RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore’s Bo Sechrist (5) connects with a pass to score during a PIAA District 4, Class AAA semifinal game against Selinsgrove at home on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024.

While Jersey Shore’s September shellacking of Selinsgrove likely offered it some assurance heading into their rematch in the District 4 Class AAAA semifinals on Friday, anything can happen when the stakes include the potential, abrupt conclusion to your season.

Whether they overlooked the opponent in front of them or looked ahead to the likely rematch that awaited them, the Bulldogs could’ve gone into the matchup unfocused and paid for it accordingly. But coach Tom Gravish isn’t one to overlook anybody, and neither are his players.

Instead, they came out focused on the task at hand and the results reflected that. In Friday’s 48-7 win in front of its home crowd, Jersey Shore (8-3) played arguably its most complete game of the season, finishing its season series against the defending district champion 2-0 in emphatic fashion.

Though injuries throughout the season have made it difficult for the Bulldogs to carve out a complete identity or play to their full potential, the pieces seem to be falling into place at the perfect time.

Obviously, the going gets a lot tougher on Friday, as they take to the road to face Shamokin, a team that previously bested it at Thompson Street Stadium. But Gravish feels the team is finding its groove and is in a good spot heading into that matchup.

“We had some injuries in the beginning of the year. We never fit into an offensive identity like we’ve done in other seasons because of an injury here and there. But I feel like we’re getting more healthy to where we might be able to fit,” said Gravish after the win.

“We challenged our kids all week. We had a really good week of practice and that was our best Thursday practice that we had all year. That’s encouraging for where we’re heading.”

Defensively, it played lights out, holding the Seals to just 126 yards of total offense while forcing three timely turnovers, two of which were turned into third-quarter touchdowns.

The prosperous Selinsgrove backfield featuring the likes Ethan Miller and standout receiver Gavin Bastian was held in check all night, with Bastian totaling just 27 yards on ten touches. And with an imposing pass rush that posted five sacks, it rarely allowed the Seals to get anything through the air, with 58 of its 70 passing yards coming with the game in a hand on a long, fourth-quarter touchdown.

The defense has been tested and overcome on occasion, most notably in losses to Shamokin and Scranton Prep. Both matchups saw the Bulldogs struggle in the second half and surrender over 350 yards of total offense.

But against the Seals, the unit showed a lot of promise and potential progress.

Even amidst a down year, Selinsgrove (5-6) has stars that have given defenses headaches, most notably Williamsport (5-5) and Berwick (4-7). To have a performance like that to kick off the postseason should give the unit a confidence boost heading into one of its biggest tests.

“There’s some things we have to clean up there. Every team matches up different with you on defense,” said Gravish. “But I was pleased with our defense. We gave up the one pass for a touchdown — we don’t like to really give those up — but all in all, they played lights out with two scores.”

Since transitioning from running back to quarterback through the offseason, Elijah Jordan has steadily found his footing under center. In the six games between his three-interception outing against Shamokin and the team’s rematch with Selinsgrove, he posted a 15-to-2 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

On Friday, he upped that to 17-to-2, playing a key role in the team building a big lead heading into halftime with two second-quarter passing touchdowns and generating over 200 yards (162 pass, 52 rush) of total offense by the game’s conclusion. Running backs Brodie Herr and Bo Sechrist combined for 99 rushing yards on 21 attempts, and the offense as a whole surpassed 350 yards.

With three straight scoring drives in the second quarter, the team entered the second half with a commanding 28-0 lead, built by a sound, complete performance from the team. While the first quarter could’ve been better, neither unit let that faze it, operating on the same wavelength to secure the well-rounded dub.

It was a near-perfect example of how to start the postseason right, as Jersey Shore looks to earn its first district title since 2022. One misstep or lackluster performance is all it takes to abruptly close a season and for now, the Bulldogs don’t have that problem.

BACK ON THE

WINNING SIDE

After four rough years without a winning season, Bellefonte (7-4) entered its District 6 Class AAAA semifinal matchup against Greater Johnstown having already ended that drought, clinching a winning season at home against Huntingdon two weeks back.

However, one drought still remained, spanning the same number of seasons. And one additional win later, that drought was relinquished as well. In continuing the turnaround nature of this 2024 season, the Raiders earned their first playoff win since 2019 on Friday, defeating the Trojans 38-18 to advance to the championship round.

Senior quarterback Liam Halterman achieved 100-yard games through both the air and ground, headlining a performance that saw the team fall one yard short of 250 rushing yards. And though the defense surrendered some ground in terms of yardage, it pulled in four interceptions to keep Greater Johnstown a few steps behind through the game’s entirety.

It now stands one win away from matching not only its win total through the previous four seasons but also that 2019 season’s greatest achievement, a district title. Whatever happens next Saturday at Juniata, it won’t take away from an excellent turnaround from the Raiders.