Duffy Leads Tigers To Victory Over the Panthers

By Steve Scoleri
Tigers Radio Network

NEWTOWN SQUARE, PA - Alumni night was a night to remember for the Marple Newtown Tigers starting right from the opening kickoff against the Strath Haven Panthers. After being beat last year 36-0 by the Panthers, Marple had the upper hand this year beating the Panthers 14-7 to improve to 5-1 on the season.

After winning the opening coin toss, Marple Newtown chose to receive which turned out to be a great call for the Tigers. Ryan White was back deep to return and once he touched the ball you could see his speed was not going to be denied. Ryan White exploded down the field and made a beautiful spin move to take the opening kickoff all the way to the house with a 92-yard kickoff return with 11:25 remaining in the first quarter. This was just what Marple Newtown was looking for to get an early lead against a good team.

The scoring might have been low but Marple Newtown was able to do a nice job in controlling the ball and coming up with key defensive stops against the Strath Haven Panthers. Strath Haven was 2 for 8 on third down conversions and 1 for 3 on fourth down conversions. The Tiger's defense made it tough for Strath Haven to get anything going offensively. A key momentum swing was when Strath Haven elected to go for it on fourth down on their opening possession when they could have kicked an easy field goal to get them on the scoreboard. They missed the attempt and from there on Marple Newtown seemed to know they had a shot to take it to them.

The running attack of Marple Newtown proved to be key in controlling the clock and moving the chains. Ryan Duffy did a nice job being the featured back in the offense. He had 20 rushes for 86 yards. In the third quarter, he was able to punch it into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown run to put the Tigers up.

Not only was Ryan Duffy a huge offensive star of the game, but he also came up huge on the defensive side of the ball. With Strath Haven threatening to score, Ryan Duffy makes a great interception to stall the drive. This play was crucial in the game for both sides.

Strath Haven would not go away without a fight. Quarterback Bryan Downs threw to Patrick Fisher for a 27-yard touchdown to get them back in the game. They were just one onside kick recovery from having a shot to tie the game. Marple Newtown did have trouble recovering onside kicks against Conestoga but this was a different night and a different outcome. The Tigers were able to recover the onside kick with no problems which was a huge sigh of relief for everyone in Harry Harvey Stadium. Marple Newtown was able to run out the rest of the clock and record a tally in the win column.

This was a huge win for the Marple Newtown Tigers in the Central Athletic League. This team is opening up many eyes and is showing they are firing on all cylinders. They treat every game important no matter who they face. This is showing to be a magical season for the Tigers and they hope to continue their dominance against Garnet Valley next week.


Contact Steve Scoleri at sds5084@psu.edu.
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