Rain of Terror! Phantoms' Ground Attack Leads to 22-7 Win

In the first three games of the season, the Phantoms have been fine-tuning a simple recipe for success, which has led to a 3-0 start.

Running the football, playing relentless defense and eliminating the opposition's big plays have been the cornerstones of Phoenixville’s preparation each week.

There was nothing that could have prepared coach Bill Furlong’s squad, which improved to 4-0 overall, 2-0 league, for the wrath of Mother Nature they would endure en route to a 22-7 win over the visiting Wildcats.

With most of the game being played in an out-right deluge, the Phantoms resorted to running the ball and running the ball and for good measure.

In fact their entire offensive output on the night was gained on an assault on the water-logged synthetic turf of Washington Field.

Before drying off during the intermission, Phoenixville snagged a 9-0 halftime lead on a 32-yard field goal by Ian Harrigan and a touchdown scamper by quarterback Alec McQuiston, who finished the game with a pair of scores and more than 135 yards on the ground.

“This was awesome,” said linebacker Ryan Pannella, who led a defense that caused three turnovers and shut out Owen J. Roberts until one minute to play in the tilt. “We knew they were going to play a lot of two tight-end sets, so we pinched them in and gave them no lanes to run in. It was actually really fun to play in weather like this. That’s what football is all about.”

Ryan Yenchick, who ran for more than 60 yards, busted a 29-yard jaunt with 7:42 remaining in the final period to post Phoenixville to a 22-0 bulge, complementing the yeoman work of Vinny Nattle, who eclipsed the 100-yard mark rushing for the fourth straight week.

“As a kid you always pretend you are playing in snow and rain like this,” added Pannella, “It does limit what you can do offensively. Obviously it takes away the passing game. We just focused on our reads and made sure we contained and prevented them from having big plays.

Nattle dropped on top of a Wildcats fumble and Travis Andrews recorded an interception to pace a stifling Phantoms defense that allowed fewer than 100 yards in total offense until the last Owen J. Roberts possession. The Wildcats drove 65 yards, culminating with their only score of the game, a 6-yard touchdown blast by Paul Minninger with 1:05 left on the game clock.

Next up for the Phantoms is road game at Pottstown, who took a 21-0 lead at Perkiomen Valley Friday night, only to see the Vikings score 29 unanswered points in a 29-21 loss, dropping to 1-1 in the PAC-10 and 2-2 overall. 

Note: In a true test of the new turf of Washington Field and the drainage capabilities, despite an out-right downpour for 75 percent of the game, there was no standing water and the surface was the most playable part of the game.

Owen J. Roberts            0            0            0            7            -7

Phoenixville                  3            6            6            7            -22