In some ways, it was rather fitting that Ephrata and Garden Spot happened to match up against one another on Friday night. You see, in this contest, perhaps more so than other games that either the Mounts or Spartans had played all year long up until this point respectively, did either squad probably feel as if they were looking into a mirror when they stood on opposite sidelines and peered into the eyes of the opposition.
Every now and then, you’ll occasionally hear some sort of phrase that usually goes along the lines of, “That team is much better than their record would indicate.” Ironically, you probably could probably paint this year’s edition of Garden Spot Football with that broad brush as well. Sure, while their 3-5 record which the Spartans carried with them into Friday night’s game might seem rather pedestrian to most folks on the surface, you’d be doing yourself and the team itself a disservice if you didn’t’ dive further into this Garden Spot squad. In fact, in the entirety of the Lancaster-Lebanon League, you’d be hard-pressed to find a team that has been playing much better ball in recent weeks than that of Garden Spot. In their last four outings, the Spartans have been able to rip off a 3-1 record –including two shutout victories during that stretch- with their only blemish coming at the hands of arguably one of the best teams in all levels of District 3 competition, Lampeter-Strasburg, a game in which Garden Spot truthfully looked like the better team for large portions of that very same contest. The factor that into the equation with their other four losses, outings in which they were competitive in by and large, and it’s easy to see that while the market rate for Garden Spot may be listed rather low at this moment in time, the Spartans will likely prove to be a sound investment in the next few years to come, especially with some of the talents which will be coming back into the fold next fall in New Holland. Suffice to say, the good vibes currently surrounding the football program at Garden Spot haven’t been this high since 2016, the last year in which the Spartans were a legitimate threat to snare a postseason bid.
For Ephrata this year, well, I mean, where do you start here? Ok, ok. Set aside the fact that the Mounts came into Friday night riding a two-game losing streak for a moment and just call a spade a spade. Let’s get one thing perfectly clear-the 2021 Mounts have helped form the narrative that Ephrata Football is no longer the cute little story to feel good about. No, this is a remarkably-improved program that is an entire solar system away from where they were just a few years ago. To be put it mildly, this is a program that now has venom and fangs. And yes, while that two-game swoon down the stretch will inevitably keep the Mountaineers absent from what would have been their first playoff appearance in almost two generations this year, the progress that this group has made in 2021 has been nothing short of immeasurable. In many ways, that is precisely why the Mounts’ trip down Route 322 and into New Holland on Friday evening may have been the most important game of Ephrata’s entire season. Yes, while obviously, it was the most important because it was the next one on the slate, cliché aside, Friday’s game against Garden Spot would surely prove to be the best momentum boost known to mankind should they be able to prevail against the up-and-coming Spartans, a victory that could gas Ephrata up with plenty of jet fuel as the program heads into arguably its most consequential offseason in school history as the Mounts figure to contend with, yes, high expectations next season in what will be a revamped L-L League.
So, aside from the fact that this L-L Section 3 tilt was a matchup between two of the fastest risers in the entire league, it was even more apropos than the game itself would be played inside a ridiculous nor’easter. Yes, with two programs that have unfortunately had to trudge their way through more than a few winless campaigns in the last handful of seasons than they’d care to remember, this has been a year in which both Ephrata and Garden Spot appears to have finally found some solid footing to stand upon. In some ways, a perfect storm had been brewing if you will.
On this night though, Garden Spot would make it abundantly clear that their strong late-season push was not any kind of strange anomaly.
In a game that figured it would be played inside a late October hurricane, running the ball was presumed to the preferred method of attack for either side. Well, in that regard, it must have been music to Ephrata’s collective ears considering that the Mounts possess one of the best backs in all the L-L League, junior Andre Weidman. Sure enough, on the Mounts’ opening march of the ballgame, Weidman took center stage and delivered a scintillating performance to begin the evening. So much so in fact that Weidman’s 52-yard touchdown scamper after getting past the initial line of would-be Garden Spot defenders helped raise the curtain on the scoring for the evening as the visitors quickly raced out to a 6-0 lead on their hosts after the failed 2-pt conversion attempt with 10:05 still left to play in the opening stanza.
