Long Reach football improves to 3-0 with 18-6 win over Mt. Hebron | Howard County sports roundup
After a shaky first half, Long Reach football kept its cool Friday night at Mt. Hebron to beat the Vikings, 18-6, and remain undefeated.
The Lightning made a few big plays on offense and shut down the Vikings’ rushing attack in the second half to earn the victory. The 3-0 start is the first for Long Reach since 2017 and only the team’s third in the past 15 years.
“I’m really happy with our kids,” Long Reach coach Jamie Willis said. “Our kids play really hard all the time. Sometimes, you don’t play your best. It’s about how you deal with it afterwards. We kept playing hard.”
Long Reach running back Julius Saunders ran for a 19-yard touchdown in the second quarter to kick off the game’s scoring. After Mt. Hebron (2-1) tied the game at 6 right before halftime with a rushing touchdown from Drew Peperone, the Lightning retook the lead in the third quarter with a 1-yard plunge from running back Keegan Costa.
Long Reach increased its lead to 18-6 early in the fourth quarter when quarterback Alexander Coffey found wideout Daniel Ribalta in the end zone for a 23-yard score.
The contest was picked by Howard County fans to be featured as one of this season’s Ravens RISE High School Football Showdowns. Ravens safety Chuck Clark and mascot Poe were in attendance. The athletic department for both schools also received a $1,500 donation for participating in the Showdown.
Accompanying the Ravens RISE aura was a packed crowd that resulted in a couple hundred late-arriving fans forced to stand and watch from the track.
“It was really cool,” said Saunders. “It being the Ravens RISE game, we were a little riled up and made some mistakes. Once we settled down, we played our game.”
The sloppy first half between the two unbeaten squads started with five straight punts. Neither offense could sustain a drive because of penalties. Through two drives, there were more flags than plays.
After a Vikings punt from deep in their own territory midway through the second quarter, Long Reach took over on Hebron’s 41 and needed just four plays to score. Saunders cut toward the sideline and sped to the end zone for the 19-yard touchdown.
Saunders totaled 92 yards on 14 carries. Through three games, the senior has scored six of his team’s 11 touchdowns this season.
“He’s a dude for us, and he works his [butt] off,” Willis said about his star running back. “He’s been on varsity for four years, and he continues to get better. He’s one of the top kids in the state of Maryland.”
Hebron responded on its next drive, though, as the Vikings pulled a trick out of their playbook to get into the red zone. Running back Aidan Hauf took a pitch in the Vikings’ Wing-T offense, causing the Lightning’s defensive backs to creep forward, and he launched a deep pass to Dennis Scott for a 37-yard gain that put the ball inside the 10. Two plays later, Drew Peperone scored from five yards out.
Despite having less than a minute remaining when it took over on its own 33, Long Reach nearly scored to end the half. A short completion from Coffey to Matthew Brown in the flat turned into a 51-yard play after the sophomore wideout sped down the sideline past three Hebron defenders.
With eight seconds left and the Lightning on the Vikings’ 12-yard line, Willis decided to go for the end zone on the next two plays. Scott broke up the first pass and was there to force the second one to fall incomplete as well.
In addition to the long reception and pass breakups, Scott also had an interception to open the second half and returned a kickoff across midfield.
“He’s come a long way,” Mt. Hebron coach Shawn Frederick said about Scott. “I love that kid. He had an opportunity last year to step up, and he’s never let go of that spot. He’s been playing lights out.”
The Lightning mounted an 11-play, 57-yard drive in the third quarter to take the lead. Saunders totaled 29 yards on the drive, but a tweaked ankle kept him off the field for most of the rest of the game. Costa, Long Reach’s backup tailback, performed well in relief and scored from the 1-yard line for the game-winning score.
On the Lightning’s next possession, Coffey found Ribalta on a 34-yard deep pass on third-and-long before their touchdown connection. Coffey, a lefty, rolled out to his left on the touchdown pass and found Ribalta open in the end zone.
The senior signal caller completed his last seven throws, totaling 151 yards on 9-for-14 passing.
“He’s grown tremendously over the past few years,” Willis said about Coffey. “What I think has helped him was having an offseason and having 7-on-7s. Now, he understands what we’re trying to do with him and what our offense is. He’s making good decisions and he’s doing a good job managing our team.”
Long Reach’s defense forced another three-and-out on Mt. Hebron’s next drive. The Vikings didn’t get a first down in the second half, totaling two yards across three possessions. Hebron’s last drive ended in an interception, as Long Reach junior defensive back Abraham Kamara caught a deflected pass to seal the victory.
Turnovers have been key to Long Reach’s 3-0 start. In the Lightning’s Week 1 upset of River Hill, Willis’ squad forced five turnovers, including multiple in the red zone.
“In the past we haven’t gotten too many turnovers, but this year we’ve been able to get them,” he said. “I think it’s because of how hard our guys play. When you’re flying around, sometimes the ball just pops to you.”
While the season is still young, Saunders and the rest of the Lightning are eager to continue their hot start. Five months ago, Long Reach wrapped up a 1-4 spring season, including a season-ending loss to Centennial. Now, the Lightning are tied for first in the county with Atholton and Oakland Mills.
“Throughout the summer, we kept a good mindset,” Saunders said. “We remembered those losses from the spring, and we kept the mindset to get better day by day.”
Both teams are back in action next Friday. Long Reach plays at Howard (2-1), while Mt. Hebron travels to River Hill (2-1).
Long Reach 18, Mt. Hebron 6
LR — 0 6 6 6 — 18
MH — 0 6 0 0 — 6
Scoring plays:
Second quarter
LR: Julius Saunders 19-yard run, kick no good [6-0]
MH: Drew Peperone 5-yard run, kick no good [6-6]
Third quarter
LR: Keegan Costa 1-yard run, kick no good [12-6]
Fourth quarter
LR: Daniel Ribalta 23-yard pass from Alexander Coffey, run fails [18-6]
OTHER FOOTBALL SCORES:
Howard 13, Reservoir 12 (OT)
Oakland Mills 42, Hammond 20
Ha — 7 6 7 0 — 20
OM — 6 8 28 0 — 42
Scoring plays:
First quarter
Ha: Nathaniel Lamb 1-yard run, Daniel Ordonio kick [7-0]
OM: John Tatum 2-yard run, conversion failed [7-6]
Second quarter
OM: Kylik Perry 12-yard pass from Kanye Holland, conversion good [14-7]
Ha: Lamb 5-yard run, kick no good [14-13]
Third quarter
OM: Trevin McHargh 44-yard run, conversion failed [20-13]
OM: Tatum 2-yard run, conversion good [28-13]
Ha: Lamb 7-yard run, Ordonio kick [28-20]
OM: Holland 33-yard run, kick good [35-20]
OM: McHargh 5-yard run, kick good [42-20]
Atholton 57, Centennial 12
Glenelg 47, Wilde Lake 7
River Hill 27, Marriotts Ridge 7
Don’t see scores or stats from your favorite team? Send results and any game information to Jacob Meyer at jameyer@baltsun.com.
