore running back who is the coach’s son, ran for 45 yards and made several key plays for the Scotties,
“We’re a young team,” Chartiers-Houston coach Terry Fetsko said, “and lots of times when things go bad, players start pointing fingers and blaming. We didn’t do that. We stuck together, and that’s something that we’re going to need, especially as a young team, down the line.”
The Buccaneers’ resiliency, as well as Jones’ constant cramping, led to what ended up being the game-winning score. Jones and the Scotties were again driving when he was forced to leave the game at the 8:36 mark of the fourth quarter due to a leg cramp. Salmen came in and on the first play was hit as he dropped back to pass. The ball came loose, and Chartiers-Houston’s Joey Joscsak recovered at Union’s 47.
A 14-yard run by Dorsey, who finished with 95 yards on 10 carries, and a 23-yard end around by D.J. Denny, put the Buccaneers inside Union’s 10. Joscsak, who recovered Salmen’s fumble, then made a bruising, 6-yard touchdown run up the gut. The kick was blocked, making it 20-14 in favor of the visitors.
Union pieced together another solid drive before Jones departed and Salmen was picked off on a leaping interception by Lis at the 3:47 mark. Joscsak converted a key third-down run, and while the Scotties eventually forced a punt, there were only 26 seconds left for the last drive, which ended when Jones was sacked at the 28.
Robinson said it was a tough loss to endure.
“It’s a game we expected to win,” he said. “We didn’t, so it’s a disappointment from that end. But there’s no use crying about it now. We have to play more football. We have to be back in the morning and worry about getting better for next week.”
The Scotties host Avella at 7 p.m. Friday.
CHAR-HOUSTON UNION
9 First downs 12
247 Yards Rushing 223
37 Yards Lost 21
210 Net Rushing 201
8 Passes Attempted 13
2 Passes Completed 4
1 Passes Intercepted 1
24 Yards Passing 87
234 Total Yards 288
2-1 Fumbles-Lost 1-0
4-33.9 Punts-Average 4-35
9-72 Penalties-Yards 7-50
CHAR-HOUSTON 14 0 0 6 —20
UNION 6 8 0 0 — 14
Scoring plays
CHARTIERS HOUSTON — Daniel Lis 72-yard run (Zach Hamilton kick)
CHARTIERS HOUSTON — Mykel Dorsey 68-yard punt return (Hamilton kick)
UNION — Andre Jones 70-yard run (kick failed)
UNION — Jones 1-yard run (Jones pass to Jordan Callahan)
CHARTIERS HOUSTON — Joey Joscsak 6-yard run (kick failed)
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