Feature Photo: Joseph Mercurio
The Upper Dublin CardinalsUpper Dublin Cardinals hosted the North Penn KnightsNorth Penn Knights in their home opener on a warm Thursday night in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania.
The Cardinals opened their season on the road, losing to both Wissahickon and Penn Manor, extending their losing streak to four games. Their most recent win came in a 20-7 victory over Bensalem on October 17 of last year. The Upper Dublin squad is also currently riddled with injuries to multiple starters.
The Knights started their season by beating Lower Dauphin then losing to Central York, both at home. North Penn is coming off a season in which they were District 1 6A champions and 6A state playoff semifinalists. Their run ended when they lost to La Salle, who went on to win the title.
Upper Dublin started the game with a quick three-and-out. The only positive from the Cardinals’ opening drive was a 50-yard punt courtesy of junior Braeden Skahan. North Penn took over at their own 40-yard line. The Knights had a three-and-out of their own and went to punt. A bad snap allowed the Cardinals to take over at the Knights’ 26-yard line. Upper Dublin showed promise by converting on a fourth down when Cardinals quarterback senior Lawson Tyler found Cheltenham transfer senior Jabriel Epps over the middle to keep the drive alive.
Just as the Cardinals thought they had found their footing, Tyler rushed up the middle and lost the ball in a sea of Knights defenders.
Senior Sal Colella scooped up the ball and took it to the house to open the scoring for North Penn. In the later minutes of the first quarter, a short punt from the Cardinals allowed the Knights to begin their drive on the opposing 27-yard line. On second down, North Penn quarterback senior London Evans handed the ball to senior Rylei Gray. Gray rushed up the middle and was met by Upper Dublin’s defensive line before pulling off a spin move to find an opening for a 22-yard touchdown run. After a Cardinals drive that went nowhere, Evans connected with Gray on a 38-yard touchdown pass to help the Knights to a 21-0 lead and end the first quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Upper Dublin found themselves punting once again. A muffed punt allowed junior Nick Hoffner to recover the ball for Upper Dublin at North Penn’s 44-yard line. The glimmer of hope for the Cardinals was taken away in an instant as Tyler was sacked on back-to-back plays in the red zone. Coming into the season, the Cardinals’ offensive line was a big concern, but besides the back-to-back sacks, they had a solid showing.
Upper Dublin punted the ball back to North Penn, which led to Evans launching a deep ball to junior Ziyon Smith for a 59-yard Knights touchdown. In the waning minutes of the first half, Evans threw his third touchdown of the game on a 40-yard completion to Gray, which was also Gray’s third touchdown of the night and the final score of the game. Upper Dublin regained possession and Tyler took a knee to close out the first half, with North Penn leading Upper Dublin 35-0.
Due to PIAA rules, the second half featured a running clock because of the score differential, stopping only for timeouts and scores. For both teams, the second half was nothing to write home about. Aside from the Cardinals recovering a squib kick from Skahan to start the second half, the rest of the contest mainly consisted of North Penn keeping the ball on the ground and Upper Dublin standing by and waiting for the game to end. Both teams put in their non-starters to avoid unnecessary injuries to their starters. At one point, the Knights called thirteen running plays in a row before being stopped on a fourth down.
Upper Dublin’s freshman quarterback, Cliff Cissne, replaced Tyler in the fourth quarter. Cissne played a few snaps but didn\'t get an opportunity to display his arm as the Cardinals punted for their eighth time. The Knights lined up in victory formation and walked out of Cardinal Stadium, securing a 35-0 shutout win.
For Upper Dublin, the loss extends their losing streak to five games and moves their record to an underwhelming 0-3. The Cardinals will look to get back on track next week as they host the Hatters of Hatboro-Horsham, who are also winless. For North Penn, the blowout win helps them to a 2-1 record. Next week, they will host the Pennsbury Falcons.