Cruce Brookins powers top-ranked Steel Valley past Burrell

By: Antonio Rossetti
Friday, October 14, 2022 | 10:12 PM

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The Steel Valley Ironmen continued their path of dominance, defeating the Burrell Bucs, 48-0, on Friday night in Class 2A Allegheny Conference action.

The Ironmen (7-0, 5-0) were greeted with a shower of boos by a sea of pink-clad Burrell fans in the student section, but by the end of the night, Steel Valley silenced the opposition.

The Ironmen’s key to success was the defense holding the Bucs to one first down in the first half.

As for the offense, quarterback Cruce Brookins lit a spark for Steel Valley, scoring early and often.

Brookins finished with 138 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries. He also completed 5 of 8 passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns.

Steel Valley coach Ray Braszo praised Brookins’ leadership skills.

“Cruce makes us go,” Braszo said. “He’s our leader. He’s a great ballplayer, and he runs hard. Great speed. He’s a breakaway player, and what can you say about him? He’s for real, but he’s our quarterback who makes us go both running and passing.”

Burrell (5-2, 2-3) opened the game with a surprise for the Ironmen, recovering an onside kick. Nonetheless, after stuffing the Bucs on fourth-and-short, the Ironmen took control of the game.

Steel Valley struck first when Brookins found a hole and ran for a 22-yard touchdown.

Later in the quarter, Brookins found the end zone on a 40-yard punt return. After an AJ Karstetter extra point, the Ironmen led 14-0.

The Ironmen carried the momentum through the second quarter when Brookins threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Makhal Valentine.

After a Burrell three-and-out, Steel Valley mustered another score as Brookins ran 51 yards for a touchdown, making it 28-0.

Steel Valley scored again with a 37-yard pass from Brookins to Valentine. After a missed PAT, the Ironmen led 34-0 at halftime.

The Ironmen notched two more touchdowns in the second half. One was a 9-yard run by Jesean Wright, and the other was a 47-yard strip and fumble return for Da’Ron Barksdale, capping their scoring for the night.

Braszo said he knew going in about Burrell’s smashmouth offense and made sure the team loaded the box in a successful attempt to win the battle up front.

“They are a very physical team,” Braszo said. “They are a hard team to prepare for. If you can’t stop their running game, it’s a long day. We kind of went old school, put a lot of guys in there. Our defensive linemen and our defensive players did a great job.”

Burrell, meanwhile, is still in the playoff hunt. Coach Shawn Liotta urged his players not to hang their heads.

“We played a really good football team here today,” Liotta said. “Coach Braszo has done an excellent job at Steel Valley. They’re ranked No. 1 in the WPIAL. They are top three in the state for a reason. They really impressed me today.”

Liotta said he believes his team will stay motivated going into the last two weeks of the regular season.

“We’re going to play hard the whole game,” Liotta said. “We are going to play all 48 minutes, and our kids aren’t going to quit. They are going to battle tough, and we are going to come out tomorrow and watch the film and be out on the practice field Monday, getting ready for Derry.”

Tags: Burrell, Steel Valley