SECTION IV FOOTBALL: NEWARK VALLEY ROLLS PAST HARPURSVILLE/AFTON TO FINISH SEASON ON HIGH NOTE (24 PHOTOS) (2024-11-07)
By TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
NEWARK VALLEY — It’s been a tough season for the Newark Valley football team, but the Cardinals ended it on a positive note Thursday evening with a 42-14 victory over Harpursville/Afton in Section IV crossover action here.
Zion King and Tim Wojtysiak both had 100-yard rushing efforts and scored two touchdowns apiece as NV snapped a seven-game losing streak.
“It definitely feels good to have it,” said NV coach Ted Hardenstine of the victory. “It's been a long time since we had a win, so really happy for our kids. They've had a lot of tough breaks this year and we haven't had a lot of things go our way, so I just feel real happy for them, especially those seniors, that they're able to have a good memory and make a bunch of plays tonight and end with the win.”
The Cardinals found their way into the end zone on six of their eight possessions. NV missed a 28-yard field goal attempt at the end of the first half and turned the ball over on downs on their final drive when Hardenstine had several senior linemen rotating in at running back.
Newark Valley finished with 430 yards offense, including 391 on 40 rushes, and had 17 double-digit gains while getting tackled for losses or no gain just three times.
Hardenstine was happy to see the impressive offensive output to end a season in which the offense had a tendency to shoot itself in the foot.
“It's been frustrating because we were in four or five other games that were pretty close where we weren't able to play clean,” he said. “Those are things that are the tale of the season and the woulda, coulda, shouldas.
“I don't think we had a team this year that was really able to compete with maybe the top teams in the state, but we certainly were capable of winning more games than we did this year, so it was nice to see what it kind of looks like when they can put it all together and play with a little confidence.”
The Hornets turned the ball over on downs at the NV 41 on the game’s first possession, then Newark Valley put together an 11-play scoring drive on its initial possession with Wojtysiak scoring on a 4-yard run with 3:36 left in the first quarter.
Following a Harpursville three-and-out, the Cardinals drove 62 yards in three plays to extend their advantage to 14-0. With the ball at the NV 49, Gabe Merrill made a leaping catch of a Nate Hinckley pass at the visitor’s 35, then took it down to the 12. King ran it in on the next play and Josh Benjamin split the uprights for a 14-0 with 1:12 on the first-period clock.
The Hornets would march 54 yards to the NV 9, but the Cardinals locked it down on defense and forced Harpursville to attempt a 27-yard field goal which was unsuccessful.
Newark Valley took advantage of the situation and went 80 yards in five plays to build a 22-0 cushion with 6:10 remaining in the first half. Hinckley took a keeper 37 yards, then Logan Rhodes broke free for a 31-yard gain, but Hunckley’s 22-yard TD pass to Merrill was called back on a holding penalty. Another Hinckley keeper picked up 17 yards, then Josh Karp ran for seven and Wojtysiak scored on an 8-yard run. Rhodes ran for the PAT.
The Hornet went 64 yards in 12 plays with quarterback Jayden DeLeon capping the drive with a 16-yard screen pass to Marcus Chavis for the TD with 1:14 left in the half. Wojtysiak blocked the PAT kick, leaving the score at 22-6. DeLeon accounted for 44 yards on four runs and two passes and Harpursville picked up another 10 on NV penalties.
In Q3, the Newark Valley offense picked up where it left off in the first half. Merrill returned the kickoff 40 yards to the Hornets’ 44, then King took it the rest of the way on two runs, the latter going 35 yards to paydirt. The PAT pass failed, but the Cardinals had a comfortable lead at 28-6.
The NV defense thwarted the Hornets’ ensuing drive with a pair of sacks, one by Troy Stebbins, and Austin Cottrill with Titus Callahan getting in on the end of the play, and the other by Callahan and Connor Brundza.
The Cardinals got the ball on downs, then marched 68 yards on the ground to go ahead, 35-6. Wojtysiak had two carries for 40 yards, King added two for 16 more, Rhodes had a 10-yard gain and Karp scored on a 6-yard run. Benjamin’s PAT kick at 4:08 was good.
Harpursville’s next possession took the pigskin 39 yards to the NV 26, but Callahan sacked DeLeon at the 38 and a pair of penalties gave the Hornets a fourth-and-37at their own 47. Callahan would block the punt and the Cardinals would get the ball at the Harpursville 33.
King and Rhodes followed with runs of 17 and 13 yards, respectively, and Rhodes scored from four yards out on the third play of the fourth quarter. Benjamin’s kick made it 42-6 with 10:05 on the clock.
With the Newark Valley reserves getting their opportunity, the Hornets tacked on eight points on a DeLeon 6-yard run and his PAT keeper with 6:42 to play.
The Newark Valley defense came through with a solid performance, bending occasionally, but never really breaking down.
“They did a nice job flying around with the football, playing with good energy,” Hardenstine said.
“Their quarterback, you’ve got to tip your hat to him. He made a lot of good plays scrambling, and they had a few runs up the middle when they spread us out a little bit and were able to crease us for a few here and there. When it came down, they (defense) buckled down a lot of times and got us stops.”
The Hornets finished with 279 yards offense. DeLeon went 7-for-15 through the air for 116 yards and rushed for another 86 on 17 carries. Harpursville had 33 rushes for 163 yards.
Harpursville/Afton had 11 plays which went for double digits, but had 11 more for losses or no gain.
King paced NV with 107 yards on nine carries and Wojtysiak contributed 101 yards on nine rushes. Rhodes added 76 yards on six runs while Hinckley toted the rock five times for 63 yards and completed his only pass attempt to Merrill for 39 yards.
“Just happy all around about the way our kids competed and executed tonight,” Hardenstine added.
NV ended its season with a 2-8 overall record.
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PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.
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