MEYERSDALE — Making only his second career start at quarterback, Riley Clevenger looked like a seasoned veteran, rushing for 133 yards and two touchdowns as Homer-Center downed Meyersdale 45-3 in a Heritage-WestPAC crossover on Friday.
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Homer-Center (5-5) moves onto the PIAA District 6 playoffs next week against an opponent to be determined.
“Back in the summer I was taking some snaps kind of just a joke,” said Clevenger. “I was kind of like a Swiss army knife before the injuries forced me into the quarterback spot. Coach put one of the smartest kids on the team behind center and it has paid off for us.”
The Wildcats were decimated by injuries at quarterback this season, which changed the landscape of their season.
“We were a team that was picked to finish high in our conference,” said Homer Center head coach Greg Page. “We had some injuries and faced some adversity this year. We feel like if we play and prepare like we did tonight, we can beat anybody, no matter who we play. We are going to be a lower seed traveling, but after a game like tonight, our confidence will by high and we can keep this rolling.”
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Meyersdale took the lead early in the game on a 36-yard field goal by Tristin Ohler. But that lead only lasted for 13 seconds. On the ensuing kickoff, Michael Krejocic raced untouched for 85 yards to give the Wildcats a 7-3 lead that they would not surrender.
Early in the fourth quarter, Meyersdale had its best drive of the night, moving the ball inside the Wildcat 5-yard line when Homer-Center’s Wil Jones picked off a Drake Sellers pass and returned it 96 yards for the score to make it 39-3 and institute the running clock for the remainder of the game.
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Meyersdale’s offense struggled in the first half, failing to convert a first down. The Red Raiders had only 43 positive yards at the break. Homer-Center had much more success, only punting once in the opening half. However, two turnovers kept the game closer than it could have been. The Wildcats led 20-3 at the half.
Landon Hill was the workhorse for Homer-Center, carrying 22 times for 97 yards. But it was the play of his linemen up front, creating the holes for both he and Clevenger to run through all night long.
“The guys up front were the number one reason we had so much success all night long,” said Hill. “The front seven on defense also had a dominating night getting a push and keeping them from moving the ball.”
Meyersdale finished the season 2-7 and is setting its sights on a move to the Inter-County Conference next year.
“Coach Page has a very good football team and my hats off to him,” said Meyersdale head coach Ryan Donaldson. “I have five seniors on this team, and we are going to miss them. They were leaders who poured their heart and soul into this, but we are a young team that had a lot of youth on the varsity football field so that will pay dividends next year. It will be a new conference and we are looking forward to what lies ahead for next season.”
In Martinsburg, Central senior Jeff Hoenstine threw six touchdown passes, four of which to Eli Lingenfelter as the Dragons grounded the Golden Eagles 47-14.
Rowan Holmes tallied a 3-yard touchdown run while senior Tyler Zimmerman added a 10-yard rushing score.
Somerset wrapped the season with a 1-9 mark.
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