South Park puts Elizabeth Forward’s title celebration on hold with Interstate victory

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, October 21, 2017 | 12:18 AM

The Elizabeth Forward football team entered Friday night's contest with South Park aiming to win the Interstate Conference title outright.

The Eagles had other plans as they downed the Warriors, 18-14, to end their five-game winning streak at Warriors Stadium.

South Park (5-3, 5-1) opened the second half by capping off a 14-play, 74-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown run by Isaiah Mack that ended up being the difference in the game.

Mack ran the ball 24 times for 98 yards in the victory.

The Eagles defense shut down the Warriors in the second half, forcing EF to turn the ball over on downs on three occasions.

“The running game is certainly coming along and the fact that we're balanced certainly helps us get ahead and keep the lead in games like this,” South Park coach Marty Rieck said. “Our defense has played great all year, and it's one of those things where the offense has to rely on the defense, and the defense has to rely on the offense, and they did that tonight.”

Rieck commended Elizabeth Forward coach Mike Collodi and his team while also giving credit to his squad for believing they could win a game and halt EF's plans for a conference title celebration.

“What Mike is doing over there, he has this team together,” Rieck said. “We have had some bumps in the road, but it's just a belief, and our assistants on both sides of the ball did a phenomenal job of scheming them and putting us in good positions. The kids believed in the scheme and the plan, and they executed.”

Collodi showed similar respect for Rieck and the Eagles.

“My hat goes off to coach Rieck and all the players at South Park,” Collodi said. “They played an outstanding game, they came in prepared, they played really hard and capitalized on some mistakes. They played lights out, and they are a very good team.”

After a scoreless first quarter, the Eagles struck for the opening blow less than two minutes into the second quarter on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Damon Smith to Devin Turner that capped off a 12-play, 87-yard drive.

A missed extra point by Michael Mehalic made it 6-0 in favor of South Park.

Smith connected with Turner on a 16-yard pass, followed by a 20-yard pass to Nick Schnepp to help the Eagles get into scoring position and take the early advantage.

Smith completed 12 of 20 passes for 126 yards and an interception while also running for 47 yards on six carries. Turner was his prime target, finishing with four catches for 43 yards.

It took just two and a half minutes for the Warriors (6-2, 6-1) to respond.

After runs of 28 and 26 yards from Seth Andres and Brian Malloy, respectively, Andres capped off a five-play drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.

A missed extra point by Andrew Smith tied the score at 6.

For as quick as EF tied the game, South Park was quicker to regain the lead as Rudy Mihoces ran the ensuing kickoff 91 yards for an Eagles touchdown. South Park lined up for the two-point conversion, but failed, making it 12-6.

After a three and out by EF, South Park regained possession in Warriors' territory before Gavin Martik came up with an interception in the end zone.

Martik helped EF on the offensive end as well, as Zach Benedek connected with him on a screen pass that Martik ran for an 81-yard touchdown.

Benedek ran a quarterback sneak on the next play for the 2-point conversion to give EF a 14-12 lead they would hold into halftime.

Benedek completed 6 of 18 passes for 121 yards while Martik caught three passes for 101 yards.

“We call on Gavin week in and week out, and he just delivers for us,” Collodi said. “He is a playmaker, and he just does a great job for us. It was a team effort on those big plays. It was big, it got us back in the game and got us some momentum back on our side.”

Despite the loss, the Warriors still have a chance to win at least a share of the conference title.

Collodi hopes to see his players use the defeat as a learning experience as they prepare for next week, along with the upcoming playoffs.

“We are going to get ready for Burgettstown,” Collodi said. “They are a heck of a team, and they are really well coached under coach (Mark) Druga. They will be ready to play, I'm sure, and we just have to regroup. We got knocked down, but you can't stay down. We are going to get back up, brush ourselves off and prepare for Burgettstown.”

Jose Negron is a freelance writer.

Tags: Elizabeth Forward, South Park