Coughlin shuts out Valley West

KINGSTON – Destiny never showed up to greet Wyoming Valley West at Spartan Stadium on Friday night.

Coughlin’s defense certainly did.

Coughlin forced six turnovers, held Valley West to a season-low 160 yards and awoke its dormant offense in the fourth quarter for a 14-0 victory in a Wyoming Valley Conference interdivisional game.

The Crusaders had just 7 yards of offense in the first half, but scoring runs of 14 and 47 yards by tailback Matt Shimshock led to the game’s only touchdowns. The latter run with 2:46 remaining sealed the victory and sealed Valley West’s fate.

The Spartans (6-4) will likely have an Eastern Conference Class 4A berth available as opposed to a spot in the District 2/4-11 Class 4A playoffs. Coughlin (6-4) sewed up an E.C. Class 3A spot with the win.

All Valley West needed to do was defeat Coughlin, something it had done the past five years, to get into the D2/4-11 Class 4A playoffs and possibly secure a home game. Instead, the loss allowed Hazleton Area and Williamsport to claim D2/4’s two automatic berths and Wallenpaupack to gain the tournament’s wild card spot. District 11 teams will fill out the final five positions.

The Spartans squandered excellent field position in the first half, lost three fumbles and had three passes picked off and ended up being shut out for the first time in 33 games.

“We moved the ball and I’m sure we racked up yards, but we just didn’t put up any points,” Valley West coach Pat Keating said. “That’s something we talked about all week with Coughlin. They allowed the fewest amount of points in the league. They give up yards, but they don’t give up points.”

Valley West didn’t have to move the ball far to get into scoring position in the first half, starting every possession inside Coughlin territory.

The Spartans’ second drive, though, ended when Coughlin linebacker Josh Popple recovered a fumble at the Crusaders’ 16-yard line. The next ended on a botched snap on a 32-yard field goal try. A fumble recovery by Coughlin’s Dave Lalla at the Crusaders’ 20 stopped the next drive.

The final blunder came when Coughlin’s Derrick Harold intercepted a pass at the Coughlin 3 with under a minute left until halftime.

“Brian Hampel, our defensive coordinator, did an outstanding job to get our kids ready the last two weeks, shutting out Crestwood and then shutting out Valley West,” Coughlin coach Ciro Cinti said. “The kids believe in themselves, they believe in the system and they play with their hearts.

“They’re not the biggest, they’re not the fastest, but they play with their hearts.”

Harold’s second interception of the game near midfield set up Coughlin’s first score.

The Crusaders finally showed some life offensively after the pick, moving to the Valley West 14 where Shimshock scored his first TD at 6:36 of the fourth quarter. The point-after was blocked, and the Crusaders clung to a 6-0 lead.

The lead looked precarious when the Spartans moved to the Coughlin 27 three plays after Angelo Scaffido’s kick return started the drive at the Crusaders’ 43.

But a second-down fumble resulted in a third-and-10. Popple and defensive lineman Eli Tohme combined on consecutive sacks to end the possession.

“It was absolutely huge,” Tohme said. “It means everything to get in there and stop them. They’re a power offense and to get pressure on them is unbelievable. It’s something we’ve been working on all week. We executed well and got the job done.”

Shimshock broke off his 47-yard TD run three plays later, and Mike Kearney’s two-point conversion pass to Brandon Geasey increased the lead to 14-0 to play.

Shimshock had just 8 yards on seven carries in the first half. He finished with 19 rushes for 94 yards.

“The coaches do a great job of scheming and the linemen do a great job of executing,” Shimshock said. “The holes just opened up. Our receivers did a great job blocking down field. They’re the ones who spring those big runs, so you have to give them some credit, too.”