Sto-Rox wields its power against Union
Union (14) vs. Sto-Rox (56)
Written: Oct 05, 2013
By Shawn Fox
New Castle News
McKEES ROCKS — Union got a firsthand look last night at why Sto-Rox is the top team in the WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference.
And, the view wasn’t a pretty one for the Scotties.
The Vikings returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown to jump-start a 38-point first quarter on the way to a 56-14 mercy rule victory at Memorial Field.
“They came out quick, fast and in a hurry, and we weren’t able to adjust to it the whole night,” Union coach Stacy Robinson said. “That’s a good football team. We weren’t able to adjust to the speed of the game at most of the positions. Only a few of our guys were able to keep up with their people tonight. They out-athleted us, they out-hit us, they out-played us.”
Brendan Blair got the onslaught started for Sto-Rox (5-0 conference, 6-0 overall) by fielding Clarence Parchman’s squib kick at his own 40-yard line and racing 60 yards for the score. Elisha Bonner connected with Damian Danenas for the conversion pass to give the hosts an 8-0 lead just nine seconds into the contest.
“We got off to a great start,” Sto-Rox coach Dan Bradley said. “You don’t expect to run kickoffs back. The ball took a nice bounce right to Brendan, and he busted outside. The ball bounced our way on that one.”
After forcing Union to punt on its first possession, the Vikings found the end zone again. On Sto-Rox’s third offensive play of the game, Lenny Williams scored on a 16-yard run. Blair ran in the conversion to hike the hosts’ lead to 16-0.
Following another Scotties punt, Sto-Rox went to the air, as Williams hit Mallory Clayburn on a bubble screen and Clayburn turned it into a 32-yard touchdown.
Union (1-4, 2-4) got its offense untracked in midway through the quarter as Jordan Best broke free for a 50-yard touchdown run. Benjamin Young booted the PAT kick to make the score 24-7.
Best was a bright spot for the Scotties, rushing for a game-high 108 yards on 18 carries.
“He did good, and is getting better each week,” Robinson said. “He’s just a sophomore and he’s one of the people who took heed to what I was talking about when I told them to come out and see how they stacked up against the best. He did a good job tonight.”
Sto-Rox, however, wasn’t done in the opening 12 minutes.
Danenas capped a five-play, 66-yard drive with a 4-yard TD run, then Williams and Mallory teamed up for a 37-yard touchdown pass to give the Vikings a 31-point lead after one.
Williams put his name into the WPIAL record books early in the second quarter, by hitting Bonner on a 5-yard scoring strike. The touchdown was Williams’ 89th of his career, surpassing by one the record held by South Fayette’s Christian Brumbaugh.
“That’s a great accomplishment for him,” Bradley said. “He’s worked hard to get to where he is in his career. The team rallies around him. It’s a record that will go in his name, but a lot of players have helped contribute to that over the years.”
Williams’ 160-yard passing performance against the Scotties moved him into second place in career passing yards with 7,066 yards. Brumbaugh holds the record with 7,162.
“He’s the best quarterback in the WPIAL,” Robinson said. “He presents a lot of problems. He can get the ball out there on the edge, he’s quick, he can run, he can read defenses, if you blitz him he can avoid the sack. He’s an all-around football player, the best in the WPIAL regardless of classification.”
A rare mistake by Williams led to the Scotties’ final score of the game, as Young picked off the Vikings’ QB. Best scored from four yards out on the final play of the first half to cut the deficit to 46-14.
Sto-Rox added a safety and a Blair 3-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to round out the scoring.
Union will host Shenango on Friday.
“We’ve got to stay focused,” Robinson said. “We can’t sit down and cry about it. This is just life. Storms come and then they go.
You’ve got to be able to weather them and keep moving.”
(Email: ncsports@ncnewsonline.com)
UNION STO-ROX
7 First downs 15
190 Yards Rushing 137
71 Yards Lost 5
119 Net Rushing 132
4 Passes Attempted 14
0 Passes Completed 8
0 Passes Intercepted 1
0 Yards Passing 160
119 Total Yards 292
0-0 Fumbles-Lost 0-0
6-33 Punts-Average 2-22
6-50 Penalties-Yards 7-75
UNION 7 7 0 0 — 14
STO-ROX 38 8 10 0 — 56
Scoring plays
STO-ROX — Brendan Blair, 60-yard kickoff return (Damian Danenas pass from Elisha Bonner).
STO-ROX — Lenny Williams, 16-yard run (Blair run).
STO-ROX — Mallory Clayburn, 32-yard pass from Williams (Craig Johnson pass from Williams).
UNION — Jordan Best, 50-yard run (Benjamin Young kick).
STO-ROX — Danenas, 4-yard run (Johnson pass from Williams).
STO-ROX — Clayburn, 37-yard pass from Williams (pass failed).
STO-ROX — Bonner, 5-yard pass from Williams (Williams run).
UNION —Best, 6-yard run (Young kick).
STO-ROX — Safety.
STO-ROX — Blair, 3-yard run (Deion Redmon run).
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