Freeport bounces back from tough loss to earn runaway victory over Burrell

By: Michael Love
Friday, September 20, 2024 | 10:45 PM

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Freeport rallied but came up just short in its Allegheny 7 Conference opener last week at Deer Lakes.

But there was no hangover from that game for the Yellowjackets on Friday at home against rival Burrell.

Freeport led by four touchdowns at halftime and added on in the second half in a 42-0 conference victory.

“Deer Lakes is a great team, and that was a tough loss for us, but we were able to put that behind us and move on to get ready for Burrell,” said Freeport junior quarterback Drew Ross, who ran for 78 yards and three touchdowns on seven carries and was 7 of 11 passing for 156 yards and a TD in the victory.

“That is the reality of it and what you have to do sometimes.

“I expected a little bit more out of Burrell. But we just came out ready to play. We ran it early and mixed in the pass effectively. It’s nice that we can be balanced offensively. We have to do that to be successful. My teammates around me, we were all working together. I give a lot of credit to the offensive line. They really came to play.”

Freeport took the opening kickoff of the second half and drove 75 yards in 10 plays. Ross’s third rush TD, a 1-yarder at 7:40 of the third, and Judah Thompson’s fifth extra point, made it 35-0 and put the mercy rule running clock into effect.

Sophomore Braydon Pomaybo capped the scoring for Freeport with a 23-yard dash to the end zone with 1:43 to go in the fourth.

The victory moved the Yellowjackets above .500 at 3-2, and they evened their conference mark at 1-1.

Freeport will try to make it two wins in a row next week as it hosts Valley at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium.

“The kids were very motivated to come out here and play well and get this win,” Yellowjackets coach John Gaillot said. “After last week, I was hoping they would continue to respond. They played better this week, other than the penalties. We have to clean that up. But I thought we were more physical this week.”

Freeport finished with 380 yards of total offense. The run game accounted for 224 of those yards.

In addition to Ross’ 78, Amos Glenn finished with 85 yards on eight attempts and Pomaybo collected 59 yards on six rushes.

Sean Selinger caught three of Ross’ passes for 105 yards and a first-half touchdown.

Burrell (0-5) will try to get into the win column next Friday when it hosts East Allegheny.

“I have to coach better,” Bucs coach Shawn Liotta said. “It’s nothing about the kids. I just have to coach better. Credit to Freeport. They did a heckuva job. We’re going to keep battling and keep trying to get better.”

Burrell’s offense was limited to 121 yards of total offense, 61 on the ground and 60 through the air.

Sophomore Trey Coury led the Bucs with 21 carries for 60 yards.

Burrell had something going on the opening drive of the game as they used 13 plays – 12 runs and one pass – to move the ball to the Freeport 28.

However, Bucs quarterback Stevie Hasson was sacked on fourth-and-4 for a loss of 17, and Burrell turned the ball over on downs.

Freeport didn’t take long to get into the end zone after the defensive stop.

Ross completed passes of 41 and 17 yards to Selinger and Madden Wisniewski, respectively, to move the Yellowjackets to the 2.

Ross called his own number from there, putting Freeport on the scoreboard with 2:38 to play in the first quarter.

Thompson added the point-after kick to make it 7-0.

Freeport tacked on three touchdowns in the second quarter.

Glenn scored from 3 yards on the first play of the second, and the Yellowjackets made it 21-0 on a 56-yard scoring strike from Ross to Selinger at the 8:15 mark.

“Drew threw some really nice balls tonight, and we had multiple receivers making plays,” Gaillot said. “Things are really starting to jell, both in the passing game and with the run.”

Ross then capped the first-half scoring with a 14-yard scamper up the middle with 3:16 on the clock.

Burrell was held to 54 yards of total offense in the first half, while Freeport went to the locker room with 214 yards: 143 passing, 71 rushing.

“Last year, we took our lumps and won just three games, but a lot of the guys grew up from that,” Gaillot said. “I am excited to see what is to come.”

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: Burrell, Freeport