Imani races to big early lead, sends Greensburg CC to loss in conference opener

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, September 1, 2017 | 10:54 PM

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For the second consecutive week, Greensburg Central Catholic faced the Saints. Last week to open the season, the Centurions defeated the Saints of Tuscarawas (Ohio) Central Catholic.

But Friday night in Centurions Stadium, the No. 3 Imani Christian Saints went marching into the end zone eight times for a convincing 70-7 win to open Class A Eastern Conference play.

In an overpowering offensive and defensive display, the Saints piled up 204 yards passing and 176 rushing and the Centurions to 42 yards on the ground and 87 passing.

Imani Christian's trio of quarterback Wan Westly, running back Asante' Watkins and receiver Sam Fairly dominated. Westly completed 15 of 25 passes for 204 yards, including touchdown passes of 15, 5, and 28 yards to Fairly. Fairly scored a fourth touchdown on a 65-yard interception return in the second quarter to make the score 40-0 at the half. Watkins scored on a 46-yard run and added a 38-yard fumble return for another score. Imani led 64-0 until midway through the fourth quarter.

Greensburg Central avoided the shutout when Max Pisula connected with Brandon Brown on a 39-yard touchdown pass midway through the final quarter.

Imani Christian coach Ronnell Heard complimented his offensive stars but was especially proud of his defense, which produced two scores.

“I challenged them this week,” Heard said, referring to his defense, “and they came up big tonight. Not just with the interception and fumble return, but their overall effort.”

Imani opened the scoring in the first quarter when Westly hit Fairly with the first of his four touchdown passes.

A second Westly-to-Fairly touchdown pass late in the first quarter opened the Saints' margin to 16-0. Fairly caught this third touchdown pass early in the second quarter before returning the interception for the 40-0 halftime lead.

“Sam is a fantastic player and great leader,” Heard added. “He's a great athlete, and I'm proud of his game tonight.”

Heard was equally as proud of Westly, whom he referred to as a “great leader, a quarterback who has poise and knows how to take control of his offense.”

Up 40-0 at the half, Heard impressed upon his players the need top “finish and close games.”

“How we do the rest of the season will be determined by how we finished (tonight),” he said. “We have an experienced team, and these guys have been together two years. We're banking on the momentum we have from last year's playoff victory.”

First-year Greensburg Central coach Aaron Smetanka referred to the defeat as “definitely a learning experience. We're young, and we'll come back this week and learn from our mistakes tonight.”

Despite trailing by 40 at the half, “our guys were positive in the locker room at halftime,” he said. “We had some early penalties that cost us, and we missed an early scoring opportunity. You can't miss those opportunities, especially against a quality team like Imani.

“Max was under pressure all night, and our offense couldn't sustain any drives. What I'll take to practice next week is that this game is over and done with. It's only one loss, and there's nothing we can do about it now. We have to make the necessary corrections. We played hard until the end, and that's a credit to the players.”

Watkins took game rushing honors with 93 yards on six carries, and Fairly caught four passes for 64 yards and three touchdowns. RJ Hart and Israel Reed recorded fourth-quarter touchdowns of 21 and 5 yards, respectively, for the Saints.

Les Harvath is a freelance writer.

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Imani Christian