Punch and counterpunch was the theme of the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference game between Westmont Hilltop and Forest Hills on a hot Saturday afternoon at Greater Johnstown’s Trojan Stadium.
But the physical Hilltoppers line and the running trio of Ian Valente, Camden Moors and Brock Bennett proved to be the undoing for the Rangers.
Westmont Hilltop defeated Forest Hills 45-34 – the first time since 2000 that the Hilltoppers achieved that feat.
“It was hot today and we knew the elements were going to be tough, but these kids were tough and they just kept fighting and grinding,” Westmont Hilltop coach Pat Barron said. “I think we threw one pass today and those big boys up front, they handled the job. Our offensive line was the reason we were successful today.”
Valente, who led the way for the Hilltoppers with 283 yards on 22 carries, said it was nice to get the first win under their belts.
“We’ve been working all summer and we felt that we were disrespected sort of by the newspaper after we went 7-3 last year and were predicted at 3-7,” Valente said.
“My line was great today, they were shoving kids out of the way and opening up holes for me. Honestly, I went through two hip surgeries and I want to give all the glory to God for that, because without him, it wouldn’t have happened.”
Moors finished with 16 carries for 111 yards and Bennett tacked on another 44 on six carries. Valente had five touchdowns while Bennett and Moors added one each.
“We couldn’t stop them, they just overpowered us up front,” Forest Hills coach Don Bailey said. “We didn’t tackle very well.”
On the Forest Hills side of the ball, sophomore quarterback Adam Cecere threw for 209 yards going 13 of 21. Jon Long had nine receptions for 155 yards, but the Rangers struggled to move the ball on the ground, finishing with just 91 yards.
“Jon Long and Adam Cecere had great games, but we’ve got to have more than just two guys,” Bailey said. “We’ve got to get more people involved.”
After Forest Hills went three and out on their opening drive, the Hilltoppers took over and Valente broke free for a 50-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage.
The Rangers responded with a three-play drive, capped by a 50-yard Cecere pass to Long.
Back came Westmont Hilltop with a possession which started near midfield and ended with a 30-yard Bennett dash.
The pendulum swung back to Forest Hills, which put together it’s longest drive of the afternoon, a 10-play series capped by a 13-yard pass from Cecere to Long.
The first quarter ended with the teams tied at 12.
Westmont Hilltop added two more scores in the second quarter on Valente runs of 23 and 33 yards and Brandon Kaesler added an extra point kick, one of three for the day.
Just before halftime, the Rangers put together a seven-play drive ending with a 14-yard reception to Long from Cecere. Cecere added the conversion pass to Evan Kundrod to pull Forest Hills to 25-20 at the half.
The Hilltoppers opened the third quarter with a 10-play drive which consumed almost six minutes with Moors scoring from the 5 to give Westmont Hilltop a 32-20 advantage.
Again the Rangers battled back, with an eight-play series that ended with a 28-yard pass from Cecere to Long along with a Cecere conversion run to cut the Hilltoppers lead to 32-28.
An onside kick returned possession to Forest Hills, which recovered the ball at midfield and then drove down the field ending with a 30-yard scoring strike to Long as the Rangers forged ahead 34-32.
But the fourth quarter belonged to the Hilltoppers, with a pair of Valente touchdowns for 10 and 5 yards, and a number of defensive stands which included quarterback sacks by Justin Bulas and Bennett which kept Forest Hills off the board.
“We tried just about everything with three or four different defenses and knew what they were doing, we just couldn’t stop it,” Bailey said.
The Hilltoppers are at Bishop Guilfoyle next Saturday night while the Rangers play host to Somerset on Friday.
Cory Isenberg is a sports reporter and columnist for The Tribune-Democrat. She can be reached at (814) 532-5080.? Follow her on Twitter @CoryIsenbergTD.
