By Ed Farrell
Herald Assistant Sports Editor
MERCER — It’s all about horsepower.
That’s how one Mercer High football fan mentioned the Mustangs prior to Friday night’s District 10 Region 1-A meeting with West Middlesex. And there was no disputing that claim after the Mustangs amassed 514 yards rushing en route to a 48-20 rout.
“Wow, that’s amazing! I’m amazed by that!” Mercer mentor Pat McClearn remarked, his face lighting up like Christmas morning when informed of his Mustangs’ stampede.
Rolling downhill throughout, Rawlins Huntley and Terrence Davis rushed for 184 and 162 yards, respectively, while quarterback Andrew Erdos was a scant yard shy of another C-note. Huntley (52, 34), Davis (32, 1) and Erdos (36, 5) each tallied 2 touchdowns, while Herbie Hennegan added another (1) as he contributed 61 yards and converted 6 of 7 PATs.
“That’s what we want, to try to keep it spread out, and the more diverse we can be the better off we’re gonna be,” McClearn mused. “It’s a good battle. They get after each in practice, they push each other and make each other better, and that’s what we’re looking for out of them.
“I think we’ve done a good job in practice of pulling back. We don’t do a whole lot of hitting through the week — we only hit one day a week — and I think our guys have responded to that,” McClearn mentioned regarding some dinged up Mustangs. “We’ve stayed pretty fresh through the year; plus, we’re playing an awful lot of guys on defense, so hopefully that’ll carry over for us.”
Center Ray Dominguez, tackles Billy Redmond and Rich McCullough, guards Nick Nan and Nick Ream and tight end Josh McGinnis gave their backfield unfettered access into West Middlesex’s secondary. Talented Big Reds’ running back Kyle Allen gained more yards from his safety spot chasing after Mercer ball carriers than he amassed offensively for Middlesex (73).
“They’re big, strong, physical, they have a great offensive scheme for the personnal they have, and they executed it to perfection,” assessed Middlesex mentor Jason McElhaney. “They did nothing different from what we saw on film; they’re just real aggressive, downhill players. We knew what to expect, we knew what was coming, and we couldn’t handle it the entire first half.”
Though Mercer (6-1 region, 8-1 overall) mustered margins of 7-0 after the 1st frame, 21-6 by intermission, and 35-14 through 3 periods, the Big Reds’ resolve was unquestioned.
Mark Saylor sprinted 84 yards with the ensuing kickoff after Erdos optioned left for his 36-yarder less than 2 minutes into the 2nd stanza, and despite his asthmatic condition he raced 50 yards with 9:03 remaining en route to a second score and team-high 78 yards on only 7 totes.
West Middlesex’s other TD was the result of a 57-yard 3rd-period pass play from Kyle Wimer to 6-foot-4, 240-pound tight end Ryan Chupak. Essentially a bubble screen pass, Chupak chugged almost 40 yards, outracing Mercer’s secondary, then deftly one-handed a subsequent 2-point conversion pass from Wimer.
“That’s what we ask of them. I didn’t want to see us quit, and at 35-6 we really could’ve packed it in, but they kept playing hard,” McElhaney praised. “We got a couple touchdowns. There’s a lot to build off there, and I’m really proud of the kids for doing that.”
Mathematically, Middlesex (3-4, 5-4), in spite of a 2nd straight setback, remains playoff viable with a visit to winless Conneaut Valley for its regular-season finale.
“We’re going to go up there and play to finish the season with a win,” McElhaney mused. “If things happen and (the D-10 committee) say, ‘You can go to the playoffs,’ that’s great; but we’re just looking to go six-and-four and see what happens from there.”
Notes: Big Reds’ runner Nate Ash, who sustained a high ankle sprain in last week’s loss to Linesville according to McElhaney, attempted to go against Mercer, but made it through only the opening quarter. ... Allen and Huntley pilfered passes for their respective teams, and Dominguez recovered a fumble.
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MIDDLESEX 0 6 8 6 20
MERCER 7 14 14 13 48
Scoring plays
M — Davis, 32 run (Hennegan kick)
M — Erdos, 36 run (Hennegan kick)
WM — Saylor, 84 kickoff return (kick failed)
M — Huntley, 52 run (Hennegan kick)
M — Huntley, 34 run (Hennegan kick)
M — Davis, 1 run (Hennegan kick)
WM — Chupak, 57 pass from Wimer (Chupak pass from Wimer)
M — Hennegan, 1 run (kick failed)
M — Erdos, 5 run (Hennegan kick)
WM — Saylor, 50 run (kick failed)
Team stats
MIDDLESEX MERCER
10 First downs 21
176 Rushing yards 514
71 Passing yards 0
6-2-1 Att-comp-int 5-0-1
247 Total yards 514
5-1 Fumbles-lost 3-0
1-5 Penalties-yards lost 7-55
Individual stats
Rushing: WEST MIDDLESEX — Saylor 7-78, Allen 21-73, Wimer 3-14, Ash 3-13, Mihalcak 2-(-2); MERCER — Huntley 14-184, Davis 22-162, Erdos 10-99, Hennegan 5-61, Mannozzi 2-7, Reda 1-3, Messett 2-(-2).
Passing: WEST MIDDLESEX — Wimer 6-2-1, 71; MERCER — Erdos 5-0-1.
Receiving: WEST MIDDLESEX — Chupak 2-71.