Then, after a shared series of three and outs by either club on the next two offensive possessions respectively, it would be Garden Spot’s turn to get lathered up and find their offensive rhythm.
Granted, it certainly didn’t hurt the Spartans’ efforts that they found themselves working on a short field to start their initial scoring march of the evening, a short field that came courtesy of a blocked punt from their special teams unit. So, with the hosts taking over just outside the Ephrata red zone, the Spartans went back to their bread and butter that comes in a slightly different flavor than most other teams. That of course by using their quarterback duo.
If nothing else, it’s a pretty rare occurrence to have your best wide receiver also be the one that just so happened to be the one who handled the starting quarterback duties at the onset of the season, but that has proven to be one of the key ingredients behind Garden Spot’s climb down the stretch this season. And as fate would have it, the lethal tandem of Kye Harting to Tristin Sadowski was worth its weight in gold once again as the 11-yard pitch and catch between the two Spartan signal-callers allowed the Spartans to crack open their goose egg as a Walker Martin PAT which followed suit gave the Spartans their first lead of the evening at 7-6 with 6:25 left to go in the first.
Their first lead of the evening, yes, but a short-lived one to say the least.
Short-lived as far as Garden Spot was concerned considering that Ephrata’s Jeremiah Knowles promptly returned the ensuing kickoff back 94-yards to the house, a bolt of lightning created by the Mounts’ sophomore wideout which handed the lead right back to white-clad guests following a Chad Jones’ PAT, an exchange in momentum that put Ephrata back in front at 13-7 just 15 seconds later.
Undaunted though, Garden Spot would retaliate.
After a nice mixture of offensive play calls that helped lay the groundwork for the Spartans’ ensuing series following the Knowles kickoff return, a key Harting quarterback draw play helped push Garden Spot into Ephrata’s side of the field. From there, a beautifully-designed tunnel screen on a 3rd & 17 play that used Ephrata’s aggressiveness against them was good for a 28-yard pickup to move the sticks when Harting was able to hook up with junior wide receiver, Zechariah Nagle, for a key conversion that put the Spot attack on the precipice of the red zone. Then, it was time for Garden Spot to turn to the run game which they did when the Spartans allowed senior power back, Joel Martin, to tote the rock all the way down to the Ephrata 4-yard line. Then, it was time to go all the way back to the last play page of the playbook considering the Spartans broke out their own version of the “Philly Special” as the Garden Spot QB tandem struck once again, this time though with Sadowski finding Harting on the receiving end for the 4-yard trick play TD to put the hosts back in front at 14-13 with 3:25 still left in the opening quarter.
That said, Ephrata began to take off on their own march down the field the next time they had the ball as well.
After getting ignited by a nice 43-yard kickoff return by their ace of a return man, Jeremiah Knowles, the Mounts proceeded to mix in a nice dose of both run and pass game to usher themselves down into Garden Spot territory as well. All told, the Mounts would get down to the Garden Spot 21-yard line but would advance no further. After getting behind the sticks which set them back nine yards later in the drive, an emphatic sack authored by Garden Spot’s Aiden McCloud on an Ephrata 4th & long gave the ball back to the Spartans once the second quarter got underway with the Spartans’ lead being maintained by the slimmest of margins at 14-13.
To their credit though, the Ephrata defensive troops would rise up and hold the Spartans to a punt following their turnover on downs. And oh, by the way, did we mention Andre Weidman yet?
Following the Garden Spot punt, Ephrata found themselves trotting back onto the rain-soaked field on offense while starting at their own 24-yard line. Certainly not the most advantageous way to try and make a living while trying to navigate while inside a literal monsoon either. However, having Mr. Weidman residing in your backfield can make you breathe just a little bit easier no doubt. And right on cue, Weidman delivered what had to be one of the best runs of the entire season.
