Clairton back on track with win against Leechburg
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Saturday, October 14, 2017 | 1:39 AM
Leechburg ran into a Clairton team looking to get back to its winning ways.
The Bears started slow, but turned up the intensity in a 44-7 win over host Leechburg at Veterans Memorial Field in Class A Eastern Conference play.
“Defensively, it was lights-out, and we expected that. The defense has really been playing well the past few weeks. We have to keep building off of that,” Clairton coach Wayne Wade said. “We will clean up what we have to on the offense and try to get some guys back healthy.”
Clairton came into the game on a rare two-game losing streak — its first back-to-back losses in more than a decade.
Clairton (5-2, 4-1) went three-and-out on the opening drive.
The Bears found the end zone on their next three possessions.
Senior Tre'sean Howard scored the first points on a 47-yard reception from sophomore quarterback Brendan Parsons.
The pair connected on the team's next drive for an 11-yard touchdown.
Parsons hit senior Anthony Pruitt for a 12-yard touchdown before Howard scored the final points of the first half on a 70-yard punt return that gave the Bears a 27-0 lead.
Parsons led the charge for the Bears, completing nine of 13 passes for 138 yards and three scores.
He connected with Howard four times for 88 yards, and Aaron Thompson had 74 yards on 12 carries and a score in the second half. Howard also rushed for 61 yards on four carries.
“Offensively, that's what we want to get to,” Wade said. “We have a lot of weapons out there and we just want to keep building.”
Leechburg (0-8, 0-5) had a difficult time establishing anything offensively.
Clairton's defense limited the Blue Devils to 11 yards in the first half.
Where the offense struggled, Leechburg coach Mark George was pleased with his defense.
“I saw some defenseive stands,” George said. “We played much better (on defense). We got a couple of kids back who haven't been around for three or four weeks. That was a help.”
Leechburg got on the board late on a 50-yard run from Mike Herbinko, his only carry of the game. He led the Blue Devils in rushing.
Dave Yohe is a freelance writer.
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