Bulldogs score 35 unanswered, down rival Selinsgrove in dominant fashion
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JERSEY SHORE - Late in the first quarter, Connor Winters saw a sure touchdown go right through his hands. It was a moment that could've defined both his and his team's performance, as the Bulldogs lost a fumble two plays later with a not-so-safe seven-point lead.
However, rather than let that be the case, Winters decided to define the performance in a completely different way.
His 15-yard catch on a fourth down deep in the second helped the Bulldogs bolster their lead to 21-7 one play later. And with one last chance to impact the scoreboard before halftime, Winters took a hook-and-ladder the distance on what ended up being a 62-yard pass from Nolen Pauling.
Those two plays were the difference between a one-score and three-score gap at the half. And with momentum fully on their side to start the third, the Bulldogs carried it forward to blow Selinsgrove (1-2) out of the water in what was previously a close game, scoring 35 unanswered points to down its rival, 49-7, on Friday night at Thompson Street Stadium.
"It's amazing. It's a great feeling, especially at this stadium," said Winters on what it meant to make an impact in the rivalry matchup. "It's a great atmosphere; it means everything."
They were plays that helped turn a performance that was described as initially 'sloppy' by head coach Tom Gravish. After seeing a 14-0 lead halved by its own shortcomings, Jersey Shore got its bearings and was able to produce its most dominant outing of the season as a result.
Receiver Carter Rhinehart maintained his staggering, senior-season pace, turning eight receptions into a career-high 152 yards and a touchdown, playing a key role in quarterback Nolen Pauling 324-yard, four-touchdown performance. The defense shut Selinsgrove down and produced two interceptions, including a late pick-six, to round out a balanced game.
"We knew that if we kept our composure, we were gonna make our plays, and if we're focused and dialed in on defense, it's going to be hard to score (on us)," said Gravish. "I think we just lost our composure a little bit, all of us did. We just had to dial it back in and hats off to our guys for doing it."
After making the most of solid field position and driving into Selinsgrove's red zone, Jersey Shore saw back-to-back incompletions land it at fourth-and-six. Rather than settle for a field goal to go up 17-7 late in the second, the Bulldogs took a chance out of the timeout - a chance which paid off thanks to a tough play from Winters.
With the pressure closing in, Pauling threw it into a tight slot. Winters ran his deep curl well enough to create slight separation. And though he had to leave his feet and endure a hit from a Selinsgrove defender, he came down with the ball well past the marker to set Jersey Shore up a few yards short of the goal line.
"My head was ringing a bit, but I wasn't thinking about it too much," said Winters on the play. "Was just a little excited; everybody cheered me on. I think that fired me up to catch that and come down with the ball."
It didn't take long for the Bulldogs to capitalize, with Zeke Sechrist (13 rushes, 55 yards) going on to punch in his second score of the night from three yards out. The Jersey Shore defense then went on to force a turnover on downs at its 34-yard line, giving itself possession with 20 seconds left in the half.
Rather than run out the clock, the Bulldogs saw an opportunity to create more separation at the buzzer. After getting four yards closer on a run from Sechrist, Shore called a timeout before running a play it's been contemplating using since the summer. Pauling quickly got the ball to Rhinehart, who started running left before pitching it to Winters running right.
The hook-and-ladder play was ultimately run to perfection, ending with Winters sprinting down the right sideline and scoring with the clock sitting at triple zeros.
"I saw the linebacker coming at Carter. Then, Carter pitched it perfectly right behind him and after that, there was a clear field," said Winters.
"We played around with that in the summertime a little bit," said Gravish on the play. "We always have a couple plays where we're like, "Hey, here's the situation. What are we going to do?' We've got confidence that we can make plays like that."
With a 28-7 lead coming out of the break, the Bulldogs kept up the intensity until a running clock was installed in the fourth and beyond. Though two interceptions blemished a strong performance from Pauling, he made up for it by securing a pick of his own and capitalizing on strong field position on two separate occasions.
