Severna Park polishes off undefeated season
From costly turnovers to electrifying touchdown passes and much more in between, the Severna Park football team experienced a little bit of everything during Friday night’s season finale against Chesapeake, including the thrill of finishing undefeated with a 34-14 victory.
“It was a just a great feeling to be out there with these boys again,” said Falcons captain Jack Peterson, who hauled in touchdown receptions of 29 and 32 yards in the win. “We didn’t know if we would be able to play this season. We just wanted to go out undefeated.”
Severna Park did jut that despite a sloppy first half and a late rally by the Cougars on second half touchdown strikes of 50 and 33 yards from quarterback Nathan Rosado, who completed 5 of 11 passes for 102 yards in the second half compared to six yards in the first.
“It was better protection,” said Chesapeake coach Rob Elliott on his 3-1 squad’s better second-half offensive play. “It’s as simple as that. Give Severna Park credit, they outplayed us, especially in the first half.”
Make that largely just the second quarter as the Falcons (3-0) spent much of the first quarter deep in their own territory as Chesapeake won the field position battle.
Severna Park, however, was able to follow an close-ranged errant field goal attempt by the Cougars with a nine-play, 89-yard drive that ended with a 29-yard touchdown pass from Seamus Patenaude to Peterson for a 7-0 lead with 8:25 left in the first half. The quarterback threw a perfect strike to the wide out on a fly pattern down the Chesapeake sideline that Peterson hauled in just past the defender in the end zone.
“I just came out a little nervous, but after the first drive I was fine,” said Patenaude, who threw for 137 yards and four touchdowns in the victory. “I just really wanted to win for the seniors. They helped me out my freshman year and my sophomore year. I would trust them with my life.”
Severna Park pushed that advantage to 9-0 on a safety, as Shane Snyder sacked Rosado in the end zone with 6:28 remaining in the second quarter.
The Falcons had two more quality chances to score late in the half, but they were foiled by two errant snaps that ended a drive at the 5-yard line and with a lengthy field goal attempt.
“At halftime, we talked about the game not being over until it was the fourth quarter and the scoreboard said 0.00,” Peterson said.
Severna Park showed that determination by forcing a quick threeand-out by the Cougars to start the third quarter and then scoring on its first drive of the second half — a 17-yard pass from Patenaude to James Patz for a 16-0 lead midway through the third quarter. Patenaude scrambled to his left and found Patz wide open in the end zone.
The same could be said on Patenaude’s next scoring strike, an 11-yarder to a wide-open James Henson III early in the fourth for a 22-7 lead following a failed extra point by the team’s backup kicker.
The offensively challenged first half gave way to a wild fourth quarter that saw both of Rosado’s touchdowns on extremely well thrown balls, another scoring toss from Patenaude from 32 yards out to Peterson, and a 20-plus yard interception return by Brett Butz that sealed the game with 2:44 remaining.
Severna Park was largely dominant this season. It outscored North County, Northeast and Chesapeake a combined 91-27 and was consistent each week, scoring at least 27 points in all three wins, while the nine points allowed per game was the best in the league.
For Chesapeake, it was a seasonlow in point scored and the 34 points allowed were 14 more than it gave up in any other game. Still, the 104 points scored were secondmost in the league behind Broadneck (149).
Broadneck finishes 4-0
The Bruins beat Annapolis, 36-8, Friday night and capped their season with a 4-0 record, while the Panthers closed out their 100th season with a 1-3 mark.
Broadneck jumped out to a 28-0 lead. In the first quarter, junior quarterback Josh Ehrlich threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Rachid Proctor, who then ran for a 7-yard score in the second. Machi Evans caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Ehrlich late in the first half and the signal caller made it 28-0 with a 2-yard scoring run in the third.
Annapolis got on the board late in the third quarter as Jermaine Hunt plunged in on a 1-yard run and Davin Hawkins caught the 2-point conversion from Kyle Williams to make it 28-8. Ehrlich’s final touchdown pass went to Eli Harris, a 23-yarder in the fourth.
Ehrlich went 15-for-26 for 154 yards and three touchdowns while running for 81 yards and a score on 16 carries. Proctor had 38 yards rushing on seven carries, while Kyle Pierce led the receiving corps with five catches for 53 yards. Harris had 52 yards and a touchdown on three catches.
For the Panthers, Ke’Mari Taylor had 60 yards rushing on 13 totes, and Hunt had 38 yards on 11 touches.