Featured photo: Joseph Mercurio
On a humid night in Newton, the Council Rock North Indians hosted the Upper Dublin Cardinals in a Suburban One Continental Conference matchup. Council Rock North has historically struggled. Their most recent win was over two years ago against Harry S. Truman. To make matters worse, last week the Indians lost to Souderton 63-6.
As for Upper Dublin, it appears that they have finally found their footing. They started the season by losing three straight, but then picked up back-to-back wins over Hatboro-Horsham and Bensalem. In those two games, the Cardinals outscored their opponents 39-20. More importantly, Upper Dublin got a huge piece back as senior Kevin Williams returned from injury.
Council Rock North started the game with possession. The Indians were only able to pick up a lone first down, and their drive ended when senior Kevin Williams brought down Indians’ junior quarterback Gavin Costello behind the line. The Cardinals began their opening drive on their own 38-yard line. The offense chipped away with small pickups to get down into field goal range so Duncan Boyd could open the scoring and put the Cardinals ahead 3-0.
The Indians regained possession but quickly went three-and-out. Upper Dublin’s next drive started on the Indians’ 35-yard line due to a short punt. Lawson Tyler handed the ball off to senior Tyler O’Sullivan multiple times until he finally broke into the end zone for his first offensive touchdown of the season, extending the lead to 10-0 over the Indians.
Council Rock North continued to struggle on offense. The Indians were unable to convert on a gutsy 4th-and-long. Immediately after, Tyler connected with junior Braeden Skahan for a huge 57-yard touchdown, putting the Cardinals comfortably ahead 17-0 as the first quarter came to a close.
The Indians started the second quarter with another three-and-out, allowing Upper Dublin to begin their next drive at midfield. Junior Ty Greenberg replaced O’Sullivan in the backfield and immediately made an impact. Greenberg rushed five times for a total of 40 yards and found the end zone for another Cardinals touchdown, making the score 24-0.
Council Rock North only managed a few plays before a false start penalty put their drive to waste, forcing them to punt back to Upper Dublin. The Cardinals started on their own 20-yard line and opened their drive with a bang. Tyler found Williams for a 31-yard completion. The Cardinals kept the momentum and two plays later Tyler connected with senior Jabriel Epps for a gain of 20 yards to get the Cardinals down into the red zone. O’Sullivan rushed three times in a row to earn his second offensive touchdown of the season, helping the Cardinals pull away from the Indians, 31-0.
Council Rock North got one last chance before the half to make something happen, but Kevin Williams spoiled the drive, sacking Costello for the second time so far. The Cardinals got the ball back with just enough time for one play. Tyler took a deep shot down the sideline to Williams, who was able to haul in the pass for a massive pickup of 47 yards, but Williams was shoved out of bounds, bringing the first half to a close with Upper Dublin leading Council Rock North 31-0.
The Cardinals started the second half with possession and the offense was clicking on all cylinders. Tyler had a long run himself and then passed to Williams to pick up 10 yards. O’Sullivan and Greenberg both had big rushes to help Upper Dublin get all the way down to Council Rock North’s one-yard line. Tyler snuck over the line to add another 7 to Upper Dublin’s total.
The Indians finally put together a promising drive when Costello built a connection with junior Collin King. First, he connected with King for a gain of 5 yards. Then King broke off for a 17-yard rush. The Indians’ drive was interrupted when Kevin Williams took down Costello for his third sack of the game. Costello bounced back and completed a 15-yard pass to King, but this was the last positive play of the drive as Council Rock North was forced to punt yet again and the third quarter came to a close.
The fourth quarter was nothing to write home about. Both teams took out their starters and there was only a single score. The Indians added a late touchdown, but it didn't have any effect on the game. Upper Dublin earned their third win in a row over Council Rock North, 38-7.
The victory puts the Cardinals at 3-3 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. Upper Dublin currently sits in first and just ahead of Plymouth Whitemarsh in the Suburban One Continental Conference, making for a must-watch when the Cardinals host the Colonials on October 16. But first, the Cardinals must focus on their next opponent as they host Council Rock South next week. As for the Indians, they will remain winless. Next week, they will gear up to host Plymouth Whitemarsh, who is currently undefeated.