PIAA CLASS A QUARTERFINAL Sharpsville is ousted

By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
SHARON, Pa. -- On Friday, Bishop Carroll did what no team had done to Sharpsville this season -- score more than 15 points.
And they did it in the first half.
The Huskies used several big plays to open up a 21-0 second-quarter lead and held off the Blue Devils 24-13 in Friday's PIAA Class A quarterfinal at Sharon High Stadium.
"One thing we didn't want to do was give up big plays," said Sharpsville (11-2) coach Paul Piccirilli. "They hurt us on three of them in the first half."
The first came on a 70-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Nate Crookshank to tailback Chad Schilling that gave Carroll (12-1) a 7-0 lead.
On the Huskies' next possession, Schilling broke through the left side of the line for a 75-yard touchdown run.
Through the middle: "Our option game really wasn't there, so we ran Schilling up the middle," said Carroll coach Craig Sponsky. "He followed his blocks well and gave extra effort all night long. He continues to amaze us every week."
After a Sharpsville punt, Crookshank found tight end Nate Greczek for a 48-yard pass to the Sharpsville 5. Three plays later, Schilling scored from 5 yards out.
"What makes [Schilling] so good is that their quarterback was so outstanding in the first half," said Piccirilli. "If they were one-dimensional, we could have slowed him down."
The senior finished with 15 carries for 152 yards in the first half and had 24 carries for 204 yards in the game. Crookshank hit just 3-of-6 passes, but had 134 yards and an interception.
Bright spot: Sharpsville junior Ray Rotell was the lone bright spot for the Blue Devils in the first half, returning a Huskie fumble 55 yards for a touchdown with under two minutes remaining in the second quarter. Rotell also had a 65-yard punt and an interception in the first half, but Sharpsville managed just 1 net yard on the ground.
Rotell's fumble return seemed to energize the Blue Devils, and Sharpsville came out on its second possession of the third quarter and drove 58 yards in 11 plays, capped by quarterback Mark Anglin's 3-yard touchdown run to make it 21-13. Rotell's extra-point try was blocked.
Sharpsville wouldn't get any closer.
"We came out hard in the second half," said Piccirilli. "But they're a good team. The better team won tonight."
Field goal: Carroll's Dan Heinlen added a 27-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter and Crookshank picked off Anglin's desperation heave with under two minutes left to seal the game.
"We threw some deep passes, which is something they haven't seen us do," said Sponsky. "Nobody had made us throw the ball this year, so we showed we could do it. Crookshank also played a good game defensively."
Anglin finished 11-of-22 for 89 yards and an interception. Blue Devil senior Ron Haywood, who had 1,184 yards entering the game, carried 16 times for 65 yards. Eric Major, who had 920 yards entering the game, finished with 10 carries for 28 yards.
scalzo@vindy.com