Lightning, thunder no match for No. 1 Aliquippa in victory over No. 5 Beaver Falls

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, September 21, 2018 | 11:21 PM

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Lightning, thunder and drenching rain stormed into Reeves Field on Friday night, briefly knocking out power to Geneva College’s stadium.

But, eventually, even the weather conceded a victory to Aliquippa.

“The storm’s got to come a little bit harder (if it wants to win),” Quips senior Avante McKenzie said with a laugh.

Shrugging off long lightning delays, McKenzie rushed for 224 yards and three touchdowns in a 39-0 victory over rival Beaver Falls that lasted more than three hours. The first of two delays came just four plays into the first quarter as a wall of rain sent players, coaches and fans scrambling for cover.

“I’ve never seen rain hit (the home) stands, then hit us and then hit the other stands,” McKenzie said. “That was crazy.”

The Quips were pass-heavy in their first four wins, but decided to rely more on McKenzie’s legs on this windy and rainy night. McKenzie had only nine carries but scored on first-half runs of 27, 79 and 82 yards as Aliquippa reach the end zone on its first five possessions.

He averaged 24 yards per carry.

“It was time for No. 4,” Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield said of McKenzie. “We spent the majority of the week going over our run blocking. The kids responded. … We knew we had to be able to establish the run to be successful.”

McKenzie was a 1,600-yard rusher a year ago but entered Friday with just 311 yards and six touchdowns on 42 carries. In comparison, the Quips had passed for nearly 800 yards and 15 scores this season.

But passing plays that work on dry, 80-degree days don’t necessarily work once the weather turns bad, Warfield noted.

In other words, McKenzie just had to stay patient.

“I’ve been so impressed with him, just his attitude coming into a new offense,” said Warfield, who revamped Aliquippa’s offense in his first year as coach. “It’s run and pass now. Just his attitude, he didn’t get down. He knew his time was coming.”

The Quips didn’t abandon the pass. Senior quarterback Eli Kosanovich completed 7 of 9 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns. Will Gipson caught a 60-yarder and Deoveon Crute had an 80-yarder.

But the air attack was scaled back from a week ago when Kosanovich threw six touchdowns, including two to McKenzie.

“I have no problem with the passing game,” McKenzie said, “because I know sooner or later I’m going to break (a run). I want to thank the line. We couldn’t pass the ball without the line. We couldn’t run the ball without that line. We’ve just got to keep our heads straight. Everybody’s going to have their time.”

M.J. Devonshire added a 26-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

Defensively, No. 1 Aliquippa (5-0, 3-0), now alone atop the Tri-County West, posted its fourth shutout in five games. The Quips intercepted Beaver Falls twice and forced five punts on seven possessions.

No. 5 Beaver Falls (4-1, 3-1) was seeking its first regular-season win over the Quips since 2009. The Tigers managed only 105 yards from scrimmage on 35 plays, led by quarterback Dayln Brickner’s 47 rushing yards.

“It’s just one game against a very good team,” Beaver Falls coach Nick Nardone said. “It doesn’t make or break our season unless we let it. You could dwell on (a loss) like that and let it affect the next two weeks. Or you can spit it out, forget about it and come back next week ready. “

The game lasted three hours and 10 minutes.

The first half alone was two hours, 49 minutes, slowed by a nearly 40-minute lightning delay in the first quarter and an hour-long delay in the second.

With Aliquippa ahead 26-0 during the second lightning delay, the coaches agreed just before halftime to reduce the second half to eight-minute quarters with a running clock.

“We handled the distractions well,” Warfield said. “We went through a situation like this at camp — waiting, going back to practice, waiting, going back to practice — so I thought we were prepared for that. The kids are mentally tough.”

Chris Harlan is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Chris at charlan@tribweb.com or via Twitter @CHarlan_Trib.

Tags: Aliquippa, Beaver Falls