In terms of running back skills, vision and footwork are at the top of the priority list. Sure enough, Ephrata’s tailback proceeded to demonstrate both of those skills on his next carry by perfecting executing five jump-cuts against the Spartans’ defensive unit, zig-zagging his way on a 72-yard jaunt which immediately put Ephrata on the verge of a go-ahead score with the Mounts now setting up shop inside the Spartans’ 5-yard line. Unfortunately for Ephrata, Weidman’s magical run would not bleed into the Mounts’ next few plays however as they would not be able to penetrate any further against the Garden Spot D, instead of seeing a 22-yard field goal by Chad Jones put them back in front at 16-14 with 8:40 left in the opening half.
Yet again though, Garden Spot refused to yield.
After having their ensuing offensive series following the Ephrata field goal get started by a handful of Kye Harting in the quarterback run game, yet another fantastic screenplay drawn up by the Spartans’ offensive brain trust -this time of the bubble variety- saw the Garden Spot attack move inside the Ephrata red zone once Harting was able to find senior wideout, Derrick Lambert, for the long gainer to move the sticks. From there, the Garden Spot sophomore quarterback was able to continue his stellar first of football by tallying the Spartans’ go-ahead score with a 6-yard touchdown run to make it a 21-16 Garden Spot lead with 3:30 still left to tick off the second-quarter clock. Why a stellar first half? Simply the fact it was the first half of work that saw Kye Harting pass, catch, and run for touchdowns, a trifecta of TD’s that most quarterbacks never achieve in their entire careers.
Ironically, for a first-half that seemed to contain nothing but offensive volleys lobbed back and forth against one another, the five-point Garden Spot bulge would be where things would remain once the final three minutes and change would expire as both teams went inside to not only regroup but also dry off and warm their body temperatures up for the halftime recess on what was a downright miserable night in terms of playing conditions.
That said, whatever the message was that Garden Spot went over during the intermission should be bottled up and sold elsewhere as the Spartans proceeded to come out of the intermission on an absolute tear.
In many ways, the Spartans’ impressive final 24 minutes began on the defensive side of the ball. Well, perhaps by way of Tyler Hurst most specifically as the Garden Spot junior defensive lineman was able to earn himself a sack on Ephrata’s opening offensive drive to begin the second half. Then, on the very next play following his sack, Hurst was able to do himself one better by pouncing on a Mountaineers’ fumble, a recovery which allowed his offensive mates to set up shop at the Ephrata 48-yard line following the timely takeaway.
In the first half, Garden Spot went into the bag of tricks which had directly translated into a touchdown. Well, apparently the goodie bag was still rather deep considering that the Spartans were able to execute a fake punt after being held on downs following the Hurst fumble recovery. Rest assured, trickeration is certainly much easier when you can have two starting quarterbacks on the field at any given time. Case in point, a Tristin Sadowski pass on the fake punt play which wound up in the hands of Derrick Lambert, a key connection between the two seniors which was good for 18-yards and breathed new life into the Garden Spot possession. From there, it was time for a heavy of run with Joel Martin carrying the mail as the Spartans’ senior was able to finish the drive off in style with a 2-yard touchdown run to give the Spartans their largest lead of the evening at 28-16 with 4:38 to play in the third frame.
Their largest lead at the time, but a lead that will only grow from there on out.
On the very first play from scrimmage on the ensuing Ephrata series, an ill-timed fumble by the Mounts spelled doom for their hopes of coming away with a season-ending victory while simultaneously allowing Garden Spot the opportunity to blow this one wide open. Sure enough, that’s precisely what transpired.
Following Derrick Lambert’s fumble recovery which abruptly ended the ultra-brief Ephrata series, the Spartans could almost certainly smell blood in the water. In that respect, Joel Martin proceeded to play the role of a shark by rumbling untouched around the left side of the Garden Spot offensive line from 22-yards out to cross the chalk, a touchdown which made it a 35-16 affair in favor of Garden Spot with 2:38 remaining in the third.
