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Missing its top 3 running backs, Pine-Richland fends off North Hills in Northeast opener

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Saturday, September 14, 2024 | 12:48 AM

The Pine-Richland roster lists Jalen Neals as a wide receiver, but the versatile junior had a hint that his coaches were planning a position change.

At least for one game.

“I was at the JV game and coach was like, ‘Jalen, make sure you know the running back plays for this week,’” said Neals, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound slot receiver. “I was like, ‘What?’”

Pine-Richland’s top three running backs all were sidelined Friday night with injuries, so coaches asked Neals and quarterback Aaron “Oobi” Strader to run the ball 34 times combined in a 29-24 conference victory over North Hills that started fast and ended very slowly.

The teams combined for 48 points in the first half and only five after halftime.

Pine-Richland’s leading rusher Mac Miller was one of the three running backs sidelined Friday. Strader and Neals alleviated some of those backfield woes by combining for 144 rushing yards and one touchdown.

“It’s going to take a toll on my body, but I feel good right now,” said Strader, who ran the ball 19 times. “That’s probably the most carries I’ve ever had in a game.”

Neals scored on a 10-yard run on the opening drive and later converted a crucial fourth-and-1 in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.

“I’ll play wherever they need me to play,” said Neals, who had 83 yards from scrimmage and even helped a teammate with a promposal on the field after the win. “If the coaches want to put me in at running back, I’ll play running back, wide receiver, anything. I’ll play D-line if they need me to.”

It wasn’t always pretty, but No. 2 Pine-Richland (3-0, 1-0) did just enough to win the Northeast opener.

The Rams built leads of 14-0 and 24-7 in the first half but saw North Hills close the margin to six points by halftime and three points in the third quarter.

“It was an exciting game in ways, but not a well-played game, at least from our end,” Pine-Richland coach Jon LeDonne said. “North Hills had a good game plan. They came out with a lot of energy. We played with a lot of emotion early and got up, and then we fizzled out.”

North Hills (3-1, 0-1) lost this conference matchup 47-0 in 2022 and 43-0 last season. This one could’ve easily gone that lopsided way, too. North Hills’ first offensive play resulted in a 55-yard pick-six by Pine-Richland’s Jay Timmons for a 14-0 lead barely two minutes into the game.

Tanner Cunningham took an end-around 15 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter to lead 21-7.

Yet North Hills battled back and had chances in the second half to take the lead with a touchdown drive. But poor field position in the fourth quarter kept the Indians trapped in their own end and ultimately led to a key Pine-Richland safety.

The safety, with 4:03 left in the fourth, came after the Rams downed a punt at the 1-yard line.

“That was a very good team over there, and I’m sure we were a heavy underdog in the game,” North Hills coach Pat Carey said. “Our kids are resilient and tough and find a way. You’re down 14 points, and you outscore them the rest of the game.”

North Hills’ Jack Martin scored twice on swing passes along the left sideline. He took one 27 yards early in the second quarter and added a 68-yarder that cut Pine-Richland’s lead to 27-21 shortly before halftime.

Stephen Murphy scored North Hills’ first touchdown on a 27-yard run.

Pine-Richland got first-half field goals of 24 and 37 yards from Grant Argiro. North Hills kicker Jack Scarsella made a 32-yard field goal later in the third quarter, cutting Pine-Richland’s lead to 27-24.

But North Hills got no closer.

The Indians had one final chance from its own 31-yard line with 15 seconds on the clock, but quarterback Kelly McCarthy was sacked to end the game. McCarthy completed 6 of 9 passes for 138 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

Strader went 8 for 21 passing for 177 yards.

“We’re definitely not satisfied because we have high expectations for ourselves,” Strader said. “But leaving here with a conference win is the best that we could get.”

Pine-Richland hadn’t played a game in 13 days since last week’s game was suspended before kickoff by thunderstorms. LeDonne said the team had a sluggish week of practice, so he tried to boost the energy with two onside kicks and a fake punt in the first seven minutes.

None of the three was successful.

But Pine-Richland’s read-option running game kept the clock moving in the fourth quarter. With less than three minutes left, Neals ran the ball on three consecutive plays. He was a yard short on a key third-and-8 run but succeeded in moving the chains on fourth down.

“I was like, ‘Dang, they didn’t give me it, give me the ball again,’” Neals said. “I’m going to get this first down.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

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