November 21, 2009 — EDINBORO — Farrell head coach Jarrett Samuels had a rough week.
“I was worried, man,” Samuels said. “We had bad practices all week. I couldn’t gauge my team. Psychologically, we weren’t there all week. I really thought that we would get upset with how we performed in practice. It was bad.”
However, that tension eased right before game time Friday night.
“We have a veteran group, and they told me before the game, ‘We got you, coach. Don’t worry about anything’.”
Samuels’ team was as good as their word as the Steelers leveled Linesville 39-0 in a District 10 Class A semifinal matchup last night at Edinboro University’s Sox Harrison Stadium.
“They keep giving me headaches. They keep giving me ulcers. But they keep coming out here and proving me wrong,” Samuels said.
Farrell (12-0) now moves on to face Sharpsville in the D-10 championship game. The Steelers are looking for their second consecutive district title.
Sharpsville was a 10-7 winner over Mercer in last night’s other semifinal.
Linesville, meanwhile, ends the year with a 9-3 record and says so long to six seniors.
“We’ve done a lot this year,” said Lions coach Pat Gould. “They are a nice group of seniors and we’re going to miss every one of them.”
Farrell also ended Linesville’s season last year in the district final, beating the Lions 28-7.
“We’ve been saying this for years,” said Gould, “We have opportunities (against Farrell) where we could make something happen, and we don’t. And (Farrell) did. And they always have.”
Last night, Linesville fumbled away its third play of the ball game, giving Farrell possession on the Lions’ 10.
Then on the Steelers’ very first hike, quarterback Danny Odem swung a pass out to Jamar Whitman. Whitman shrugged off a couple tackles near the line of scrimmage and scampered 10 yards for the score.
There were 59 seconds off the clock and the Steelers led 7-0.
They would go on to out-gain Linesville 432-135, posting 16 first downs to Linesville’s seven.
The Lions also turned the ball over five times — four picks and the one fumble.
Despite that, Linesville still came up with a couple nice scoring chances. In the second quarter, trailing just 14-0, the Lions found their way into the red zone only to run out of downs on the Steelers’ 16.
In the third quarter, Linesville had a fourth down on the Steelers’ 10, but were picked off on a last-ditch attempt for the end zone.
“We had opportunities, we just didn’t make it happen,” Gould said. “We had the ball close a couple different times. We just didn’t get in the end zone.
“They’re a good team.”
For Farrell, Ron Jackson had 102 yards rushing on nine carries. He broke off a 50 yard touchdown run in the first quarter, slipping a tackle in the backfield, and bucking another one in the secondary before scoring.
“We benched Ron,” said Samuels. “He was one of the guys, performance wise, that wasn’t giving us what we wanted in practice. So we benched him this week. And it motivated him once he got in there. He made some striking plays on both sides of the ball.”
Malcolm Hailstock also had 102 yards rushing. He carried the ball 10 times. One of those was an 11-yard touchdown rush to complete the Steelers’ opening drive of the second half, giving his squad a 27-0 lead.
Dion Eilam added 52 yards rushing and a 40-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. He also threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Preston Jefferson, which put the final points on the board for the Steelers.
Odem added 29 rush yards, including a one-yard TD lean in the second quarter that put the Steelers ahead 21-0. He was also 5-for-8 for 67 yards passing.
According to Samuels, “(Odem) likes to play against Trevor (Litwiler, Linesville’s quarterback.) People are always comparing them. And he likes to come out and be play against him.”
Litwiler is one of the Lions’ six graduating seniors, and one of the most prolific QBs Crawford County has produced. He has unofficially passed for 3,389 yards (second in county history) and 37 touchdowns (a new county record) while rushing for 3,285 yards (fourth in county history) and 47 touchdowns (a new county record).
Also departing are Brennan Miller, Walter Litwin, Tanner Urbanick, Zac Deal and Mike Fabrey.
Local Sports
End of the Lion
Defending D-10 champ ends Linesville's season
- Local Sports
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DISTRICT 10 BASEBALL: Big Reds shut down Lions
SLIPPERY ROCK — The Linesville baseball team, with its mix of experienced and lesser-experienced players, has been capable of two different kinds of games this season.
The first is the sharp, skillful kind of effort the Lions put together Monday in their 10-7 win over Cochranton in the District 10 Class A quarterfinals. -
DISTRICT 10 BASEBALL: Mercyhurst outslugs Lake in D-10 semis
ERIE — After a District 10 Class A championship game appearance last year, the Conneaut Lake baseball team lost four seniors who were important to the team’s success.
Even though the talented quartet graduated and Lake featured just three seniors this year, the team came together and reached the district semifinals. The team’s end result, and the school’s last game as a baseball team due to Conneaut Lake, Conneaut Valley, and Linesville consolidating into Conneaut Area Senior High, was a 15-4 loss in six innings to Mercyhurst Prep on Friday at Ainsworth Field in Erie. -
DISTRICT 10 BASEBALL: Panthers edge Tigers, reach D-10 title game
ERIE — The Saegertown baseball team made an art form of compiling mercy rule wins this season. Nearly all of the Panthers’ 20 regular season victories were by 10 runs or more, as double-digit hits and runs scored were the norm.
The playoffs have been a different beast for the defending District 10 Class AA champion Cats, but they continue to find ways to win. -
BOYS VOLLEYBALL: Cardinals come back from losers’ bracket to win D-10 title
The very first word spoken by Cochranton boys volleyball coach Brad Custead in his post-match interview will sum up Friday night’s District 10 championship finale better than all the words that follow it.
“Incredible,” he said. -
Bulldogs' trio ready for state track and field meet
Meadville’s best now look to be among Pennsylvania’s best as Paige Kassab, Chaykala Lindsey and Heather Sternby compete in the PIAA Class AAA Track and Field Championships, which run Friday and Saturday at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium.
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D-10 SOFTBALL: Tigers no-hit in loss to Braves
HARBORCREEK TOWNSHIP — The Maplewood softball team had no answer for Iroquois starting pitcher Megan Martin on Tuesday during the District 10 Class AA quarterfinals on the campus of Penn State Behrend in Erie.
Martin worked around two errors during a no-hitter that included zero walks. And the Braves’ offense was sure to back her up during Iroquois’ 10-0 victory in five innings. -
D-10 BASEBALL: Prep rolls past ’Dogs in four innings
ERIE — Hitting, they say, is contagious. And the Cathedral Prep baseball team had a full-blown outbreak against Meadville on Tuesday at Ainsworth Field, notching 13 base hits in a 16-1, four-inning rout of the Bulldogs during opening round action of the District 10 Class AAA playoffs.
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DISTRICT 10 BASEBALL: Lake storms past Eisenhower
ERIE — The Conneaut Lake baseball team started off its postseason with a bang. Numerous bangs, actually.
The Indians (12-7) slugged 19 base hits while bumping off Eisenhower 15-5 in six innings during opening round action in the District 10 Class A playoff tournament Monday at Ainsworth Field. -
DISTRICT 10 BASEBALL: Lions top Cards
ERIE — If this story had to describe every clutch hit, gutsy pitch, run-saving defensive play, or momentum-shifting moment during Monday’s playoff classic between Region 3 foes Cochranton and Linesville; there wouldn’t be room for much else in today’s newspaper.
The bottom line is: You should have been there. -
BOYS VOLLEYBALL: Bulldogs stop Trojans to cap perfect region slate
Meadville junior Matt Izbinski laced a hard spike down the line, and so ended the regular season for the Bulldogs boys volleyball team — with a 3-1 win over McDowell, and a 9-0 run through Region 1. It all summed up on Friday night at the House of Thrills.
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