Connellsville overcame a slow start against a determined Hempfield team, scoring four unanswered touchdowns to claim a 40-17 victory in a Quad East gameFriday night at Spartan Stadium.
The Falcons will enter the WPIAL playoffs on a high note, having won four of five games to finish 4-3 in the league (5-4 overall). With Baldwin's 35-0 loss to Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Connellsville finishes fourth in the Quad East.
"I started telling our kids Monday that Hempfield was better than they look on paper," said Connellsville's first-year coach Tom Dolde.
The Spartans, who have lost eight straight to finish 0-7 in the conference and 1-8 overall, gave the Falcons all they could handle through the first three quarters.
Behind the hard running of Christian Hosbach (96 yards on 11 carries) and the play of quarterback Casey Teagarden, the Spartans took a 17-13 lead in the third quarter.
Teagarden hit Anthony Turchetta with a 32-yard scoring pass to bring Hempfield to within 13-10 with 23 seconds to play in the first half. After Hempfield recovered a squib kick to start the second half, Teagarden drove the Spartans 32 yards on six plays, getting the final yard himself.
Connellsville answered that wakeup call and responded with a 63-yard, seven-play drive that culminated with a 15-yard touchdown run by Billy Freed. Quarterback Clay Hurley had the key play in the drive with a 22-yard run on third-and-7.
Connellsville broke the game open after holding Hempfield on a fourth-down try deep in Spartans territory. The Falcons' John Arndt and Josh Brewer stopped William Barone at the 29-yard line. Four plays later, Hurley scored on a 14-yard run to give the Falcons a 26-17 lead.
"I was not surprised they went for it," Dolde said. "That play swung the momentum."
Hurley also threw for 162 yards and two scores, including a 48-yarder to Terrence McCrae.
Hempfield's Greg Meisner, who lost several players throughout the course of the game, said he believed his team could make six inches on the fourth-down play.
"I wanted to continue the momentum we had at that point in the game," he said.
Hurley tossed a 12-yard TD pass to Leonard Smith and Freed had a 4-yard touchdown run to close out the scoring for Connellsville.
Hempfield lost five fumbles, had a pass intercepted and had a bad snap on a punt.
The Spartans defense held Connellsville's Scott Jones to 60 yards on 20 carries.
