Leechburg runs away from Springdale for conference win

By: Michael Love
Friday, September 15, 2023 | 10:41 PM

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Springdale possessed the football early in the fourth quarter down two possessions against Leechburg in both teams’ Eastern Conference opener Friday night at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Springdale.

But the Blue Devils defense forced a Dynamos punt, and the Leechburg offense tallied two scores to pull away and finish off a 48-25 victory.

“Springdale is definitely a better team, and they have some tough kids and they play hard,” Leechburg coach Randy Walters said.

“They were kicking our butt up front in the first quarter. Then we started to settle down, and our line started to come off the ball a little more. Our two big studs, Jayden Floyd and Jake Cummings, were making plays to help us, and we started to get more physical and really turned it up in the second half. The kids were really flying around. It was a nice win for the kids.”

Leechburg improves to 3-1 overall with a game against Clairton looming next Friday.

“Clairton is a really strong team again, and we’re really going to have to turn up the temperature to be ready for them,” Walters said.

Leechburg quarterback Floyd was a spark with 131 yards rushing on 22 carries. He added 102 yards through the air.

His 3-yard TD run to cap the Blue Devils’ first possession of the third quarter extended a 15-point halftime advantage.

Springdale quarterback Chase Weihrauch, who finished with 126 passing yards, answered for the Dynamos as he found Colton Gent in the end zone from 15 yards to close the gap to 34-19 with 3 minutes, 18 seconds left in the third quarter.

Gent caught five of Weihrauch’s passes for 90 yards.

Leechburg again made it a three-score game at the 9:12 mark of the fourth as Floyd and Jake Cummings hooked up on a quick-hitting 7-yard TD strike.

Cummings finished with six catches for 67 yards.

The Blue Devils capped their scoring with 5:46 left as Jaxson Vargo tossed a 20-yard TD to Sebastian Mason.

Springdale, which fell to 1-3 overall, didn’t fold its tent after the final Leechburg score: Weihrauch scored from 1 yard on the final play of the game.

“The guys are getting better,” Springdale coach Ryan Tempalski said. “The expectations coming into not just tonight but into every game this season is to have a game in the fourth quarter, and we’ve been pretty close to that. The first half, a couple turnovers and missed opportunities really hurt us. We came out a little flat offensively, and I wish that didn’t happen.”

Leechburg drove inside the Springdale 10 on its first possession of the game, but the Dynamos defense forced a 23-yard field goal.

Ryan Shaw’s kick was no good, and the game remained scoreless.

But the Blue Devils got the ball back as they forced a fumble by Weihrauch.

Leechburg needed just four plays to punch it in from the 12. Cummings carried the last 2 for the score with 5:05 left in the first quarter. Shaw’s point-after kick was true, and the Blue Devils led 7-0.

Floyd extended Leechburg’s lead to 14-0 on the first play of the second quarter as he returned a Springdale punt 51 yards for the score.

From there, the teams traded touchdowns.

Weihrauch scored on a 17-yard run and then connected with Gent for a 55-yard TD strike.

The Blue Devils got on the board two more times in the second quarter as Floyd ran one in from 8 yards and completed a scoring pass to Cummings for 30 yards.

Leechburg threatened in the waning seconds of the half as a Tim Andrasy interception of Weihrauch set the Blue Devils up at the Springdale 39.

The Leechburg offense moved quickly, but the Dynamos defense again rose up and stuffed a short run on fourth down with 3 seconds on the clock.

Springdale will run a gauntlet of sorts over the next three weeks with Greensburg Central Catholic next Friday followed by Clairton in two weeks and then defending WPIAL Class A champion Union.

“The next three weeks are definitely going to be a challenge for us, but after four weeks, these guys realize we are a good football team if we execute and trust in our abilities,” Tempalski said.

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: Leechburg, Springdale