Leechburg starts strong in high-scoring win over Brentwood
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Friday, October 18, 2024 | 10:38 PM
After suffering its first loss of the season last week against Clairton, Leechburg didn’t seem to be fazed by it, as the Blue Devils came out hot offensively and didn’t look back in a 57-34 win over Brentwood in Class A Eastern Conference action at Brentwood Park on Friday night.
The Blue Devils were led by a strong first-half performance from their three-headed monster on offense: senior quarterback Jayden Floyd, junior running back Tim Andrasy and senior tight end Jake Cummings. With the win, Leechburg clinched its fourth consecutive playoff berth.
“They (Clairton) are a real good football team. That doesn’t make or break our season. We had to get back to doing it right. We had a heck of a week of practice. I think up front, we were pretty physical up front all night,” Leechburg coach Randy Walters said.
“It’s small as far as numbers since we have 25 kids, but it’s great for the community. This group can say when they are you and my age that we were on a team that went to the WPIALs four years in a row, which is something special.”
Floyd went 16 of 19 for 174 yards passing and finished with four total touchdowns, three coming in the air. Floyd started the game 9 for 9 passing and finished the first half with 130 yards passing and 28 yards on the ground.
Floyd had two first-half touchdown passes for the Blue Devils. He scrambled and moved to his left and found a wide-open junior Brice Gilmer for a 21-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0 with 3 minutes, 29 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
After Brentwood junior quarterback Cedric Davis connected with Forrest Betz for a 24-yard touchdown pass, Floyd responded with his own touchdown pass, a 35-yarder to senior Brady Rollinger.
“They run a nice offensive scheme,” Brentwood coach Nick Caponi said. “It’s hard to defend. Hats off to them. They came out and they took it to us. I was proud of how our kids battled and didn’t quit.”
Andrasy, who finished with 290 yards rushing on 19 carries and two touchdowns, started off the scoring when he capped a seven-play opening drive with a 12-yard touchdown run.
Cummings finished the day with 12 receptions for 107 yards and added 43 yards on the ground. Cummings had eight receptions for 74 yards in the first half and ran it in from a yard out to give the Blue Devils a 28-7 lead in the middle of the second quarter.
“They do a great job of leadership. But we go by our lines. We go by our offensive and defensive lines. They did a pretty good job all night with that tonight. Those guys are great players, but without the lines they don’t do anything with them,” Walters said.
Brentwood sophomore Daysaun Spencer caught second-half touchdowns of 26 and 22 yards from Davis.
Davis finished 18 of 25 for 312 yards passing and four touchdowns and an interception. He added 42 yards on the ground and a touchdown run.
Betz, who finished with 11 receptions for 168 yards receiving and a touchdown, joined an exclusive club as he became the first in the Brentwood history to record 100 receptions in a career.
“To have 100 receptions for your career is something special. I was proud of him. He’s a gamer. He works hard, and he gives you every single ounce of everything he has on every play,” Caponi said.
Brentwood will finish the season at Clairton next week, and Leechburg will finish the season at home against Greensburg Central Catholic.
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