RECAP >> Survive and advance.
Just win baby.
That’s what it’s all about at this time in the high school football season.
And Emmaus did just that on Friday night — in dramatic fashion, no less.
Playing on the road in a hostile environment at Nazareth’s Andrew S. Leh Stadium in the opening round of the District XI 6A quarterfinals, the Hornets somehow, someway were able to rally for an improbable 20-19 come-from-behind victory and stun the two-time defending Blue Eagles on their home field.
After playing one of its worst halves of the season in which they turned the ball over four times and trailed 12-0 at halftime, Emmaus came out of the locker room and looked liked the team that earlier this season had put together a five-game win streak as they scored three touchdowns in the third quarter and then used a strong defensive effort to pull out the victory.
Senior defensive lineman Trevor Gitski preserved the win with a little over two minutes remaining in the game as he came up with a big fumble recovery of Nazareth’s Tyler Rohn on the 3-yard line as the Blue Eagles appeared to headed towards the winning score.
Emmaus then celebrated by running out the clock after defeating the Blue Eagles for the second time this season and earning their first win in districts since 2018, ironically against the same Nazareth squad in a high-scoring 55-40 affair at EPSD Stadium.
The Hornets snapped their two-game losing streak and improved to 8-3 with the win. More importantly, they earned a date in next Friday’s semifinals at 7 p.m. against top-seeded Parkland, which handled Pocono Mountain West 42-13.
The two rivals will meet for the second time in three weeks with a berth in the finals on the line against the winner of No.3 seed Freedom or No.6 seed Northampton. Emmaus will also have an opportunity for revenge after falling to the Trojans 25-14 in a rainstorm on October 29. The game will be carried LIVE on www.easternpasportsnetwork.com beginning with the pregame show at 6:30 p.m.
Thanks to an incredible second half effort against Nazareth, head coach Harold Fairclough’s team will get that chance.
Senior running back Jared Groller’s 10th rushing touchdown of the season from 3 yards out with 5:50 left in the third quarter proved to be the winning score and gave the Hornets their only lead of the night. Groller also led Emmaus with five tackles and was named The Sport Clips Player of the Game on defense.
Sophomore quarterback Josiah Williams, who struggled in the first half with two interceptions and a fumble, played outstanding after halftime as he threw two touchdown passes – one to junior Dylan Darville with 7:51 on the clock covering 83 yards and the other to senior tight end Dave Iobst, the first score of the night for the Hornets, from 3 yards out with 9:48 remaining in the third. It was the first career touchdown for Iobst.
Defensively, Emmaus gave up on just one touchdown after halftime and held a high-power Nazareth offense to 189 total yards while forcing three turnovers.
The Blue Eagles, who were the two-time defending District XI Class 6A champs, ended their season at 7-4. Junior quarterback Sonny Sasso had a pair of scores in the first half on touchdown runs of 9 and 3 yards, while Rohn also scored on a 69-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
To keep up to date with Emmaus sports, follow on Twitter (@Emmaussports.com) and like Emmaus football on facebook.
Em – 0-0-20-0 – 20
Na – 6-6-7-0 – 19
Scoring:
Na – Sonny Sasso 9 yard run (PAT failed)
Na – Sasso 1 yard run (PAT failed)
Em – David Iobst 3 yard pass from Josiah Williams (Owen Garcia PAT)
Na – Tyler Rohn 69 yard run (Chris Bugbee PAT)
Em – Dylan Darville 83 yard pass from Williams (Garcia PAT)
Em – Jared Groller 3 yard run (pass failed)