4th-quarter touchdown pass lifts Franklin Regional past North Hills

By: Antonio Rossetti
Friday, November 1, 2024 | 11:30 PM

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Franklin Regional’s late-game heroics on a Chase Lemke pop pass on a fake quarterback keeper pushed the Panthers to a 17-16 victory over North Hills in the WPIAL Class 5A first round Friday night at Martorelli Stadium.

It was Franklin Regional’s first playoff win since 2018.

Franklin Regional was on the ropes late in the fourth quarter after giving up a safety on a bad snap over punter Joey Bayne’s head.

Down 16-10, the Panthers defense needed to make a big play and got one when Jay Austin recovered a fumble at the North Hills 30.

After Jude Gentile was stopped short of the line to gain on third down, Lemke ran up to the line and faked a quarterback keeper, popping a pass over the line to Cole Devola, who leaped up and brought it down for a 12-yard touchdown. Bayne nailed the extra point, giving the Panthers a 17-16 lead.

Franklin Regional shut down North Hills’ last attempt on a lateral play when Andrew Devola recovered on a fumble the ball as time expired.

“It’s just the fight that this team has, and we’re never giving up,” Lemke said. “We preach it every single practice. We want this to last as long as we can, especially being seniors. We want to ride it. This is our first big playoff win in a while and it really set the tone for us.”

Lemke, who completed 8 of 12 passes for 68 yards with a touchdown and an interception described the game-winning score.

“It’s basically a QB sneak pop pass,” Lemke said. “I knew Cole Devola was going to be wide open. I saw him right away. That was a that was a heck of a catch through contact. That was huge on fourth down.”

Gentile spearheaded the rushing attack, tallying 72 yards on 15 carries.

The defense came to play, holding North Hills to 16 points.

“We had a game plan planned out for the whole week,” Austin said. “We executed it, and as you see, we came out with the dub, so it definitely worked.”

The defense was led by Macallister Bresnahan, who tallied three sacks.

“We knew coming into this game that they were a very physical team,” Bresnahan said. “We had to be more physical than them.”

Bresnahan had confidence in his team after the big recovery.

“When Jay got that fumble, we knew the game was ours,” Bresnahan said. “We knew they couldn’t beat us if we kept it up.”

Franklin Regional created pressure all night, but Lemke was proud of the pass coverage too.

“Our secondary coming up big is also the big factor, only holding them to 16 points,” Lemke said. “I mean, you’re going to love that as an offense. I think the pressure was the main factor that we keyed into this game, but I think the secondary also came up big.”

As for the Indians, they were led by Kelly McCarthy, who completed 14 of 25 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns.

His leading target was Stephen Murphy, who caught four passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns.

The Indians packed the first punch when McCarthy launched one to Murphy for a 72-yard touchdown pass.

The score gave North Hills a 7-0 lead eight minutes into the first quarter.

A Gentile 31-yard run put the Panthers at the North Hills 40-yard line, and Lemke capped off the drive with a 1-yard quarterback keeper, tying the game 7-7 to start the second.

Gentile compiled 58 rushing yards on five carries on the drive.

The Panthers received good field position at the North Hills 43 on a bad punt.

The Indians forced a field goal attempt and Bayne knocked one through from 32 yards out. The kick was sent through with so much power that the ball hit the top of the scoreboard.

Bayne’s field goal gave Franklin Regional a 10-7 lead with 5:22 left in the half.

The Panthers defense locked in. A Troy Slezak sack on third-and-21 ended North Hills’ next drive.

Logan Ilnicki picked off a Lemke pass with 2:34 left, rejuvenating the Indians.

North Hills came close to capitalizing. An 11-yard scramble from McCarthy put the ball at fourth-and-1 at the Panther 10-yard line. However, he rushed up to the line and spiked the ball, ending their drive.

North Hills retook the lead when McCarthy found Murphy yet again, this time on a 44-yard slant that Murphy took to the house. The Jack Scarsella extra point made it 14-10.

After a big sack from Indians linebacker Joey Lutz, the Panthers were faced with fourth-and-17.

This led to the safety, but Franklin Regional prevailed after the Austin fumble recovery and the game-winning pass from Lemke to Devola.

Bresnahan and the team are now focused on one thing — their quarterfinal matchup next Friday.

“Beat Pine-Richland,” Bresnahan said. “We are working all next week to do that.”

Tags: Franklin Regional, North Hills