Needing anything to help get their offense out of their current funk with time dwindling down inside the third quarter, Ephrata opted to try the wildcat. Truth be told, it proved to be a wise move considering that arguably the best pass of the entire evening was thrown by Andre Weidman, yes, the Mounts’ star tailback, as the junior lobbed a perfect pass into the waiting hands of Jeremiah Knowles found streaking down the Ephrata sideline, as Knowles’ stellar one-handed stab promptly moved the Ephrata march into Garden Spot’s side of the field with the ball now resting at the Spartans’ 41-yard line. However, even with the good mojo that was created with the Weidman to Knowles pitch and catch combo, this drive too would end prematurely with an Ephrata fumble deep inside Garden Spot territory, a back-breaker that gave the ball back to the Spartans once the final frame got underway.
Once inside the final dozen minutes on Friday night, Garden Spot began to flex their collective muscle.
As the game wore on, so too did the amount of Spartans’ chunk plays that came via the ground. Suffice to say, Garden Spot’s offensive series following the takeaway at the end of the third quarter was an offensive lineman’s dream. With the big boys up front doing all the heavy lifting, Garden Spot was able to methodically pound them down the field as the rain and wind only intensified. All told, it was a bruising 88-yard, a nearly six-minute march that culminated with a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Harting to put the Spartans up 42-16 with 6:10 left to play.
Once they got the ball back after forcing an Ephrata punt, it was more of the same.
After taking over just a hair past the midfield stripe to begin their final offensive drive, Garden Spot knew exactly what to do with it. Using a heavy dose of you guessed, the ground and pound method of warfare, the Spartans were ultimately able to tack on one last score for good measure with a 2-yard touchdown run by another senior power back, Tyler Gillenwater, making it a 49-16 Garden Spot lead with 1:35 left to go.
That said, aside from the aforementioned drive that began with Andre Weidman’s long pass down the sideline in the third quarter, arguably the next best series of offensive plays authored by the Mounts in the second half came via the hard and determined running by senior running back, Devon Litten, inside the final few minutes for a handful of plays that allowed Ephrata to close with a bit of an edge to themselves despite the lopsided score at the time.
However, once the dust -or rain- finally settled down, the final score ultimately told the story best regarding what had just transpired over the last 48 minutes as Garden Spot was able to cap their late-season finish off in style with an emphatic 49-16 triumph over their neighbors from Ephrata.
NEXT UP: Well, to be honest, we don’t really know here. For Garden Spot, the Spartans were supposed to have a makeup date with Donegal next week -a game postponed earlier in the year thanks to COVID- but the Indians are slated to make the District 3 playoff field which begins next Friday night. So, it remains to be seen as to whether or not Garden Spot will scramble in the next few days to try and find an opponent for next Friday night. However, if this does happen to be the last game the Spartans end up playing this season, what a statement it was. And yes, while no one can be totally sure what this seismic shift will look like in terms of Lancaster-Lebanon League football come next year with the addition of all the Berks League teams, the formula and groundwork in which it appears Garden Spot has been able to find over these final few weeks make them a legitimate shot at inflicting some serious damage upon their competition by this time a year from now.
Needless to say, Friday night’s performance was certainly not what Ephrata was looking to end on. All told, it amounts to a three-game losing skid that the Mounts finished the 2021 campaign with. Again though, perhaps the most important thing to remember here is that these last three games are what ultimately kept Ephrata from claiming a postseason bid this year. Shoot, just a few years ago, the Mounts were desperately trying to win a game period. So, in some respects, that right there proves just how far the Mounts have come in a short amount of time. When the true disappointment comes from just falling short of making the postseason, it’s clear that the bar has been raised with this program. And yes, while every offseason is instrumental in terms of the product you expect to have on the field throughout ten weeks of regular season play, the offseason will be particularly key to any sort of success that the Mounts are perhaps able to capture in 2022. To put it simply, pressure is a privilege. Well, whether you call it pressure or boil it down simply to “expectations,” Ephrata will be carrying those heading into next fall. And no matter how you slice it, that’s the epitome of a giant step in the right direction.
