By Todd Hummel
CATAWISSA -- For the first six weeks of the season, no team has been able to hang with Selinsgrove in the first half. The Seals have dominated the first two quarters, outscoring foes 194-16.
So when Selinsgrove climbed the soggy hill back to the locker room at Southern Columbia High School on a rainy, cold Friday night with only a touchdown advantage in its Heartland Athletic Conference crossover game with Southern Columbia, the Tigers could have taken it as a moral victory.
But Southern Columbia was looking for much, more, an upset that would have sent shock waves throughout the state.
In the end, though, the Seals had enough to hang on, using two fourth-quarter touchdowns and an onside kick recovery with three minutes left in the game to hang on to a 35-28 victory over the Tigers.
"We came out a little flat against one of the best four-loss teams you're ever going to see," Selinsgrove coach Dave Hess said. "They were able to do some things to our defense that nobody has done all season."
"We were a bit flat, but Southern was a very disciplined team and they were all over us," said Selinsgrove fullback Seth Lauver, who had one of the fourth-quarter touchdowns. "They were aggressive and made us pay for some of our mistakes. I know our coaches will be watching film all weekend to fix it and they will have us ready for Shikellamy."
The victory clinches the top seed in the District 4 Class AAA playoffs for the Seals and improves their record to 7-0 on the season.
Tiger Stadium has not been a kind place for Selinsgrove. The Seals hadn't won there since a 36-3 victory in 1977, though that does encompass just three games.
After stopping Southern Columbia on its first two possessions, Selinsgrove looked to be on its way to making quick work of another opponent when Kyle Schuck caught an 18-yard TD pass from Cory Briggs with 4:16 left in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead, but the Tigers had other ideas.
Southern (3-4) answered with a 13-play, 65-yard drive to tie the game with 10:25 left in the second quarter on Jake Morton's two-yard TD plunge. Sophomore Tyrell Thomas had the two big plays on the drive, a 16-yard catch on a third-and-15 and a 19-yard run on a third-and-three to keep the drive alive.
Selinsgrove standout Ryan Keiser had the answer for the Seals, taking the ensuing kickoff back 90 yards for a touchdown and a 14-7 Selinsgrove lead.
The score remained that way until halftime as the Seals' offense held the ball for most of the second quarter, but were stymied by a fumbled snap on the Tigers' 13 and a big sack by Tom Schretroma on a fourth-and-three from the Tigers' 6.
The Seals took advantage of field position to add to its lead early in the third quarter. After Cameron Benner dropped a punt on the Tigers' 3 and the Seals defense forced a three-and-out, Selinsgrove took over on the Southern 17. Matt Wenrich scored seven plays later to give the Seals a 21-7 lead.
The Tigers didn't go away, scoring on their next possession to cut the lead to 21-14 on Tim Benner's two-yard TD catch from quarterback Jake Townsend on a fourth-and-goal play with 1:10 left in the third quarter. Thomas played another large role in this drive, ripping off a 40-yard run on third-and-two down to the Selinsgrove 6.
Selinsgrove appeared to salt the game away in the fourth when Lauver scored on a 25-yard burst up the middle and Matt Ruby caught a 20-yard TD pass from Briggs sandwiched around a Southern Columbia punt to take a 35-14 lead with 5:55 left.
Southern Columbia marched 75 yards in 11 plays, capped by a Townsend to Jarred Hallick TD pass with 3:19 left in the game to cut the lead to 35-21, but when Ben Morrow recovered the ensuing onside kick, all the Seals had to do was run out the clock.
But Keiser fumbled a handoff on a reverse and Alex Fidler recovered it on the Selinsgrove 35. Six plays later, Hallick caught his second TD pass of the final quarter to cut the Selinsgrove lead to 35-28 with 2:22 left in the game.
Backup quarterback Justin Keiser recovered Southern's next onside kick attempt and the Seals ran three times for a first down to run out the clock and escape with the victory.
