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Football: Barcliff’s big hit short-circuits Delco Christian in Lower Merion win

Posted On: Tuesday, September 06, 2016
By: ldevlin

NEWTOWN SQUARE >> As Delco Christian lined up for a fourth down on the first series of the second half Saturday, Daniel Barcliff had had enough.

The hulking Lower Merion lineman had seen the Knights’ triple-option attack move the ball steadily in a low-scoring affair. With the score tied and the Knights within striking distance, Barcliff knew someone needed to make a play.

That’s what Barcliff did on the fourth-and-1 at the 20, giving the Aces offense room to work out the kinks in offense and notch a 19-7 nonleague win Saturday.

Barcliff’s star turn was the first strike against Delco Christian’s offensive momentum, the senior lineman bursting into the backfield and wrapping up Jalen Mitchell for a one-yard loss with the Knights knocking on the door.

“I just needed a stop,” Barcliff said. “I knew the ball was going to go down the middle because whenever they put five in the middle, I know it’s going straight down the middle. So I said, ‘I’m going to stop this. He’s not going to gain any more yards.’”

That wouldn’t be enough to spark the Aces offense yet, but coupled with a stop on DC’s next drive, Mitchell again thrown for a loss on fourth-and-long by Demetrius Hansen, the levee finally broke.

The final blow was struck by Lower Merion’s Elijah Smith, who picked his way 49 yards down to the 1-yard line, shedding tackles and nearly plowing into the end zone.

Three plays later, Deion Davis did the honors, his first of two second-half touchdowns thrown by Matt O’Connor that spelled the victory for Lower Merion (1-1).

“That was a really big play,” Davis said of Smith’s run. “It gave us energy and our team scored after that. It gave us energy and we were up. That’s what made us win the game.”

So, too, did the defense that set it up. Before Barcliff’s fourth-down stuff, Delco Christian (0-2) had collected 166 yards on the ground in a half plus one series, a tally that qualified as an offensive outburst Saturday between two teams still sorting out their personnel groupings in the early season.

Click HERE to read the full article.

Lower Merion's Elijah Smith rushes on his way to 107 yards and a 19-7 win for the Aces over Lower Merion. (Digital First Media/Anne Neborak)

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