In the 70th meeting of this storied rivalry, the Bulldogs own a 44-23-2 advantage over Hazleton. However, the Cougars have won the last three meetings, outscoring the Dawgs 88-34.
In the opening quarter of the game, the Cougars’ junior quarterback Chad Hoffman found Dean McKernan on a 4th-and-14 play for a touchdown pass (two-point conversion, failed).
Then, the Bulldogs scored two-points on a safety to close the Hazleton lead to 6-2. Off of the kick after the safety, Berwick’s senior Matt Witchey returned the ball 40-yards to put the Dawgs into excellent field position. Bulldogs’ junior running back Jeremy Freeman rumbled three yards for the score. To follow up Freeman’s score, he ran in the two-point conversion to give Berwick a 10-6 lead.
Later in the second quarter, Hazleton’s Desmond Johnson scampered ten yards for a touchdown to hand the Cougars a 12-10 lead (two-point attempted pass was incomplete).
With less than one minute left in the first half, Berwick quarterback Jared Pierce completed three passes to Sean Ridall setting up a 20-yard touchdown toss to Eric Schleich. The Bulldogs lead at halftime, 18-12.
In the third quarter, Luke McDanel caught a 14-yard pass from Jared Pierce to double up the Cougars, 24-12. Then, the Cougars’ Dean McKernan scored his second touchdown of the game on a long 46-yard touchdown run to give Hazleton some life as the former Mountaineers trailed, 24-20.
Early in the fourth, Berwick’s Tony Goodson rushed in from three-yards out to give his ‘Dawgs a 32-20 lead on senior night at Crispin Field.
Following an Austin Thomas interception, with 7:14 remaining in the game, Caleb Fetterolf rumbled two-yards into the endzone for Berwick to increase the lead to, 39-20. On the Bulldogs’ next drive, Sean Ridall took the ball from 10-yards away for another touchdown to take a 45-20 lead.
Berwick (5-5) cruised to a, 45-26, win over Hazleton (3-7).
NOTES: At the end of the first half, Hazleton senior lineman Mike Gale suffered an undisclosed injury that halted the contest for sometime as he was placed into an ambulance after a collision…Berwick’s senior tight end/linebacker, Casey Davenport, did not play due to injury…The first meeting between these two schools was in 1901.
