No. 3 Belle Vernon stuns top-ranked Thomas Jefferson

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, October 13, 2017 | 11:12 PM

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Every team in the WPIAL Class 4A Big 9 Conference strives to be like the Thomas Jefferson program.

Belle Vernon took a step at closing the gap between the programs Friday.

The third-ranked Leopards used two touchdown passes from sophomore Jared Hartman and stunned No. 1 Thomas Jefferson, 21-17, at James Weir Stadium.

Belle Vernon (7-0, 7-0) forced four Thomas Jefferson turnovers, three in the first half, and turned two of them into points.

The Leopards also scored on three big plays — a 52-yard touchdown run by Mason Pascoe, a 13-yard touchdown pass to Derek Thomas and a 46-yard score to Hunter Ruokonen, the winner, in the third quarter.

Other than those few big plays, Thomas Jefferson's defense controlled the game.

“Thomas Jefferson has a culture based on belief,” Belle Vernon coach Matt Humbert said. “They expect to win, they believe they will win, and they always find a way to win. And that's a key attribute to very successful programs.

“And you really have to ingrain that into your players' heads. And that's what I love about our kids. It doesn't matter if you're down. It doesn't matter if you're up. We stay focused and we stay hungry and we don't keep that chip off our shoulder. I believe our focus is in the right direction.”

Two years ago, Belle Vernon ended Thomas Jefferson's 58-game home winning streak. Last year, Thomas Jefferson stomped Belle Vernon, 55-0.

While the TJ players said revenge was still on their minds from two years ago, Belle Vernon players had the same revenge from last year's game.

“This win is definitely sweeter than the one two years ago,” Belle Vernon senior lineman and Pitt recruit Blake Zubovic said. “After last year they rubbed it in and ran up the score. They had no mercy on us. We came together as a unit.”

Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak was somewhat surprised and disappointed how his team performed.

“I didn't see this coming. I thought we had a good week of practice and were ready,” he said. “In a game like this, you can't give up easy scores. Anytime we got momentum, they came back and something happened.

“We had a penalty or turnover. We kept taking it away from ourselves and they made plays. I thought we were going to play well.”

Belle Vernon struck first when linebacker Anthony Bertram intercepted a Shane Stump pass at the BV 39. Three plays later, Pascoe, who rushed for 98 yards, swept left and made a great cut and galloped 52 yards for a 7-0 lead.

“It's a gratifying victory,” Humbert said. “We were resilient and took advantage of our opportunities. It's a great win for the players. Now, we have to get back to work. Victories like this are short-lived.”

After A.J. Meshanko booted a 27-yard field, Belle Vernon recovered a fumble at the TJ 13 and Hartman connected with a diving Thomas for a 14-3 lead.

Stump tossed an 8-yard touchdown to Nick Urbanowicz to trim the lead to 14-10 at halftime, and then Stump scored on a sneak from the 1 to give TJ a 17-14 lead.

Stump, a sophomore quarterback, completed 15 of 34 passes for 205 yards. Garret Fairman caught 11 passes for 137 yards. Justin Vigna rushed for 147 yards on 25 carries.

But late in the third quarter Belle Vernon reclaimed the lead for good when Hartman and Ruokonen hooked up on a quick slant on third-and-9. Hartman was 4 of 7 for 87 yards.

“Our coaches put together a great game plan and we executed it against one of the best teams in the WPIAL,” Belle Vernon linebacker Brandon Roche said. “We kept focusing and the coaches at halftime told us don't give up and we didn't. It's a great feeling that we won.”

Thomas Jefferson dominated the offensive stats, outgaining Belle Vernon, 378-161. But the final score is the only thing Belle Vernon worried about winning, and it did.

Paul Schofield is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at pschofield@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Schofield_Trib.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Thomas Jefferson