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Coatesville shuts down Henderson

Ahkema Evans and Amir Ealey became quick friends after Evans moved from Charlotte to Coatesville before last school year. "Yeah, it's been good," Evans said. "We just get each other. He's somebody I'm happy to have in my life."

Coatesville's Jay Stocker celebrates his tackle of West Chester Henderson's Brian Armstrong. (Ron Cortes/Staff Photographer)
Coatesville's Jay Stocker celebrates his tackle of West Chester Henderson's Brian Armstrong. (Ron Cortes/Staff Photographer)Read more

Ahkema Evans and Amir Ealey became quick friends after Evans moved from Charlotte to Coatesville before last school year.

"Yeah, it's been good," Evans said. "We just get each other. He's somebody I'm happy to have in my life."

With Evans and Ealey playing leading roles, Coatesville repeatedly stymied West Chester Henderson's midline-veer offense and triumphed, 21-3, in a pivotal Ches-Mont League National Conference matchup Friday night.

"Our defense is the most physical in the Ches-Mont, maybe the entire state," said Ealey, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound senior tight end and defensive end. "We have multiple players coming downhill to make tackles."

The host Red Raiders, in taking sole possession of first place in the National Conference, limited the run-oriented Warriors to 143 yards on 37 rushes.

"There were two physical teams going at it," said Evans, a shutdown senior cornerback and wide receiver. "Somebody had to go down."

The 5-9, 173-pound Evans, who has committed to Temple, said he came to Coatesville to live with his uncle Che Eubanks.

"He's like a father figure to me," Evans said. "He gets on me daily about doing the right things."

And how does Evans like Coatesville? "It's a lot smaller than Charlotte, and it gets pretty cold in the winter, but I'm enjoying it," he said. "There's less to do, so that keeps me focused on sports and school."

Coatesville, ranked No. 6 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, improved to 8-0 overall and 4-0 in the league. No. 9 Henderson, which turned the ball over four times, slipped to 6-2 and 3-1.

Evans, fellow back Stevie Pugh, and strong safety Ricky Southcott (fourth-quarter sack) registered second-half interceptions. Ealey and linebackers Stephen Pawling and Chris Jordan were also highly active.

Ealey, who dumped Warriors quarterback Matt Dinacci for a 6-yard loss in the second quarter, has drawn interest from Maryland, North Carolina, and Central Florida. Maryland sees him as a possible outside linebacker.

Jordan Young, Coatesville's ever-improving junior QB, completed 21 of 25 throws for 201 yards and a touchdown.

"I love that kid," Ealey said. "He gets better with every play."

Thanks to Young's scoring dashes of 2 and 9 yards, the Red Raiders led, 14-3, at the break. Early in the fourth quarter, his 37-yard TD pass to wideout Keenan Coleman clinched the outcome.

W.C. Henderson 3 0 0 0 - 3

Coatesville 7 7 0 7 - 21

C: Jordan Young 2 run (Ibrahim Kallie kick)

WCH: FG Ryan Angle 26

C: Young 9 run (Kallie kick)

C: Keenan Coleman 37 pass from Young (Kallie kick)