Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Winning Way
New faces, same story: Susi, Stewart lead Coatesville to victory
CALN » As the last seconds of the first half vanished, a spiral, lofted from the left hand of Coatesville’s Harrison Susi, landed perfectly in the mitts of Abdul-Sabur Stewart, who out-jumped a pair of Downingtown East defenders.
Susi, the sophomore quarterback, needed Stewart to go out and make a play. Coatesville, as a whole, looks to Stewart through that same lens, this fall. As one of the few returning veterans, Stewart carries those experiences of Coatesville’s reign at the top of District 1, and is guiding a relatively young team.
The youth has hardly been a hindrance, though, and Stewart’s big play just before halftime sprung Coatesville towards a 20-14 win over visiting Downingtown East, clinching the fifth-straight Ches-Mont National Division title for the Red Raiders.
“It’s the best feeling to get a win with all my bros,” Stewart said. “It feels amazing to prove everybody wrong. … Every time we lose guys, we get better, because the guys before us showed us how to play football and how to play it the right way.”
Coatesville (3-0 National, 3-0 overall) jumped out to a 20-0 lead midway through the third quarter, thanks to Susi’s best game under center, and a dominant effort by the defense.
East (1-1, 1-2) went three-and-out four times and was held to just 57 total yards on 27 plays in the first half.
Even still, Coatesville had to make a stop on fourth down near midfield with two minutes to go, but coach Matt Ortega’s unit came up big all night.
“We changed a few things, defensively, for them and played a little difference scheme against their run,” Ortega said. “We were a nervous wreck at the end, but our players never wavered and that’s due to our culture and guys believing and the ‘D’ stepped up and made a stop.”
The Cougars were without their star running back, Stanley Bryant, who was dressed pre-game, but did not see action.
Josh Asante ran for 98 yards and got the Cougars on the board in the third, but East averaged just 3.3 yards per carry on the night, and clearly missed Bryant, whose injury, and the magnitude of it, was not confirmed.
“He’s fine,” East coach Mike Matta said of Bryant. “He’ll be back. He’s the soul of our team. All that was missing was our soul. It would’ve been a lot different with him, and that’s not taking anything away from Coatesville.”
Ashon Wesley opened up the scoring in the first quarter for the Red Raiders, who had their own struggles on the ground, running 40 times for 147 yards. Susi, who had been better with his feet than through the air his first two games, picked up 56 of his 77 rush yards in the second half, including a oneyard touchdown that proved to be the difference.
But the sophomore also completed 17 passes, 11 to Stewart, for 164 yards, both which were more than his first two games, combined.
“The kid’s a gamer,” Ortega said of Susi. “He’s a throwback kid who’s tough and gritty and the kids love to play with him. He has that moxie and he’s getting better every week and that showed (Friday night).”
East’s quarterback, Jamy Jenkins, is a sophomore, as well. After a jittery start, he found some rhythm finally in the second half, throwing for 132 yards in that session, but was also picked off by Prophet Shockley and Lebron Bessick.
After Coatesville went up 20-0, East replied with Asante’s score and then recovered a muffed kick return at the Raider seven, the next play. Bessick’s interception stopped that scoring threat, but the Cougars recovered another fumble the very next play at the CV 39.
East’s fifth three-and-out stymied any rally, and while a TD reception by Mike Giardino with four minutes to go gave them life, a fourth-and-four at the CV 48 the following possession was not converted.
“(Coatesville) played very well,” Matta said. “We wore them out a little at the end, but we missed a couple passes and we’re not hitting on all cylinders.”