North Penn ousts Council Rock South, 28-14

Council Rock South's defense, allowing an average of 32 points in its previous four outings, was looking to stop the bleeding in Friday night's PIAA District 1 Class AAAA semifinal playoff against high-powered North Penn.

With as many weapons as the Knights have in their arsenal, including speedy tailback Craig Needhammer, scatback Brandon Mercer, and do-everything fullback Dom Taggart, it was, to say the least, a daunting challenge for the Golden Hawks.

North Penn didn't light up the scoreboard, but made the most of the pass-catch duo of Corey Ernst and Gerard Wendowski. The two combined for eight completions and two scores as the third-seeded Knights posted a 28-14 victory at Council Rock North's Walt Snyder Stadium.

Ernst, a first-year starter at quarterback, went a perfect 10 for 10 for 116 yards. Wendowski, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound wideout, had eight receptions for 89 yards.

"If we can protect the quarterback, we can have nights like this every night," North Penn coach Dick Beck said.

Next weekend, at a neutral site and time to be determined, North Penn (12-1) will play fourth-seeded Neshaminy (12-1), a 33-7 victor Friday over eighth-seeded West Chester Rustin, for top honors.

Taggart rushed 14 times for 93 yards and a TD, and Needhammer carried 18 times for 49 yards. Mercer clinched the victory with a 47-yard TD reverse early in the fourth quarter. On three carries, the speedster netted 69 yards.

The Knights opened the second half with a 12-play, 80-yard drive and went in front, 21-0, on Ernst's 6-yard, right-side toss to Wendowski. It was Ernst's 20th TD pass of the year.

On 41 rushing attempts, North Penn totaled 212 yards. With its wishbone attack, C.R. South, the No. 2 seed, managed 237 yards on 42 tries.

C.R. South QB Billy Fleming rushed 21 times for 132 yards, including an 8-yard TD with just 13 seconds to play. Halfback Mark Damargian provided a 1-yard scoring dive late in the third quarter to make it 21-7.

In the second quarter, North Penn put together a 14-play, 75-yard drive to take a 14-0 advantage into intermission. On second-and-goal from the 2, Ernst connected with Wendowski on a right-side fade.

Wendowski fought off 5-9, 170-pound cornerback Anthony Alimonti (a holding call against Alimonti was declined) for the first of his two scores.

The drive, aided by facemask and pass-interference calls, lasted nearly seven minutes.

At the start of the second quarter, Taggart's 1-yard plunge capped an eight-play, 80-yard series. Taggart, who ripped off a 42-yard run on the drive's first play, and Needhammer did most of the work, with Mercer chipping in a 14-yard gain on a reverse.

North Penn   0 14 7 7 – 28

Council Rock South   0 0 7 7 – 14

NP: Taggart 1 run (Mandes kick)

NP: Wendowski 2 pass from Ernst (Mandes kick)

NP: Wendowski 6 pass from Ernst (Mandes kick)

CRS: Damargian 1 run (Solis kick)

NP: Mercer 47 run (Mandes kick)

CRS: Fleming 8 run (Solis kick)