Nazareth Area High School tops Easton Area High School for District 11 Class AAAA football title

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

Like it has all season, an early deficit was a good omen for Nazareth Area High School's football team.

The Blue Eagles battled back from a two-touchdown hole and rallied for a 28-21 victory over Easton Saturday night in the District 11 Class AAAA championship game at Andrew Leh Stadium in Nazareth.


Freshman running back Jordan Gray was again the workhorse for Nazareth (12-1), rushing for 149 yards and a touchdown on 36 carries. Senior quarterback Dan Harding passed for 284 yards, including touchdowns to Adam Bridgeforth, Alex Tonnies and Dan Shepherd.

"It feels awesome," Shepherd said. "It was a complete team effort. The whole community was behind us and we feed off that."

The win propels the Blue Eagles into the PIAA quarterfinals 1 p.m. Saturday against La Salle College High School at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium.

"It's unbelievable," Tonnies said. "All the hard work paid off. I couldn't think of a better way to end it, and we're not done yet."

Easton (11-3), which had a nine-game winning streak snapped, fell short in its bid for a third consecutive district title.

"We ran out of time," Red Rovers coach Steve Shiffert said. "I'm very proud of what we accomplished. We don't want to finish second but I guess we'll have to in this case."

Nazareth led 28-14 and was threatening to put it away before Easton defensive back Jared Powell picked off Harding inside the Red Rovers' 10-yard line.

Easton embarked on an 85-yard drive capped by Austin Brown's third TD, a 2-yard plunge with 4:57 left in the game.

Nazareth was able to run out the rest of the clock with the help of Harding's 15-yard sideline completion to Tonnies on third-and-14.

"I was on the opposite side of the field and Dan made a great throw," Tonnies said.



Nazareth coach Rob Melosky discusses hurry-up offense, unsung heroes and haircuts

"What can you say about Alex Tonnies," Nazareth coach Rob Melosky said. "He has the heart of a champion. He's five-foot something (5-5) and he plays like he's seven-foot something."

Easton came out strong in the beginning as Ian Hayden went deep and hit freshman sensation Shane Simpson for 50 yards to the Nazareth 5. Brown took a pitch right on next play and sprinted into the end zone.

After Easton's defense forced a three-and-out, the Red Rovers proceeded to march 73 yards in 10 plays to lead 14-0. Brown ran 22 yards around the right side to Nazareth's 25. After a holding penalty, Hayden passed 13 yards to Zach Herres and nine and 10 yards to Simpson to set up Brown's second TD, a 1-yard blast with 5:31 still to play in the first quarter.

"We stayed composed," Tonnies said. "It was just the first quarter. We've been there before. It was nothing new. The offense executed and the defense held them."

Two series later Nazareth suddenly got its high-powered offense untracked. Gray ran for 12 yards and Harding hit Tonnies for 20 yards on third-and-nine to set up a first down at Easton's 35. On the next play, Harding hit Andrew Bridgeforth deep down the right side for a 35-yard TD.

Harding lost a fumble after being sacked by Tyler Greene on the next series. After another defensive stop, Harding faced a third-and-2 from his 37 and hit Tonnies, who found an open seam down the middle. Tonnies outraced pursuit into the end zone to complete a 63-yard TD.

Jack Portnoy's PAT tied it 14-14 with 4:21 left in the first half.

"We just needed time to click," Harding said. "We knew the defense would shut them down eventually."

Nazareth got it back again with 2:58 left in the half and began an impressive 75-yard, 15-play drive capped by Harding's 17-yard TD pass to Shepherd on fourth-and-13.

Harding kept the drive alive by hitting Andrew Bridgeforth on fourth-and-2 for six yards. Five plays later Harding rolled to his right and passed all the way across the field to Shepherd, who put forth a great effort to get in the end zone.

"That play is our bread and butter and it paid off for us," Harding said.

"We just didn't make plays and they did," Shiffert said. "You know they're going to make plays. They have all year."

Gray's 1-yard TD run capped a 71-yard drive and gave Nazareth a 28-14 lead with 7:01 left in the third quarter. The Blue Eagles persevered until the end.

"We didn't panic (down 14-0)," Melosky said, "especially the coaching staff. And the kids feed off the coaching staff. The kids have embraced this time of year."

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