Apollo-Ridge fends off rival Leechburg in opener

By: Michael Love
Friday, August 26, 2022 | 10:39 PM

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After a two-year hiatus, the Leechburg and Apollo-Ridge football teams renewed their neighboring rivalry Friday night for a Week Zero clash at Owens Field.

The Vikings, who collected 530 yards of offense, earned bragging rights in the latest matchup against the Blue Devils. Apollo-Ridge held off a late Leechburg charge for a 34-28 victory.

“It was two good teams going at it for 48 minutes,” Vikings coach John Skiba said.

“Leechburg has some of the better skill guys we’re going to see early in the season. We knew coming in it was going to be a battle. I think we knew we were probably going to be better up front. Our kids were dialed in from the get-go this week. They were very excited to play this game, and I am really glad how we finished it off.”

Apollo-Ridge, leading 26-14 at halftime, added on with 2 minutes, 54 seconds left in the third quarter.

The Vikings defense forced a Leechburg turnover on downs at the 5:38 mark. Junior quarterback Karter Schrock scampered 61 yards down to the Blue Devils 10, and two plays later, senior Nick Curci took it in from 2 yards.

Curci’s third TD of the game and his 2-point conversion run made it 34-14.

But Leechburg didn’t fold its tent.

The Blue Devils responded as quarterback Jayden Floyd, making his first varsity start, capped a six-play, 62-yard drive with a 7-yard scamper with 25 seconds left in the quarter.

Leechburg really made it interesting as time wound down in the fourth. The Blue Devils fashioned a 12-play, 98-yard drive, and it ended with Floyd finding senior Pitt commit Braylan Lovelace for 28 yards with 3:19 left in regulation.

Floyd was 7 of 9 for 66 yards on the drive, and he finished 13 of 18 for 151 yards and two touchdowns.

Leechburg tried an onside kick, but Apollo-Ridge recovered the ball and ran out the final three minutes to seal the victory.

Curci led the way with 196 yards on 19 carries, while Schrock added 151 yards on 12 rushes.

Schrock started out 7 for 7 passing for 155 yards before incompletions on his final two attempts.

Senior wideout Jake Mull hauled in four of Schrock’s passes for 127 yards.

“I didn’t expect that we would get that many yards,” Schrock said. “We know that Leechburg has a really strong defense with a lot of playmakers. We knew it was going to be a very tough game. There was a lot of smack talk (on social media) all week, and we were so pumped to come out here and perform. We have a few things to fix, which is expected after an opening game, but we will get back to work and get ready for next week.”

Things didn’t start well for Leechburg as the Apollo-Ridge defense smothered Lovelace for a loss of 16 yards on the first play from scrimmage. Lovelace fumbled on the play, giving the Vikings the ball at the Leechburg 41.

Curci capped the ensuing drive, running it in from 8 yards with 9:04 on the first-quarter clock.

Leechburg answered at the 7:48 mark as Floyd found an open Tyler Foley for 52 yards to tie the score.

It didn’t take Apollo-Ridge long — 20 seconds, in fact — to regain the lead at 14-7 as Schrock hooked up with Mull on a 55-yard scoring strike.

A Curci 6-yard run early in the second quarter gave Apollo-Ridge a two-score lead at 20-7, but Leechburg quickly cut into the deficit as senior Owen McDermott returned the ensuing kickoff 74 yards for a Blue Devils score.

It appeared as if the Blue Devils were going in to tie or take the lead late in the first half, but Floyd was stuffed on a QB keeper on fourth and goal from the 1.

Apollo-Ridge didn’t waste any time turning the defensive stand into points. Curci delivered a big chunk of yardage with a 62-yard run down to the Leechburg 30.

On the next play, Schrock found Mull over the middle for the touchdown with 31 seconds on the clock.

The Vikings regained their two-score lead and took it into the break.

“I told the guys after the game that I was proud of the way they didn’t give up,” Leechburg coach Randy Walters said.

“It was looking pretty dismal at halftime and later in the third quarter, but I was happy with the fact they kept on fighting. We gave ourselves a chance in the fourth quarter, but we just couldn’t get the ball back. Apollo-Ridge is a big, physical football team, and they physicaled us up front pretty good at times, and they’re going to do that to a lot of people.

“We’ll watch the film and see what we need to correct, and we’ll come back this week and get ready to go next Friday.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Leechburg