Football - GCC vs Jeannette
Jeannette Rolls into Playoffs with 55-0 Rout at Greensburg Central CatholicIn a season where many traditional rivalry games fell victim to an erratic and shortened 2020 season, the Greensburg Central Catholic vs. Jeannette game was spared from the scheduler's cut. Unfortunately for the Centurions, nothing spared them from the beating that their Class A Eastern Conference neighbors from Jeannette would inflict on them in their annual tussle on Friday, October 23, at the Centurions' stadium in Carbon. The playoff-bound Jayhawks scored early and often in topping GCC 55-0 in the week 7 regular season finale. GCC took the opening kickoff and punted to Jeannette after stalling out offensively in 4 downs. Jeannette needed only one offensive play to put the game winning points on the board. Roberto Smith took a handoff through the middle, eluding defenders before diving for the pylon with a 45-yard touchdown run. The PAT kick was missed and the Jayhawks held a 6-0 lead at 10:18 to play in the opening quarter. After GCC punted on their next possession, Jeannette tried to work the ball out of their own territory, eventually bringing up a 4th-and-15 from their 25 yard line. Toby Cline raced around right end for good yardage on 4th down, but he came up a yard short of the lead stick, setting the Centurions up on the Jeannette 39-yard line. But GCC ended up going backwards from that spot, eventually punting to the Jayhawks on 4th down. Jeannette then mounted an 84-yard drive with Smith carrying for his second touchdown from 4 yards out. The two-point conversion attempt failed and it was 12-0 at 1:23 to play in the quarter. An inadvertent GCC kneel down on a muffed punt snap early in the second quarter put Jeannette in business at the GCC 15 yard line. Smith got the touchdown hat trick with 9:32 left in the quarter when he carried in from the 1 yard line. Another failed two-point conversion kept the score at 18-0. Forced to punt on 4th-and-10 from their 45, GCC punter Dean Crissman had his kick blocked by a leaping Roberto Jones, which Emilio Huerta scooped and returned for a touchdown at the 7:35 mark. This time the Jayhawks converted as James Sanders hit Kaelan Piscar for two points and a 26-0 lead. Smith, who had a hand in the previous 4 scoring plays, made it five as he scored his 4th touchdown on a 20 yard romp to the end zone with 4:42 on the second quarter clock. A Brad Birch to James Sanders pass completion for the conversion made it 34-0. Smith capped off the first half with a bang as he hit James Sanders on a 42-yard touchdown pass on the final play of the second quarter. A failed two-point conversion made the score at intermission 40-0. The second half featured a running clock due to the mercy rule, and Jeannette received the kickoff and used almost 9 minutes in scoring on a Jaydin Canady touchdown run. Elijah Binakonsky booted the PAT through the uprights to make the score 47-0. A touchdown pass from Payton Molter to Louis Callaway with 7:45 remaining in the game rounded out the scoring for Jeannette, with a direct snap to kicker Binakonsky added the two-point conversion for a 55-0 lead. Jeannette had the ball first-and-goal from the GCC 6-yard line with over 4 minutes remaining in the game, but Jayhawks head coach Roy Hall elected to take multiple 5-yard delay of game penalties with the constantly running clock ticking away, effectively ending the game without any further scoring. Jeannette (6-1), with the season-opening loss to Clairton the only blemish on their record, awaits announcement of their seeding and opponent in the WPIAL playoffs. Greensburg Central Catholic (2-5) had their season come to an end, missing the playoffs after qualifying in 2019. Watch this link for a full gallery of action photos available for purchase or sharing the day after the game.
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