Dauer’s 4 touchdowns lead Keystone Oaks past Deer Lakes

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, September 16, 2017 | 12:03 AM

The power of Dauer was on display at Dormont Memorial Stadium Friday night.

Keystone Oaks running back Michael Dauer led the Golden Eagles to a 35-0 win over Deer Lakes in a WPIAL Class 3A Allegheny Conference showdown.

The junior had more than 250 all-purpose yards with four touchdowns.

“(He) is an explosive athlete,” Keystone Oaks coach Greg Perry said. “He is kind of underrated. He has a quickness to him that can get him to the next level and has an athletic twitch that makes it hard to get a hit on him.”

The Golden Eagles (3-0, 2-0) led 14-0 heading into the fourth quarter, but a 90-second span blew the game open. Logan Shrubb's 37-yard touchdown pass to Dauer early in the quarter was followed by interceptions by Tyler Hrivnak and Joey Tortorella. The turnovers led to Dauer touchdown runs of 58 and 15 yards.

Keystone Oaks forced four turnovers in the game — three were interceptions by Hrivnak.

“Our defense flipped the field with the turnovers,” Perry said. “The defense is playing great. We have very good athletes on the back seven.”

Dauer finished with 190 yards on 21 carries and added 73 yards on three receptions.

After a scoreless first quarter, Keystone Oaks found the end zone on the second play of the second quarter as Dauer took a handoff to the outside and scored on a 25-yard run.

Four minutes later, Keystone Oaks scored on Shrubb's 10-yard pass to CJ Morrow.

Shrubb, a 14-year-old freshman, threw for 133 yards.

“I have done this for 26 years, and I don't think I started a quarterback who wasn't at least a junior,” Perry said. “We run a no-huddle system that throws the ball around. He has to see protections and see coverages. It isn't easy.

“We're hoping every game he grows a little bit. We don't call him a freshman anymore. We call him a quarterback.”

It was a slow start for the Lancers offense, which recorded just 6 yards in the first quarter. The Lancers (0-3, 0-3) had a chance to cut into the lead late in the second quarter after a Jack Hollibaugh 46-yard catch and run from Aris Hasley gave the offense a first down on the Keystone Oaks 24. But a delay of game put Deer Lakes in a third-and-long situation it couldn't convert.

“This is the third game we played, and it is the third game we only played three quarters,” Deer Lakes coach Steve Sciullo said. “It is our second consecutive game that we have been shut out. It hurts me and hurts my soul to see it happen. That is eight quarters of no scoring.”

Hasley, in his second start of the season, had some success, with 147 yards through the air.

“Last week, we ran a lot of Wildcat stuff, so this is the first time he really played quarterback for four quarters,” Sciullo said. “Sometimes the ball goes in the other team's hands when you need to come back in a game. But the turnovers need to stop, so we will coach them up and correct it.”

This is the first 0-3 start for Deer Lakes since 2014.

Nathan Smith is a freelance writer.

Tags: Deer Lakes, Keystone Oaks