Two plays removed from the first pick he threw, Pauling jumped a route to set the Bulldogs up in the red zone. Two plays later, he found Khani McCray near the left pie line, with the multi-sport athlete making the most of a well-placed ball by mossing his defender for his second score of the season.
"The defender was way smaller than me. I'm 6'3", so basically anything that's up in the air, I'm getting it over anybody," said McCray on the play. "That's basically what I saw."
Pauling's third and final passing touchdown came two drives later, as he connected on a score with a third separate receiver. On third and long nearing the end of the third, the junior found Rhinehart wide open on a streak down the right side line, with the senior reeling in the 42-yard bomb to make it 42-7.
A 25-yard interception return from Hayden Kelley completed Shore's eruption of 35 unanswered points midway through the third. While the offense made big play after big play through the air, the defense held Selinsgrove under 100 yards until the reserves entered the game in the fourth.
It's a performance that sends Jersey Shore (3-0) into a much-anticipated road bout against similarly undefeated Shamokin, a team that's had the upper hand on the Bulldogs for four straight matchups. There's plenty to tune up heading into the battle, but Jersey Shore feels it’s up for the challenge.
"We're just trying to go 1-0 each week," said Rhinehart. "We're 3-0 right now, but that doesn't really matter. We've just got to keep going 1-0 every single week."
"We look forward to the challenge," said Gravish on Shamokin. "We want to fix up everything. There's a lot to fix up, and I think once we get it fixed, we can be a dangerous team.”
Jersey Shore 49, Selinsgrove 7
Selinsgrove 0 7 0 0
Jersey Shore 7 21 14 7
1st Quarter
JS – Zeke Sechrist 9 run (Gabriel Welshans kick), 4:18.
2nd Quarter
JS – Nolen Pauling 21 run (Welshans kick), 11:52.
S – Rocco Amato 2 run (Nash Fordyce kick), 7:04.
JS – Sechrist 3 run (Welshans kick), 2:05.
JS – Pauling to Carter Rhinehart to Connor Winters 62 pass (Welshans kick), :00.
3rd Quarter
JS – Pauling to Khani McCray 15 pass (Welshans kick), 4:47.
JS – Pauling to Rhinehart 42 pass (Welshans kick), :14.
4th quarter
JS – Hayden Kelley 25 interception return (Welshans kick), 6:45.
TEAM STATISTICS S JS
First Downs 8 10
Rushes-yards 28-92 30-100
Passing yards 54 277
Comp-Att-Int 10-25-2 13-23-2
Total yards 146 377
Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-1
Penalties-yards 3-35 7-65
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Selinsgrove, Colton Fegley, 3-42; Andrew Gesumaria 3-21; Isaac Thomas 2-17; Cael Badman 14-13; Rocco Amato 6-(-1), TD. Jersey Shore, Zeke Sechrist 11-55, 2 TDs; Nolen Pauling 10-42, TD; Jackson Hensler 2-2; Chase Ellison 1-2, Jason Jennings 4-1; Wyatt Swales 1-(-2).
PASSING: Selinsgrove, Rocco Amato 10-25-2 54 yards. Jersey Shore, Nolen Pauling 13-23 2, 277 yards, 3 TDs.
RECEIVING: Selinsgrove, Nash Fordyce 5-36; Isaac Thomas 3-10; Jonathan Neidig 1-6. Jersey Shore, Carter Rhinehart 8-152, TD; Connor Winters 2-82, TD; Khani McCray 2-29, TD; Aiden Patts 1-11.
INTERCEPTIONS: Selinsgrove, Nash Fordyce 1, Gabe Paradis 1. Jersey Shore, Nolen Pauling 1, Hayden Kelley 1.
RECORDS: Selinsgrove 1-2 (0-1 Heartland-I); Jersey Shore 3-0 (1-0 Heartland-I).