Upper Dublin fends off H-H on final play
Cardinals still in play for SOL American title
FORT WASHINGTON » It would have taken a significant effort for Upper Dublin to come up with a more dramatic ending than it did Friday night.
Sophomore Mike Slivka’s outstretched right hand got enough of a Chris Edwards pass in the endzone on the final play of the game to prevent a Hatboro-Horsham comeback. In a fourth quarter full of twists and turns, the Flying Cardinals made one more play than the visiting Hatters.
The result of Slivka’s effort was a 14-7 win over HatboroHorsham as UD celebrated both Homecoming and Senior Night in theatrical style.
“It’s been a little bit dramatic, but we pulled through in the end,” UD senior quarterback Julian Gimbel said. “As long as we come out on top, it’s all good. In the past, especially against
Quakertown, we came out kind of slow but tonight we came out on fire and with some poise.”
Earlier this season, the Cardinals blew a two-score fourth quarter lead against Quakertown, which coach Bret Stover called a learning experience for his young team. While the Cardinals have seniors in a number of key spots, many of them spent at least one of the last two years as a backup as UD went on two long playoff runs.
Gimbel was one of those players, waiting behind Ryan Stover and Justin Horn for his turn to call the plays. Friday, with Hatboro Horsham gearing up to stop the Cardinals’ senior workhorse tailback, Malik Bootman, Gimbel rose to the task.
The senior completed 9-of-14 passes for 104 yards and threw for both of UD’s scores.
“It’s all a connection, when I’m scrambling, I know who’s in the open field and where to throw it to,” Gimbel said. “It’s a great connection between me and my boys that they know where to go when I’m scrambling and running.”
Stover was extremely proud of his team’s effort, especially the defense and Gimbel.
“We didn’t score a lot of points tonight, but we played a good football team and a well-coached team tonight, they have some real players over there, some excellent skill kids on offense and they really hit on defense,” Stover said. “We’re fortunate to come out on top of it.”
The first quarter was eaten up by two drives, one from each team that ended on turnover on downs. Really, neither team could get much going offensively in the first half. UD’s first score came mostly as a result of Bootman. The tailback ripped off a 55-yard run in the second quarter, eluding or powering
through a handful of tacklers to flip the field.
Gimbel made a big throw to Selvin Haynes to convert a fourth down, then hit Brody Balasa in the corner of the endzone with 3:54 left in the first half.
“Julian has really improved his decision-making,” Stover said. “He’s not just throwing balls up, he’s throwing balls with a purpose, he’s getting rid of balls to avoid sacks and he’s starting to make plays with his feet because he is a really good runner.”
The Cardinals sacked Edwards three times in the first half and also bottled up the Hatters’ run game, especially tailback Josh Smith. With the offense bottled up for three quarters, the Hatters struggled to sustain drives but their defense kept Upper Dublin from adding onto its lead.
After the game, Hatters coach Mike Kapusta just watched as his team huddled up and the seniors addressed their teammates.
“There was no quit and I’m really proud of that,” Kapusta said. “The seniors pulled everybody together at the end of the game, so I’m very happy about that side of things. The bottom line is things didn’t go our way tonight, we were very close and it’s a game of inches so maybe one little break here or one thing there and it could have been a different ballgame. Our kids know that, and it hurts, but we have to come back and prepare for Cheltenham.”
Upper Dublin went up 14-0 when Gimbel found Ryan Besachio for a 17yard score with 9:34 left in the game. Things were only just getting started. Led by Edwards, the Hatters went right down the field and got all the way to the Cardinals’ 19-yard line as they threatened to score.
Slivka bailed his team out when he picked off Edwards in the endzone, but the Cardinals couldn’t pick up a first down and punted. Upper Dublin opted to kick and punt short and away from the Hatters dangerous returners, especially Calvin Broaddus Jr, so they sacrificed some field position all game.