Offense carries Springside Chestnut Hill to 4-1 start

Posted 10/1/18

SCH running back Aaron Rascoe breaks free against Central in an earlier game this season. Rascoe now has back-to-back weeks of more than 100 rushing yards, each tallied on less than 15 carries. …

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Offense carries Springside Chestnut Hill to 4-1 start

Posted

SCH running back Aaron Rascoe breaks free against Central in an earlier game this season. Rascoe now has back-to-back weeks of more than 100 rushing yards, each tallied on less than 15 carries. (Photo by Jonathan Vander Lugt)

by Jonathan Vander Lugt

Needing to rebound after a big, turnover-laden loss to Archbishop Ryan a week prior, Springside Chestnut Hill head coach Rick Knox figured he was in for a test from the Hill School.

“They had some post graduate players and some very good athletes, so coming into the game we thought it was going to be a big challenge,” Knox said. “They gave the Episcopal Academy a really good test last week, so we were really happy with the way we came out and executed.”

He should be, after his team’s 58-27 victory on Saturday afternoon.

“The biggest thing that we talked about all week long was bouncing back from a game we felt we let get away from us against Archbishop Ryan,” Knox said. “That score (45-20) wasn’t indicative of our performance - we outgained them and kept their passing game in check but we turned the ball over six times.”

“We talked about using that as a positive motivator,” Knox said, “so I was super happy about how hard the kids played, their intensity and how well they executed.”

Aaron Rascoe led the way with 145 yards and two touchdowns on just 13 carries. Ke’Shawn Williams continued his junior-year breakout as well, with 104 scrimmage yards (63 receiving, 41 rushing) and two scores on six touches.

“ been our leading rusher the last two weeks. He’s looking really good, and he’s a good complement to Rob, because he’s a more physical runner,” Knox said.

“[Ke’Shawn] was really good last year, but got hurt in our third game so we didn’t get a chance to see what he can do,” Knox went on. “He’s bigger, more explosive and playing fabulously right now. To me, he’s clearly one of the best receivers in the city if not in all of southeastern Pennsylvania.”

The offense, helmed by senior Aaron Angelos (who threw for 151 yards and three touchdowns against the Hill School), has undoubtedly been SCH’s bread and butter.

“ is a really good decision maker - he gets the ball out quick and throws really accurate passes,” Knox said. “He’s savvy - he’s played a long time and he’s been working toward having a year like this his entire life.”

As a team, the Blue Devils are averaging 41.4 points per game.

“It’s fun,” Knox said, to coach an offense that has been so prolific. “With the way we run our no huddle, it’s a ton of fun to call offensive plays because we’ve got so many different weapons and so many ways to keep the defense off balance.”

“You can’t focus on taking one thing away,” he went on. “We have two good receivers, two good backs and Aaron Angelos is throwing the ball really well.”

“Defenses really have to defend the entire field - short passes, long passes, middle runs, outside runs,” Knox said. “We do a lot offensively to challenge the other team.”

For as good as they’ve been on offense, SCH has at times struggled in equal measure on the other side of the ball. They gave up another 27 to the Hill School, and have allowed an even 30 per game so far.

“Our biggest problem is giving up big plays,” Knox said. “I definitely saw progression against the Hill School, but we still gave up a few.”

Come Inter-Ac play, that 41.4 points scored per game average is going to trend down. If they can’t keep Inter-Ac offenses in check, their 30 points allowed is going to tick up, leaving them without a lot of wiggle room.

“Obviously the defense is a place we need to shore up, but we’re working on our overall efficiency on both sides,” Knox said. “It’s little things like not having a guard step left when he is supposed to step to the right.”

Up next is a Friday-night date at Springfield Township High School, just a few miles from the SCH campus. The Blue Devils are forgoing a bye week - something that Inter-Ac teams frequently take the week before league play begins - but Knox isn’t worried.

“I’ve taken bye weeks before, and sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t,” Knox said. “We’re playing great right now, so if we took a week off, I think that would hurt our momentum.”

“We’re excited that we get a chance to play,” Knox went on. “It’s a local, Friday night game and I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of fans there.”

Around the Area:

The area’s other Inter-Ac teams continued their success, while La Salle’s struggles resumed.

In their season’s mid-way point, the Explorers fell by a wide margin to archrival St. Joe’s Prep, 49-12. Senior running back Manny Quiles led the Explorer offense with 74 yards on 11 carries. La Salle, in what is increasingly looking like a rebuilding season, will head to next week’s game at Father Judge to rebound.

Penn Charter (4-1) rolled again with its 45-21 win over Blair Academy (N.J.), where Temple commit Edward Saydee continued his outstanding campaign with 189 yards and three touchdowns on only 12 carries. The senior back scored four touchdowns for the third straight game - three on the ground, and another on a kick return - and has 15 through five games. Penn Charter will face a stiff test against Malvern Prep, the defending Inter-Ac champ, in two weeks following a bye.

Germantown Academy sprinted out to a 28-0 lead by halftime against the Lawrenceville School Saturday, and that’s how it wound up ending. The Patriots, now 5-0, will idle for a week before hosting the Haverford School in their first Inter-Ac contest. Against the Big Red, sophomore quarterback Jordan Longino let loose for 265 yards and a pair of scores on 17-of-28 passing. The 28 attempts are by far the most that he’s made in a contest to date, and almost reaches the combined total of his previous three games (32).

Elswhere, junior back Trae Vance ran for 75 yards and a score, and sophomore Lacey Snowden ran for 45 and a TD on nine carries. Jerry Griffen-Batchler has emerged as GA’s biggest receiving threat, and tallied a season high 100 yards on six catches.

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