Shawnee holds on to beat Washington Twp., 17-14
This so-called rebuilding season hasn't exactly gone as the Shawnee football team expected, or more accurately how the public perceived things would go.
This so-called rebuilding season hasn't exactly gone as the Shawnee football team expected, or more accurately how the public perceived things would go.
The Renegades, who lost more than 30 seniors from a 9-3 team that fell to Timber Creek in the South Jersey Group 4 final, have been living dangerously but also in their familiar winning fashion.
Despite an almost late-game collapse, the Renegades held on to a defeat host Washington Township, 17-14, in a West Jersey Football League American Division game with a wild ending Friday night.
The Renegades are 3-0 overall and 2-0 in the American, with two three-point wins and another by a touchdown.
"It's tough," said defensive lineman Dan Falzone, who spent half his evening in Washington Township's backfield. "Some of these games can get ugly, but more importantly we don't quit."
Neither, for that matter, did Washington Township (1-2, 1-2).
Township quarterback Mike Piperno completed 9 of 17 passes for 68 yards in the first half but didn't return to the game. Piperno, who has among the strongest arms in South Jersey, left to get an X-ray believed to be on a finger.
When Shawnee's Dan Wigley scored on a 55-yard run to extend Shawnee's lead to 17-0 with 9 minutes, 55 seconds left, this one looked over.
Nothing could have been farther from the truth.
Still leading 17-7, Shawnee looked to punch in the insurance touchdown. But the Renegades fumbled near the goal line. Township's Liam Watson not only recovered but returned the ball to the Shawnee 47. Township would eventually score on Colin Meintel's second rushing touchdown of the game, from 8 yards out with 3:35 left.
Trailing 17-14, Township would get one final chance, taking over at the Shawnee 45 with 1:49 left.
The Minutemen used a timeout after a one-yard loss to the 24-yard line with 54 seconds left.
They completed a pass on second down for no gain, ran for two yards on third down, and on 4th and 8 from the 22 they spiked the ball.
"I was told before the drive we had three timeouts left, and I was setting up for a field goal," Township coach Mark Wechter said.
That information was incorrect, and Shawnee, which was playing without standout linebacker Jax Luzinski (concussion) held on.
Nothing came easy for Shawnee, which scored on a Joe Dalsey 45-yard field goal with 1.6 seconds left in the first half and then went up 10-0 on a 17-yard scoring pass from Mike Shinske to Shawn Levondosky with 7:12 left in the third quarter.
After increasing the lead to 17-0, the Renegades couldn't stop Meintel, who in addition to the two touchdowns, rushed for 165 yards.
Yet they did enough to win, regardless of the bizarre ending.
"We have so many new faces that we're still learning," Shawnee coach Tim Gushue said.
In this game, both teams learned a big lesson. Township learned it had plenty of fight when it all looked doomed, and Shawnee showed how to hang on even when things were seemingly unraveling.
The Renegades are getting good at that in a season that hasn't gone according to the preseason script but is delivering the results this program expects.
Shawnee 0 3 7 7 - 17
Washington Twp. 0 0 0 14 - 14
S: Joe Dalsey 45 FG
S: Shawn Levondosky 17 pass from Mike Shinske (Rich Demko kick)
S: Dan Wigley 55 run (Demko kick)
W: Colin Meintel 5 run (James Altieri kick)
W: Meintel 8 run (Altieri kick)
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