For the Brookville Blue Raiders, Friday night\’s game at the Bison Sports Complex was about limiting the turnovers that had plagued them last week. For the Clearfield Bisons it was about finding its offense and its resiliency. The two teams combined for over 800 yards of offense, and the Bisons battled back from deficits of 7-0 and 35-21 before falling to the visitors 35-28.
\”We showed resiliency and I saw some things tonight that we can build on,\” said Clearfield coach Tim Janocko. \”We just have to be patient. With the transition to the Mountain Athletic Conference we knew this season would be tough, but we just have to keep working with the kids and get ready for Hollidaysburg next week.\”
Brookville\’s potent offense was quick to strike against the Bisons, putting a touchdown on the scoreboard with its first play from scrimmage. Joe Galbraith (24 carries, 254 yards) raced 58 yards to the end zone and Ian Petardi added the extra point to give the Blue Raiders a 7-0 lead.
\”I was disappointed,\” said Janocko. \”We tried to contain him and we didn\’t do a real good job of containing him.\”
The fearless Bisons battled right back, though, traveling 72 yards on 12 plays on the ensuing drive to tie the game. Quarterback Jarrin Campman scored on a 19-yard TD run at the 6:54 mark of the first quarter.
Justin Karp came up big for the Bisons on the next defensive series, recovering a fumble. Brookville had driven to the Clearfield 38-yard line before Jacob Means coughed up the pigskin. Karp\’s recovery gave Clearfield the ball at the Brookville 37, and six plays later Campman added his second rushing touchdown. Campman scampered in from 12 yards out, and Parker Herrington notched his second extra point to put the Bisons on top 14-7 with 25 seconds remaining in the stanza.
On the ensuing possession the Bisons defense forced the Blue Raiders into a fourth-and-10 at the Brookville 47. Brookville coach Chris Dworek then called for a fake punt that fooled the Bisons.
Alex Kerr completed a 21-yard pass to quarterback Shane Heschke, only to have Heschke fumble the ball away to Clearfield. The Bisons were unable to take advantage, however, and Drew Hipps came on to punt.
Following a fair catch by Galbraith, Brookville began its next drive on its own 33. From there the Blue Raiders went on a seven-play scoring drive that included a 21-yard completion to Logan Mumford and runs of 11 and 30 yards, respecitvely for Heschke. Heschke\’s 30-yard jaunt went for a touchdown and Petardi tacked on the PAT to tie the game at 14-all with 4:31 to play in the first half.
A 30-yard kick return by Hipps set the Bisons up at their own 35. Two plays later Campman hit Vince Panebianco on a 14-yard strike to put the Bisons near midfield, but a fumble by Isiah Morgan gave the ball back to Brookville.
But again Clearfield refused to hit the panic button. Campman intercepted a Heschke pass to give the Bisons the ball right back. And on the next play Campman (233 yards passing) found Hipps for a 77-yard touchdown pass. Herrington\’s kick gave the Bisons a 21-14 lead at the 3:02 mark in the second.
\”When he (Hipps) gets the ball in the open field he has good speed,\” said Janocko. \”It\’s nice that he has his height, that does help also.\”
Brookville continued the see-saw affair with a touchdown drive, however, knotting the game at 21 before the half. Hank Truman hauled in a 10-yard TD pass from Heschke to cap off an eight-play, 67-yard drive.
Clearfield received the ball first to begin the second half, but a Rocky Pearce sack and a penalty quickly nixed the Bisons drive. Hipps\’ second and final punt of the evening pinned the Blue Raiders at their own 18.
Dworek & Co. quickly began their second half strategy: pounding the ball. Brookville ran the ball 14 straight times over the span of two quarters to the Clearfield 10, before a 5-yard pass completion to Greg Sobol set up third-and-goal at the 4. Galbraith punched it in from there with 10:09 to play. The Blue Raiders faked the extra point, allowing Heschke to dive over the right pylon for a two-point conversion and a 29-21 lead.
Clearfield turned the ball over on downs on its next possession and Brookville took advantage. Galbraith finished an eight-play, 85-yard drive with a 14-yard touchdown run after beginning it with a 56-yard run. Clearfield blocked the extra point, making the score 35-21 with 2:26 left.
The Bisons continued to show heart, though. A 63-yard touchdown pass from Campman to Hipps gave Clearfield hope with 45 seconds remaining. It was not to be, though. A Herrington onside kick was recovered by Brookville, and with only two timeouts remaining Clearfield was unable to stop the clock.
\”It was a good high school football game,\” said Janocko. \”Unfortunately we came out on the short end, but there were some bright spots. It\’s a long season and we have to work to get better. We need to do a better job of tackling.\”
Clearfield (1-1 overall, 0-0 MAC) hosts Hollidaysburg on Friday, while Brookville (1-1) hosts DuBois.
BROOKVILLE 35
CLEARFIELD 28
Score By Quarters
Brookville 7 14 0 14–35
Clearfield 14 7 0 7–28
First Quarter
Galbraith 58 run, (Petardi kick), 11:44.
Campman 19 run, (Herrington kick), 6:54.
Campman 12 run, (Herrington kick), 0:25.
Second Quarter
Heschke 30 run, (Petardi kick), 4:31.
Hipps 77 pass from Campman, (Herrington kick), 3:02.
Truman 10 pass from Heschke, (Petardi kick), 1:11.
Fourth Quarter
Galbraith 4 run, (Heschke run), 10:09.
Galbraith 14 run, (kick blocked), 2:26.
Hipps 63 pass from Campman, (Herrington kick), 0:45.
TEAM STATISTICS
B C
Total First Downs 17 16
Rushes-Yards 46-373 33-149
Comp-Att-Int 6-11-1 13-20-0
Passing Yards 81 233
Total Plays-Yards 57-454 53-382
Fumbles-Lost 5-2 1-1
Punts-Avg 0-0 2-30
Penalties-Yards 4-20 3-25
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Brookville–Galbraith 24-254, Heschke 14-111, Means 3-6, Dennison 3-5, Team 2-(-3).
Clearfield–Campman 18-96, Morgan 13-50, Young 1-4, Team 1-(-1).
Passing
Brookville–Heschke 5-of-10, 60 yds., 1 TD, 1 Int.; Kerr 1-of-1, 21 yds.
Clearfield–Campman 13-of-20, 233 yds., 2 TD.
Receiving
Brookville–Sobol 3-29, Heschke 1-21, Mumford 1-21, Truman 1-10.
Clearfield–Hipps 6-186, Ryan 2-19, Panebianco 2-19, Hryn 1-6, T. Campman 1-6, Morgan 1-(-3).