Boyd Hauls in Triple OT Touchdown to Fuel Vikings' Win

After weeks of camp and a couple of scrimmages, the coaching staff was looking to see how their young team, led by sophomore quarterback Rasaan Stewart, would respond in a game situation.

Following 48 minutes of football on Friday night, there were still not many answers to be found. The Vikings had endured a grueling four quarters of anything but inspired play, ending regulation in a 7-7 deadlock with Lansdale Catholic.

It was the former PAC-10 foe Crusaders who got last season off to a rocky start by rallying from a 20-point, second half deficit to hand the Vikings a loss, from which they never really recovered.

As the first time overtime got under way, Head Coach Scott Reed and his staff got a glimpse of the heart and determination they have been looking for as senior Donte Golson-Goodman, who had the only Vikings touchdown in regulation with a 52-yard scamper, scored on a six-yard run on third down to give Perk Valley a 13-7 after the extra point failed.

The Crusaders had the hundreds of fans of the orange and brown in  Thomas Keenan Stadium holding their collective breath by scoring on a one-yard run by Tyler Smith, who scored on an eight-yard run in regulation, on fourth down and inches.

With the game hanging in the balance, the Vikings stepped up and blocked the extra point, extending the game into the second extra frame. 

The Crusaders wasted no time in the second OT as they scored on first down on a 10-yard strike and following the converted extra point, the pressure was set squarely back on the shoulders on the Vikings and young signal caller Rasaan Stewart.

“I am not going to lie, I was very nervous when the game started tonight,” said Stewart.

“I felt better as the game went on, it is so much faster than I expected. Our defense played great all game and gave us a chance to win the game. I am so excited to get the win. Whoooohh Ryan (Boyd) came up huge for us there, and I just can’t believe they went for it.”

On fourth and two, it was Stewart (4-for-7 passing) calling his own number following a three back set into the end zone and following the  attempt barely clearing the cross bar, the squads switched sides again and walked to the west end zone.

On third down Stewart recorded just his fourth completed pass of the night, but none more important as senior Ryan Boyd reached up an snared a perfectly thrown ball from Stewart to push the Vikings into the lead again.

Following the adventure that had become the point after attempts for the Vikings, coach Reed counted on junior Jamie Biddle, who handled the place kicking duties last season, to step in and attempt the most important kick of the evening. Biddle responded by calmly booting the ball through the uprights deep into the night sky, giving Perk Valley a 7-point edge.

“I saw (him) cover two on the previous play and the safety left me,” said  Boyd. “I went to the sidelines and told them it was there. Rasaan did a great job getting the ball there; we just went post and it was wide open. We all remembered what happened last season and we wanted to make sure we took care of business tonight. This was a huge win for us to carry momentum into next week.

On the ensuing possession, LC scored again on a 10-yard pass, and following coach Crusaders head coach Jim Algeo deciding to gamble, attempting a two-point conversion, the pressure was back on the Perk Valley defense that had played so well in regulation.

Following a false start penalty, and Ezra Ranco, who had been a beast all night, breathing down his neck, quarterback Pat Schoenberger (9-for-23) launched a pass the was batted down at the goal line, giving the Vikings a victory and a 1-0 start to the season.

“Our defense is young, but were aggressive,” said defensive coordinator Wayne Young.
“We were almost too aggressive at points; we need to keep that in check. We changed it up on the final play; we brought pressure inside and focused on covering outside. They had beaten us twice when we pressure out side, to we brought no pressure from outside and our defensive backs did a great job shutting it down. It is definitely a big win for us as we get read for another good team next week in Souderton.”

Perkiomen Valley 27, Lansdale Catholic 26 (3 OT)

Lansdale Catholic             0  0  0  7  6  7  6 – 26

Perkiomen Valley            0  0  7  0  6  7  7 – 27

Third Quarter

PV – Golson-Goodman 52 yd run (Chudoba kick)

Fourth Quarter

LC – Smith 8 yd run (Duggan kick)

Overtime

PV – Golson-Goodman 8 yd run (kick failed)

LC – Smith 1 yd run (kick failed)

LC – Ward 10 yd pass from Schoenberger (Duggan kick)

PV – Stewart 1  ydrun (Chudoba kick)

PV – Boyd 17 yd pass from Stewart (Biddle kick)

LC – Ward 10 yd pass from Schoenberger (pass failed)