Alter edges Fenwick in playoff preview…?
By Mickey Shuey
FRANKLIN – Friday’s matchup between Fenwick and perennial GCL power Alter put to rest a lot of skepticism for each school, as the Knights eked out a 31-28 victory over the Falcons.
Following a quick start by Fenwick, Alter’s defense shifted the momentum in their favor, as Ryan Golden intercepted an Austin Gearing pass in the endzone. With four minutes remaining in the first quarter, the Knights ran in a touchdown from 18 yards out, courtesy of Justin Winters.
The Falcons responded with their own score, when Austin Gearing jumped across the plane from a yard out. The play came after a holding call negated an 8-yard touchdown run by Zach Kurtz.
By the time the second quarter approached its midpoint, Alter’s Joe Penno and Fenwick’s Kurtz exchanged a pair of touchdowns from 27 and 73 yards, respectively.
With the first half winding down, Alter’s Zane Pitzer proved that he does have the arm to be a quarterback. In hopes of gaining an edge before the half, Pitzer heaved eight of his 11 passes on the night in the Knights’ final drive of the period.
Sean Kernan and Justin Winters, as well as Kevin Wise, who finished with 71 yards through five receptions, gave Pitzer plenty of options.
Wise, who hadn’t caught a pass since Week 6 against McNicholas, said, “It felt really great. It’s great to get the (hurry-up) offense working after working so hard on it this week in practice.”
The last play of the drive came on an Andrew DiMario field goal with two seconds remaining, putting the Knights ahead 17-14 at the half. DiMario made the 27-yard score after a Fenwick made an attempt to “ice” him.
“If we’re in a close game in the playoffs, they’re going to ice him,” said Alter’s Ed Domsitz. “He’s kicked in big game’s before – the State Championship game – it doesn’t get much bigger than that.”
Joey Robertson’s 19-yard touchdown early in the third quarter put Fenwick ahead by four. Alter responded with a dash from 39 yards out by Jackson Vandergriff a few minutes later.
Zane Pitzer’s 40-yard touchdown run all but sealed the Falcons’ fate with two and a half minutes left to play – or did it?
Leading 31-21, the Knights’ defense needed to hold. As fate would have it, that didn’t happen.
Fenwick’s Robertson struck again, this time from 7 yards out. A Tanner Coffman extra point narrowed the Knight’s lead to three with 1:15 left.
Winters, who finished with 94 yards and a touchdown, grabbed the onside kick by the Falcons, giving his team the ball – and the win.
After converting a critical fourth down, Pitzer took a knee to run out the clock.
Although Alter’s defense caused three turnovers, the game was run by the offenses.
“Ryan’s interception really set the tone early,” said Billy Eisenhauer, a senior linebacker on the Knights’ defensive front. “Our offense made a statement tonight, and proved that they can carry us when we need them to.”
Newcomer Joe Penno has made it obvious that he’s not to be forgotten in a family of great athletes. Though the Alter offensive back accounted for only 42 of the 303 rushing yards, Penno put in some time as a kick returner, gutting out an additional 59 yards
“I just tried to go out there and do whatever I could with Matt (Hurtubise) being hurt,” said the junior.
Penno, whose brother Doug was a standout football and basketball player in his time at Alter then at Miami (Ohio), has often been compared to his older siblings. Whether or not it’s fair, teammate Andrew Asebrook had a few words to say in support of Joe.
With a laugh, he proclaimed, “Doug Penno who?”
Despite the loss, Fenwick demonstrated that it was a force to be reckoned with, especially in Division IV. Their seven wins to open the season matched their best start in the program’s history (1955, 1973).
Alter will host the Roger Bacon Spartans, while Fenwick welcomes a struggling Badin team.
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