Diven, Trimbur lead South Fayette past Highlands

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, October 12, 2018 | 10:09 PM

South Fayette has the ability to score points in a hurry.

Sometimes they score without touching the ball.

A bad snap by visiting Highlands on the game’s first play from scrimmage resulted in a safety for South Fayette. That proved to be a tone-setter as the Lions beat the Golden Rams, 54-21, Friday night in Class 4A Northwest Eight Conference action.

“I thought our kids came out and did a nice job early,” South Fayette coach Joe Rossi said. “(Highlands) has been putting a lot of points on the board, so I was proud of our defense to hold them at bay there a little bit.”

The No. 2 Lions (5-0, 7-1) have won seven straight since a season-opening loss to Class 5A Upper St. Clair. The Rams (2-4, 2-6) have dropped two in a row.

Quarterback Jamie Diven completed 9 of 10 passes for 219 yards and four touchdowns in the first half. Receiver Mike Trimbur caught four passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns, and running back Andrew Franklin rushed for two scores.

The Lions scored on all eight of their first-half possessions as they took a 54-14 lead into halftime.

Following the game-opening safety, the Lions went 37 yards in three plays as Diven found a wide-open Charley Rossi for a 19-yard touchdown and a 9-0 lead at 10 minutes, 42 seconds in the first quarter.

The Golden Rams answered when Noah Gillette scored on a 36-yard hook-and-lateral play to cut the deficit to 9-7.

“We had some adversity right off the bat,” Highlands coach Dom Girardi said. “They scored, then we went down and answered it. Not too many teams have done that against them.”

Trimbur then caught touchdown passes of 48 and 58 yards on back-to-back possessions as South Fayette began to pull away.

“(Trimbur) is a stud,” Rossi said. “We’ve had a lot of good receivers come through here, and Mikey’s up there. He runs good routes and comes every day ready to go.”

Franklin had a 1-yard touchdown run as the Lions took a 30-7 lead in the first quarter. The junior running back added another 1-yard touchdown run. RayQuin Glover had a 21-yard touchdown run. Peyton Tinney had a 6-yard touchdown reception and Ryan Coe added a 45-yard field goal before halftime.

The lone bright spot for Highlands in the second quarter was Johnny Crise’s 49-yard touchdown reception.

Highlands running back Brock White had a 15-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter. That was the only scoring play for either team in the second half.

“Then things started to snowball a little bit there, but again in the second half, we came out with resolve and never quit,” Girardi said. “That’s the great thing about this game – whether you win or lose, you learn from it. You move on from it to be the best football player you can next Monday in practice.”

Jesse Geleynse is a freelance writer.

Tags: Highlands, South Fayette