MOUNT CARMEL-Coming off two good wins and facing a huge game against Danville next week, it would have been easy for Mount Carmel to look past Hughesville in what was a classic trap game. The Red Tornadoes didn’t take the cheese, and were rewarded with an easy victory for their efforts. In the first half, Mount Carmel was flawless offensively. Using a balanced attack, the Red Tornadoes scored on all six of their possessions and racked up 345 yards. Five different players found the end zone, as Mount Carmel cruised to a 42-21 win.
“I think we’ve got a very resilient team,” Mount Carmel coach John Darrah said. “A couple of games in the beginning of the year – our guys know, they’re mature. They know we started slow, so we’re really, really just getting after it to get better, taking every opportunity. I was happy with the way we came out, and took another opportunity to get better tonight.”
Mount Carmel (5-1) celebrated homecoming by winning for the fifth consecutive week. The Red Tornadoes got things started with a 15-play, 93-drive that looked easy. Cooper Karycki got his big night underway by carrying the ball nine times on the opening possession for 50 yards. Karycki capped off the long march with a 2-yard run with 4:01 left in the first quarter, and continues to fill in nicely for the injured Luke Blessing. For the game, Karycki finished with 139 yards on 15 carries that included an 83-yard touchdown run on his team’s third series.
“It was good,” Darrah said. “We got a couple different guys involved in the some things. I thought we ran the ball well. This is one of the better games we ran the ball, so definitely a step in the right direction.”
A recurring theme in the game was the ability of Mount Carmel to overcome some penalties and long down-and-distance situations. On Mount Carmel’s second drive, the Red Tornadoes conquered a 3rd-and-19 when Michael Kimsal made a couple of defenders miss on a screen pass which went for a 50-yard gain. Kimsal would score two plays later on a 1-yard run. Leading 21-0 early in the second quarter, Mount Carmel got some help from Hughesville to get past a 3rd-and-27. Tait Adams caught a 24-yard pass, and then the Spartans jumped offsides on 4th down to extend a drive that was completed when Jaylen Delaney scored on a 13-yard run.
“Usually our defense does a good job, and stops teams like that,” Hughesville coach Howard Rainey said. “Whenever they throw the ball, we’re usually there. They put a couple of formations in that we thought were going to be runs, then they snuck a guy out there and got it done. They’re a good team, they’ve been doing it for years.”
Hughesville (3-3) did hold Delaney without a catch after his huge game at Montoursville last week, but plenty of other Red Tornadoes picked up the offensive slack. Chase Balichik hauled in a 10-yard touchdown pass from Gavin Marshalek, and finished with 60 yards receiving on four catches. Andrew Lukoskie got some touches, and scored on a 5-yard run in the waning seconds of the first half. Marshalek continued to put up good numbers and not turn the ball over. The junior quarterback completed 9-of-13 passes for 156 yards in just two quarters of work.
“We know those guys have a lot of ability,” Darrah said. “A lot of times, the ball’s going to go based on what the defense gives us. Tonight, those guys had some good opportunities, and they’ll make the most of them when they get that opportunity.”
In the fourth quarter, Hughesville had its starters in, and got a couple of Blake Davis touchdown passes against Mount Carmel’s reserves. The Red Tornadoes used four different quarterbacks for the second straight week, and had ten different ball carriers. Heading into a matchup with Danville that will have both PHAC and District 4 playoff implications, it appears as if Mount Carmel accomplished what it wanted to on Friday night, and more importantly, came away healthy.
“Every game on our schedule is a big game,” Darrah said. “Danville is a team we haven’t seen in a couple years, but we’re going to prepare just like any other game. This year is obviously different with the new playoff field, being in Triple-A and things like that. But again, we just take one game at a time, and we want to treat everyone the same.”
Hughesville 0 7 0 14-21
Mount Carmel 21 21 0 0-42
Individual Scoring
First Quarter
MC-Cooper Karycki 2 run (Robert Schoppy kick) 4:01
MC-Michael Kimsal 1 run (Schoppy kick) 1:28
MC-Karycki 83 run (Schoppy kick) :10
Second Quarter
MC-Jaylen Delaney 13 run (Schoppy kick) 7:48
H-Conor Knight 24 pass from Blake Davis (Keegan Smith kick) 6:11
MC-Chase Balichik 10 pass from Gavin Marshalek (Schoppy kick) 3:23
MC-Andrew Lukoskie 5 run (Schoppy kick) :28
Fourth Quarter
H-Luke Stutzman 5 pass from Davis (Smith kick) 9:54
H-Carson Stackhouse 20 pass from Davis (Smith kick) 1:58
Team Statistics
………………………..H………………….MC
1st downs…………14…………………21
rush-yds………..14-55………………49-186
comp-att-int…11-19-0……………..16-30-1
pass yds………….229………………….195
total yds………….284………………381
fumb-lost………2-0………………….4-0
pen-yds………..5-35…………………10-82
Individual Statistics
Rushing-Hughesville: Luke Stutzman 7-34; Jed Abernatha 4-19; Blake Davis 2-3; Connor Anstadt 1-(-1). Mount Carmel: Cooper Karycki 15-139, 2 TDs; Michael Kimsal 5-20, TD; Al Bailey 3-20; Andrew Lukoskie 5-17, TD Jaylen Delaney 2-17, TD; Matthew Balichik 3-7; Aiden Dietz 7-3; Gavin Marshalek 2-(-10); Logan Shuder 5-(-10); Aidan Brokenshire 2-(-17).
Passing-Hughesville: Davis 10-18-1, 214 yds., 3 TDs; Anstadt 1-1-0, 15 yds. Mount Carmel: Marshalek 9-13-0, 156 yds., TD; Brokenshire 1-3-0, 28 yds.; M. Balichik 1-3-0, 11 yds
Receiving-Hughesville: Conor Knight 10-157, TD; Carson Stackhouse 3-35, TD; Brenden Fisher 1-15; Stutzman 1-14, TD; Anstadt 1-8. Mount Carmel: Chase Balichik 4-60, TD; Tait Adams 2-32; Kimsal 1-50; Ezikiel Noel 1-28; Jon Morgante 1-11; Bailey 1-9; Lukoskie 1-5.
