Big third quarter lifts Coatesville in league opener over Henderson

After three weeks of non-league action, the proverbial “second season” kicked off for most Ches-Mont National Division schools tonight. For the defending National Division champion Coatesville Red Raiders, it started the right way, downing the West Chester Henderson Warriors.

It was not easy for Coatesville in the first half, as Henderson’s reliable defense held the Red Raiders to 14 first-half points. While Henderson’s vaunted triple option offense struggled to get going, it took Coatesville one play on their second possession to establish a 7-0 lead, as Jordan Young hit Jadan Hudson on a 72 yard wide receiver screen. The Warriors answered back with a Ryan Angle field goal to cut the lead to 7-3.

Coatesville and the Warriors would trade touchdowns before the half, as Jordan Young scored on a five-yard run putting Coatesville up 14-3. Henderson answered when Nick Masetti scored from two yards out, for the 14-10 halftime score. Jordan Young threw for 149 yards and a score at halftime, but he (and his brothers Avery and Aaron) kept the scoring onslaught going.

Coming out of halftime, the Red Raiders of old came out and hammered the Warriors for 20 points in the third quarter. The third quarter was the Aaron Young show, as the youngest of the Young trio scored three rushing touchdowns (29, 17, and 4 yards), putting Coatesville up 34-10, and instilling fear into defenses around the Ches-Mont League and District 1 for three more years. Aaron is a freshman.

From what most would think would be a blowout, Henderson showed a lot of heart in coming back. Matt DiNacci led the Warriors down the field scoring from a yard out. With Nick Mascetti’s two-point conversion run, Coatesville’s lead was cut to 34-18.

A recovered on-sides kick by Henderson led to a short field for the Warriors, which led to CJ Preston’s two-yard touchdown run. Another two-point conversion run, this time by CJ Preston, and Coatesville’s lead was down to a score at 34-26.

After recovering a second attempted on-sides kick by Henderson, Coatesville showed why they are the defending league champions, and District 1 runners-up. Once Henderson clawed their way back, Coatesville showed the killer instinct in putting Henderson away.

Despite multiple penalties that put the Red Raiders in a second and 29 hole, they were able to grind out a final touchdown, when Jordan Young hit his sophomore brother Avery Young on a 53 yard fly pattern. Coatesville also showed why they are defending champions in the way they overcame adversity, as they overcame penalties (13 penalties for 124 yards).

Despite the loss- Henderson coach Steve Mitten was proud of the way his team played, “We played with more heart than they did. We do have some things to fix, from administrative things. If we play like this next week, we will win. Coatesville is extremely talented, and well coached.” Regarding fullback CJ Preston, “He’s a sophomore, and we expect a lot of him. In our offense, the fullback touches the ball a lot.”

Stats/Summary-
CHS- 07-07-20-07- 41
WCH- 00-10-00-16- 26

CHS- Jadan Hudson 72 pass from Jordan Young (Kallie kick)
WCH- Ryan Angle 30 FG
CHS- J. Young 5 run (Kallie kick)
WCH- Nick Mascetti 2 run (Angle kick)
CHS- Aaron Young 29 run (Kallie kick)
CHS- Aa. Young 17 run (Kallie kick)
CHS- Aa. Young 4 run (kick failed)
WCH- DiNacci 1 run (Mascetti run)
WCH- CJ Preston 2 run (Preston run)
CHS- Avery Young 53 pass from J. Young (Kallie kick)

Passing-
CHS- J. Young 12-21-267 yards- 2tds-1int
WCH- DiNacci 7-21-89 yards-1int

Rushing
CHS- J. Young 6-28 (td), Aaron Young 11-87 (3td), Avery Young 1-4, Alexander 1-7, TEAM 19-126
WCH- DiNacci 9-15 (td), Preston 34-116 (td), Mascetti 5-71, Palmer 1-2, TEAM 49-204

Receiving
CHS- Avery Young 6-133 (td), Hudson 3-104 (td), Hammond 3-30
WCH- Greim 2-22, Rizzo 1-15, DePhillips 4-52