Sto-Rox ends Union’s magical run
Union (8) vs. Sto-Rox (33)
Written: Nov 10, 2012
By Joe Sager
New Castle News
MARS — Union High’s postseason ticket slipped out of its hands last night.
The Scotties, plagued by dropped passes, got behind early and dropped a 33-8 decision to Sto-Rox in a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal at the Mars Athletic Complex.
The Vikings (10-1) meet North Catholic, a 22-15 winner over Rochester, on Friday at a time and site to be determined.
“It’s a surprise; I know Rochester was coming off an emotional win against Avonworth last week. I’ve only seen North Catholic once, so we’ll have to take a good look them,” Sto-Rox coach Dan Bradley said. “This was a good game. It was tight. We had some breakdowns and so did they. Our defense came up big in the first half with some big stops. Overall, they played well.”
It was a disappointing end for the Scotties (7-4). Last week, they beat Beth-Center, 21-7, for their first playoff win since 1979 and were hoping to advance again with their senior-dominated squad. They lose a sizable chunk of their roster to graduation.
“I have seen them grow from little boys into young men with them being friends and in the same grade as my son, Drew. It’s tough,” Union coach Stacy Robinson said. “I told them that it’s probably going to sting until the day they leave this earth. They should go back and count the good days. They outnumber the bad days 100 to 1. They have accomplished a lot.”
Sto-Rox scored on its first possession. Dual-threat quarterback Lenny Williams dashed 15 yards into the end zone for a 7-0 lead 5:22 into the contest.
Union appeared poised to strike late in the first quarter. The Scotties drove to the Vikings’ 3, but a sack knocked them back to the 17. On fourth down, quarterback Joe Salmen scrambled, but was stopped at the 6.
On the ensuing possession, Union got a break when Williams was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, which gave the Scotties a safety and trimmed the deficit to 7-2.
They were unable to capitalize off that, though, and turned the ball over on downs at the Sto-Rox 32 on their next possession.
The Vikings made it 14-2 just before halftime. Williams found Brendan Blair for an 18-yard scoring strike with 1:34 left.
Sto-Rox padded the lead with a pair of touchdowns in a 3:01 span late in the third quarter. Williams and Marcus Jackson sandwiched 1-yard scoring runs around a Union drive which fizzled when a fourth-down pass destined for huge yardage was dropped.
“We left a lot of quality plays out on the field and that starts with me as a coach. We got down inside their territory a few times and I wasn’t able to get us across the goal line. I feel bad for the kids; I wasn’t able to get them up over the mountain,” Robinson said. “Sto-Rox is good. Make no mistake about it, Sto-Rox is real good. They’ve beaten a lot of people over the last few years and they’ll continue to beat people. I expect them to make it to Heinz Field and battle Clairton.”
Drew Robinson scored the Scotties’ lone touchdown on a 3-yard run as time expired in the third to make it 27-8.
Sto-Rox tallied the game’s final scoring play in the fourth quarter on Javelle Kirkland’s 15-yard reception from Williams.
All told, Williams rushed for 154 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. He passed for 85 more yards and two scores.
“Lenny, we had him contained. I think they had 20-second plays sometimes. We were on him, but he scrambled,” Robinson said. “You just can’t do it every play. He is a heck of a football player. Coach Bradley coaches those guys up. It’s not all talent; they are well coached.”
Drew Robinson led Union with 114 yards rushing on 17 carries.
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com)
WPIAL CLASS A PLAYOFFS
AT MARS
UNION STO-ROX
14 First downs 23
192 Yards Rushing 332
26 Yards Lost 15
166 Net Rushing 317
21 Passes Attempted 17
6 Passes Completed 7
0 Passes Intercepted 1
86 Yards Passing 85
252 Total Yards 392
0-0 Fumbles-Lost 2-0
4-33.8 Punts-Average 2-33
7-40 Penalties-Yards 12-74
UNION 0 2 6 0 — 8
STO-ROX 7 7 13 6 — 33
Scoring plays
STO-ROX — Lenny Williams, 15-yard run (Elisha Bonner kick).
UNION — Safety, Williams called for intentional grounding in end zone.
STO-ROX — Brendan Blair, 18-yard pass from Williams (Bonner kick).
STO-ROX — Williams, 1-yard run (kick failed).
STO-ROX — Marcus Jackson, 1-yard run (Bonner kick).
UNION — Drew Robinson, 3-yard run (pass failed).
STO-ROX — Javelle Kirkland, 15-yard pass from Williams (run failed).
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