Rubrecht scores 4 times to help Greensburg Salem turn away Deer Lakes

By: Paul Schofield
Friday, September 16, 2022 | 10:52 PM

It took Greensburg Salem a few series before it found its rhythm against Deer Lakes on Friday. But, once it did, it rolled to a third-consecutive victory.

And it was the running of senior quarterback Cody Rubrecht and sophomore running back Kai Brunot that carried the Golden Lions (3-1) to a 28-14 nonconference victory at historic Offutt Field. It was victory No. 708 in the history of the program.

It was Rubrecht’s fourth touchdown of the game, a 62-yard jaunt early in the fourth quarter, which sealed the deal against a feisty Deer Lakes squad, which fell to 1-3.

Rubrecht rushed for 168 yards and scored on runs of 4, 12 and 20 yards. Brunot rushed for 77 yards through the middle that kept Deer Lakes’ defense honest and allowed Rubrecht to get the edge.

“He’s a great athlete,” Deer Lakes coach Tim Burk said. “You just hope you can contain him.”

Deer Lakes jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter when junior quarterback Derek Burk, the son of the coach Tim Burk, scored on a 16-yard run.

“I felt we were wandering around a little bit in the first half and weren’t taking advantage of some opportunities,” Greensburg Salem coach Dave Keefer said. “We put together a couple good drives in the first half and didn’t capitalize.”

“Take nothing away from Deer Lakes. It had a good scheme to try to take points off the board.”

Rubrecht’s 4-yard run tied the score in the second quarter that came on the 12^th play for a 69-yard drive.

Deer Lakes looked like it was going to reclaim the lead late in the second quarter. But the Lancers were whistled for a personal foul and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on the same play that pushed them back.

Greensburg Salem took control of the game in the third quarter by putting together a 68-yard, eight-play drive to open the second half with Rubrecht scoring from the 12, and a 58-yard, six-play drive with Rubrecht racing 20 yards for a 21-7 lead.

Brunot said: “We just started playing as a team more in the second half. The credit goes to the offensive line. They started getting a push and opening up gaps to run through.”

Keefer said scoring on its first three possessions of second half changed the game.

“Once we got into the flow of the game, the players got a little more comfortable and they were getting a feel of who they were playing against,” Keefer said. “At halftime, that was the comment. We wanted to pin our ears back and play to win. We were playing not to lose.”

Deer Lakes, thanks to a 38-yard shovel pass from Burk to Wayne Love on fourth down, set up Burk’s second score of the game, an 11-yard run, early in the fourth quarter.

“I wanted us to come out and show that we can compete,” Burk said. “They were bigger than us up front, and they are very athletic. I wanted to show our kids that we can come out and compete against anybody, and we did that.

“In the third quarter, we seemed to get tired and lost our focus. We have to overcome those little mental mistakes and move forward. We have to be mentally stronger and we’ll fix that, It’s an easy fix.”

But Rubrecht scored two plays later, getting a key block from Jerome Wallish on a 62-yard run.

“I went to Jerome before the play and told him I was going to pull it, so make sure you hold your block,” Rubrecht said. “He did exactly what I told him, and I was able to break free.”

Rubrecht later ended another Deer Lakes drive in the fourth quarter with an interception at the Greensburg Salem 20. Keegan Young stopped a Lancers drive with an interception in the first quarter.

Burk rushed for 89 yards and completed 11- of 24 passes for 158 yards.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Deer Lakes, Greensburg Salem