Football - Jeannette vs GCC

Jeannette Beats GCC 40-14 in Penalty Filled Battle of Conference Rivals

It's possible that the only place on earth where more flags flew on Friday night than Jeannette's McKee Stadium is the United Nations Building. In a game that could be certainly characterized as "chippy" from the start, Jeannette flexed their muscles in beating the rival Centurions of Greensburg Central Catholic 40-14 on the Jayhawks' homecoming night. Major penalties were the order of the night for both teams, and 30 to 40 yards-to-gain situations were common throughout the game. Both teams had more yards marched off in reverse by officials than they gained moving forward on several offensive series. 

But penalties aside, there were big scoring plays and a lot of points put on the board. For the Jayhawks, Seth Howard threw for over 270 yards including a 23-yard touchdown pass to Jackson Pruitt. In addition to finding Marcus Barnes for over 140 yards through the air on the night, Howard also scored three touchdowns with his feet. His first touchdown of the game, a 5-yard bootleg around right end, happened with 6:48 remaining in the first quarter, and the score was 8-0 after Jaden Crosby carried in the 2-point try. Howard's touchdown pass to Pruitt occurred with less than 3 minutes remaining in the quarter, and the score was 14-0 after the 2-point try failed. Jeannette scored again early in the second quarter when a long pass completion to Barnes set up a 3-yard run by Crosby for the touchdown. Crosby kicked for the conversion and Jeannette led 21-0. In one of his only miscues of the night, Howard was intercepted by GCC's Sam Szweda in the final minute of the first half, eventually setting up a Max Pisula to Bryce Kurpiel 20-yard touchdown pass on the final play of the half. With the PAT kick good, Jeannette took a 21-7 lead to the locker room for halftime. 

Major penalties continued in the second half, but through it all, Jeannette put three more touchdowns on the board and GCC added one before the final horn. Another big pass completion to Barnes in the third quarter left Howard with only 1-yard to cover in scoring on the keeper. A missed PAT made it 27-7. Howard carried in from 3 yards out early in the fourth quarter, with Crosby adding the PAT kick, for a 34-7 advantage for the Hawks. Jeannette's final points came with under 5 minutes to play when Imani Sanders intercepted a Pisula pass and returned it 59 yards to the 1-yard line, from which he carried into the endzone on the next play. The 2-point conversion failed, giving Jeannette 40 points on the night. GCC added a touchdown in the final seconds of the game when Brando Ciccarelli found Zach Dlugos with a 15-yard touchdown pass. The point after kick was good, making the final score 40-14. The game finished just a few minutes shy of 3 hours, with stoppages for penalties taking a toll.  

Jeannette improves to 8-0 overall, 4-0 in conference, and travels to Riverview next Saturday for a noon conference game. Jeannette will be without the services of Marcus Barnes next week, who was ejected by officials in the second half following a personal foul. GCC drops to 5-3 overall, 3-3 in conference, and entertains Cornell next Friday at home in a non-conference matchup.     
     

Watch this link for a full gallery of action photos available for purchase or sharing the day after the game.

gtr-JeanGCC03-101318Jeannette quarterback Seth Howard (6) is brought down by GCC's Zach Kivinka after a short gain during the second quarter on Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, at McKee Stadium in Jeannette.