Football: Long’s long touchdown catch helps Sprigfield roll in district quarterfinal

Springfield >> Top-seeded Springfield found its first-quarter offense almost as cold as the 19-degree wind chill Friday evening against West Chester Rustin in the second round of the PIAA District 1 Class 5A playoffs.

The Cougars cracked the scoring ice on a 46-yard touchdown hookup between a couple of senior wide receivers, opening the gates for Springfield’s 28-7 win.

Cougars quarterback Jack Psenicska handed off to Frank Durham Jr., who swept to the right, then uncorked an option pass to Kyle Long, who caught the ball in stride and raced into the end zone for a 6-0 lead.

“We worked on that play all week, and our offensive coordinator (Brian Thompson) kept telling us that play was going to work,” said Long, who later grabbed a four-yard touchdown pass to give the hosts a 14-0 halftime lead. “We were moving the ball a little bit, but I think that was the big play that turned the tide.”

“It was hard to throw the ball tonight with the cold, and the wind, but we’ve got a lot of tough kids on this team,” said Long.

With the victory, the Cougars (12-0) advance to the district semifinals Friday night to host No. 5 seed Upper Dublin. UD defeated fourth-seeded Academy Park, 17-12.

No. 9 seed Rustin (7-5) had been moving the ball fairly well on the ground early on, with the three-headed running attack of Ty Pringle, JT Alosio and Nick Benoit. So on fourth-and-1 from the Rustin 49-yard line, the Golden Knights decided to go for the first down. Pringle ran the ball, and Springfield outside linebacker Ja’Den McKenzie nailed the Golden Knights’ back for a three-yard loss that gave the hosts the ball at the Rustin 46. Then came the Springfield touchdown.

The Cougars’ defense dealt Rustin another blow midway through the second quarter, when Springfield junior linebacker Jeff Biancaniello forced a Golden Knights’ fumble at the Cougars’ 32 yard line.

“We had some good blitzes tonight, and I shot the gap, saw the quarterback handing off to the fullback, and got a good hit,” said Biancaniello, who in the second half made another hit that led to a Rustin fumble.

Click HERE to read the full article.