Quick-strike artists
Trojans snap 2-game losing streak and hand Bears first loss
Time of possession is sometimes a misleading stat in high school football.
Thanks to its ground-exclusive triple-option attack, Pleasant Valley had the ball for twice as long as Parkland Friday night when the Bears and Trojans met Friday night in an Eastern Pennsylvania Conference cross-division matchup in Orefield.
Parkland ran just 31 offensive plays to PV’s 61.
But when you can score as quickly as the Trojans did for four of their five touchdowns, time of possession becomes irrelevant.
The much more important stat was on the scoreboard at night’s end, and it showed a 38-7 Homecoming night win for Parkland. That snapped the Trojans’ two-game losing streak and got them back to .500 at 3-3 with October and the season’s stretch run ahead.
The Bears lost for the first time this season but showcased their ball-control formula early as the two teams battled to a 7-7 tie midway through the second quarter.
It was all Parkland, however, after Valentino Byers-Robinson scored the lone PV touchdown to cap a 14-play, 60-yard drive with 5:32 left in the first half.
The Trojans answered immediately when freshman Marquez Wimberly took the ensuing kickoff 74 yards to quickly restore the lead.
“He’s a heck of a football player and a heck of a kid,” Parkland coach Tim Moncman said.”That was huge for us to get it right back for us,” Parkland coach Tim Moncman said.
It was the start of a 31-0 stretch that featured numerous quick strikes by the home team.
Just before halftime, the Trojans pinned PV deep in its own territory, then smartly used their timeouts to set up a 41-yard TD pass from Luke Spang to Jack Harrison with 45 seconds left before intermission.
Spang missed the previous two games with a lung-related issue and his absence was felt in losses to Allentown Central Catholic and Whitehall. He was 8-for-13 passing for 104 yards, finding Nakhi Bullock six times for 61 yards.
“Having Luke back was outstanding,” Moncman said. “Just having him back there and being a threat like he is along with Nakhi being back and getting some reps was big. We’re close to having a full arsenal again.”
The biggest weapon was junior Trey Tremba, one of several Trojans players who have been injured in recent weeks. He scored on TD runs covering 10, 40 and 27 yards, with the latter two coming on one-play drives in the third quarter, when Parkland pulled away.
Tremba finished with 120 yards on eight carries.
In all, Parkland had three one-play drives and another score on the Wimberly kick return.
PV got a big rushing night from Fela Olaniyan, who gained 142 yards on 30 carries.
But the Bears didn’t have a completion in the pass game and couldn’t sustain anything besides Olaniyan runs.
“I’m very proud of my kids to stand toe to toe with Parkland for as long as they could,” Bears coach Blaec Saeger said. “They are who they are. They’re very good. Eventually, the talent rises and they’re just a fantastic football team. But we were there with them and I liked our effort. You can’t say enough good things about [Olaniyan]. He’s a straight-A student, a captain, and the heart and soul of our team. Playing fullback in this offense you get hit a lot, but he relishes it.”
The Wimberly return gave Saeger a flashback to a District 11 6A tournament game against Nazareth in 2020, a game that was close for a while but turned into a 56-10 Blue Eagles rout.
“We worked so hard with a 17-play drive to tie it that night and then they took the kickoff back,” Saeger said. “That’s what these [EPC South] teams do. They just have so many athletes. Who are you going to kick it away from? You have to pick your poison. You’ve got to give it to somebody who’s good. You just have to tackle him, but unfortunately, we weren’t able to.”
PV had trouble getting Tremba to the ground as Parkland had its usual array of offensive standouts back.
“It was awesome to have Spang and Nakhi back in the lineup because it takes some pressure off me,” Tremba said. “They made some great plays for us tonight and the offensive line did a great job of opening up holes. I didn’t have to get hit as much. I’m feeling good and I think we’re going to do good the rest of the season.”
Tremba also said the defense did a good job figuring out how to stop the PV triple-option. While the performance wasn’t perfect, it was a sign that maybe a turnaround has begun, he said.
“It just feels amazing to get a win,” Tremba said. “We needed this one to get back going again. Two losses in a row are not good for you mentally. Now, I feel like we can go on a run.”