Despite injuries, Haverford School dominates Malvern
Mickey and Chris Kober have been quite the one-two punch on the gridiron and mat for Haverford School. And keep an eye out in the in future for the youngest of the four Kober boys, 9-year-old Frank. "He's the toughest out of all of us," Mickey said.
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Mickey and Chris Kober have been quite the one-two punch on the gridiron and mat for Haverford School. And keep an eye out in the in future for the youngest of the four Kober boys, 9-year-old Frank. "He's the toughest out of all of us," Mickey said.
With the Kober brothers teaming up at linebacker and also playing offense, the injury-depleted Fords surprisingly dominated Inter-Ac League rival Malvern Prep, 31-14, Saturday afternoon at the Pellegrini Athletic Complex.
"All week, I didn't pay attention to what people outside our program were saying," Mickey Kober said. "It was just about preparing for Malvern. That was the focus."
The Kobers and their defensive mates held the Friars to 100 yards rushing and 67 passing through three quarters. The unit limited dynamic sophomore tailback O'Shaan Allison to 94 yards on 17 tries.
A 6-foot-1, 215-pound senior who doubles at right tackle, Mickey Kober was involved in six tackles. He wrestles in the 220-pound division.
Mickey Kober and fellow senior captain Frank Cresta, a two-way lineman on Saturday, have been stalwarts for the defending Inter-Ac champs.
"They bring an attitude with them that rubs off on their teammates," said Haverford coach Mike Murphy, whose squad bested Malvern for the fourth straight time and sixth in the last seven seasons.
Chris Kober, who is an H-back on offense, posted two first-quarter sacks and was involved in seven tackles overall. The 5-10, 220-pound junior wrestled at 170 pounds last season.
The eldest Kober brother, 19-year old Tim, played football at Haverford High.
The Fords (7-0, 2-0 Inter-Ac) lost senior quarterback Kevin Carter to a season-ending knee injury in Week 3. They were also missing tailback Malik Twyman, their leading rusher, and defensive end Asim Richards against the Friars (5-1, 1-1).
"This team has faced a lot of adversity this year," said Mickey Kober, who made a fourth-quarter interception. "It seems like it's something every other week. But we refuse to let that stop us."
Tommy Toal has proven to be quite the fill-in at quarterback. The junior completed 23 of 32 passes for 324 yards and four touchdowns against Malvern. His first-quarter tosses to Keyveat Postell (13 yards) and Dox Aitken (55) produced a 14-0 lead.
The Kobers, of Havertown, were aided on defense by lineman Cresta, Brian Denoncour, Anthony Reginelli, and Colin Hurlbrink. Postell, Aitken (third-quarter pick), and Micah Sims anchored the secondary.
Haverford School 14 3 7 7 - 31
Malvern Prep 0 7 0 7 - 14
HS: Keyveat Postell 13 pass from Tommy Toal (Tommy McNamara kick)
HS: Dox Aitken 55 pass from Toal (McNamara kick)
MP: Zac Fernandez 12 run (Brandon Chiazza kick)
HS: FG McNamara 36
HS: Postell 66 pass from Toal (McNamara kick)
HS: Eli Godfrey 12 pass from Toal (McNamara kick)
MP: Chris Brown 41 pass from Kevin Doyle (Chiazza kick)
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