Upper Dublin defeats H-H
Cards’ Slivka nicked up in victory
HORSHAM >> Upper Dublin responded to an early 7-0 hole against Hatboro-Horsham by scoring 33 straight points on its way to a 40-13 road win against the Hatters on Friday.
The Cardinals came into the game having not played since a 38-9 win over Central on Aug. 29. Upper Dublin fumbled on its first drive of the game and threw an interception on its second, leading to a five-yard touchdown run from HatboroHorsham’s Pat Chapman.
“Not the start we’re looking for obviously,” Upper Dublin head coach Bret Stover said. “I don’t want to blame the week off because it was good for us, we got healthy and got some people back. I’ll take the blame for that first quarter, but after that we played ball.”
Hatboro-Horsham running back Omar Ali was a big part of the Hatters’ early success. His 56-yard run put his team in position to take the early lead, and the sophomore back finished with a team-best 97 yards on 16 carries.
“Omar is a really good, explosive football player,” HatboroHorsham head coach Mark Schmidt said. “He’s a hardworking kid and does a great job, as you saw tonight.”
Once the Cardinals shook some of the rust off from their extended break from action, the offense that averaged 33 points per game in its first two games of the season began to get going, led by the arm and legs of quarterback Mike Slivka.
Slivka, who finished with 201 yards and two touchdowns on 13-17 passing, used his feet and size to escape pressure and find open receivers for most of the night.
“I felt really good tonight, my wide receivers were making plays and the line blocked re
ally well,” Slivka said. “I like to move outside the pocket to let my receivers get open and find the open man.”
Slivka also finished with 41 rushing yards, but left in the third quarter with a knee injury after being sacked in an awkward position.
Adam Overton and Bazel Brady both caught a touchdown pass from Slivka.
Logan Heim ran the ball in twice for the Cardinals, and Michael Wright and Jacob Rossman each had a rushing touchdown.
The Hatters (0-4, 0-1) travel to Wissahickon on Sept. 20 at 7 p.m.
Upper Dublin (3-0, 1-0) hosts Penn Charter on the same night.
INJURY SCARE >> Slivka went down with time ticking down in the third quarter, walking off after being attended to by trainers. He tested out the knee on the sideline before eventually sitting for the remainder of a game the Cardinals had in hand.
Stover said he doesn’t expect the injury to cause his senior quarterback to miss time, but added he won’t know until Slivka sees a doctor.
“We’re going to handle it and see what the doctor says,” Stover said. “I think he would’ve gone back in if he had to, but we won’t know anything for sure until he sees someone.”
Sophomore’s Nick Rodriguez and Tristan Cairnes both saw time after Slivka left the game.
Rodriguez was intercepted on his only pass. Cairnes did not attempt a throw.
FRESHMAN SIGNAL CALLER >> Hatboro-Horsham freshman quarterback Colin O’Sullivan took some hits against a tough Upper Dublin defense, but finished with 100 yards through the air on 6-22 passing.
His lone interception came in the fourth quarter as Upper Dublin’s Brian McCarry made a grab along the sideline to force the turnover.
“That kid (O’Sullivan) has given everything he has and is doing a terrific job,” Schmidt said. “He makes mistakes here and there but he’s a smart player. He had some drops out there and a couple throws that were just off, but these are things we can improve on.”
Schmidt also mentioned O’Sullivan’s intelligence on the field as something that sticks out when he watches him play.