Behind determined defense, Penn Hills hands Aliquippa 1st regular-season loss since 2021
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Saturday, September 21, 2024 | 1:05 AM
Penn Hills’ Naytel Mitchell carries past Aliquippa’s Joseph Work as Derek Selby Jr. loses his helmet on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
The Penn Hills defense drops Aliquippa’s SaNir Brooks for a loss on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Naytel Mitchell carries for the Indians’ third touchdown past Aliquippa’s Qalil Goode on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Naytel Mitchell celebrates after breaking up a pass against Aliquippa on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa’s QaLil Goode brings down Penn Hills’ Jaymere Ellis on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa’s Josiah Boykin blocks a punt between SaNir Brooks and Daiveon Taylor on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Carter Bonner defends on a pass to Aliquippa’s QaLil Goode during the fourth quarter on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Jaymere Ellis fends off Aliquippa’s Cleaster Longmire IV during their game on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa’s Daiveon Taylor fends off Penn Hills’ Kevin Marcus on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa quarterback Marques Council eludes Penn Hills’ Derek Selby Jr. on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa’s Marques Council carries into the end zone against the Penn Hills defense on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School. The play was ruled a fumble.
Penn Hills’ Jaymere Ellis chases a loose ball in the end zone against Aliquippa on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Jaymere Ellis returns a fumble out of the end zone against Aliquippa on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa’s Cleaster Longmire IV breaks up a pass intended for Penn Hills’ Darrell Banks on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Naytel Mitchell carries for the Indians’ third touchdown past Aliquippa’s Tekoah Gilbert on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Martel Palmer scores against Aliquippa on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills’ Carter Bonner catches a touchdown pass over Aliquippa’s Larry Moon on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn State football head coach James Franklin watches from the Aliquippa sideline on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Aliquippa head coach Vashawn Patrick sends a message from the sideline during a game on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
Penn Hills head coach Charles Morris walks from the field during a timeout against Aliquippa on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Penn Hills High School.
The night ended much the way it started with the Penn Hills defense celebrating a stop.
The Indians shut out Aliquippa for the first three quarters Friday night, built a three-touchdown lead and made a game-ending stand late in fourth to hand the Quips their first regular-season loss in three years.
Penn Hills won 21-13 in a nonconference game dominated by defense and penalties. It ended a 27-game regular-season winning streak for Aliquippa and a 16-game streak overall for the Quips.
“This team really hasn’t lost since they were in Pop Warner,” Aliquippa coach Vashawn Patrick said. “I think this might’ve been their third loss since they started playing football. But like I told them, this is a game of character. This game is going to show our character and how we bounce back.”
The game also gave the defending PIAA Class 4A champion an up-close look at life in 5A. The Quips were headed there this fall until the school district challenged the PIAA’s competitive-balance rule in court.
Senior quarterback Jay’mere Ellis threw for two touchdowns and took a score away from Aliquippa by recovering a first-half fumble in the end zone as a linebacker. Penn Hills led 7-0 at halftime and 21-0 entering the fourth quarter.
Penn Hills (2-3) started the season with three losses but now has won two in a row.
“Don’t count us out,” said Ellis, who completed 9 of 12 passes for 121 yards. “We’ve still got more work to put in. We’re still coming.”
Penn Hills took a 7-0 lead five seconds before halftime on an 11-yard pass from Ellis to sophomore Carter Bonner. The short touchdown drive covered 23 yards in five plays and included five penalties — three by Penn Hills and two against Aliquippa. The teams combined for 34 penalties.
Aliquippa played its second straight game without Penn State-bound running back Tikey Hayes, who was recovering from a hamstring issue. Nittany Lions coach James Franklin was on the sideline for the first quarter. Patrick said Hayes is expected to rejoin the lineup next week
Penn Hills stretched its lead to 21-0 by scoring on both of its third-quarter possessions. Wide receiver Martel Palmer caught a 35-yard touchdown from Ellis, and running back Naytel Mitchell added a 56-yard touchdown run.
“I knew Aliquippa wasn’t going to lose their composure, even if we got up,” Penn Hills coach Charles Morris said. “I’ve seen it throughout the years. I wanted to make sure our kids were mentally ready for that.”
Aliquippa scored twice in the fourth quarter.
In the span of five minutes, quarterback Marques Council connected with receiver Larry Moon on a 13-yard touchdown pass, Josiah Boykin blocked a Penn Hills punt and running back Sa’Nir Brooks scored on a 1-yard run.
The Quips would’ve needed to drive 97 yards in the final three minutes for a tying touchdown. The Quips’ chances ended with a fourth-down incompletion at their own 28-yard line with 1:26 left.
A punt by Penn Hills’ Angelo Baleno had pinned them at the 3.
“They competed,” Morris said of his defense. “They took the challenge to tackle a hell of a back. I know Tikey Hayes didn’t play tonight, but Sa’Nir Brooks is a problem, too.”
Aliquippa scored 95 points combined in its two previous games but had five punts and a fumble on its first six possessions Friday. But the first-quarter fumble was nearly a touchdown.
From the 1-yard line in a scoreless game, Council was pushing toward the end zone on a quarterback sneak when the ball came loose and Ellis recovered. The Quips thought Council had crossed the goal line.
“One ref was raising his hands,” Patrick said. “I thought it was a touchdown.”
Council was stuck in the middle of a scrum.
“He was getting pushed back, getting pushed forward and I saw the ball come out,” Ellis said. “I hurried up and picked it up.”
The regular-season loss was the Aliquippa’s first since Sept. 10, 2021, against Central Valley.
Penalties were an issue for both teams Friday. Penn Hills was flagged 18 times and Aliquippa 16. The game’s first touchdown drive was extended by a roughing the kicker penalty against the Quips.
“We saw some good things, but we kept killing ourselves with penalties and self-inflicted wounds,” Patrick said. “We’ve got to get better.”
Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.
Tags: Aliquippa, Penn Hills
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