The Malvern Friars Upset St. Joe’s Prep In A 33-21 Victory
The weather was miserable Friday evening at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School where the St. Joe’s Prep Hawks played their close rival, the Malvern Friars.
Though the weather made the on-field conditions inarguably tougher, St. Joe’s seemed to underestimate their opponents in the first half and allowed the Friars to jump to a 27-7 lead at halftime. On all sides of the ball, Malvern was superior. Their offensive line dominated the Hawks’ front seven the entire game, allowing running back Zach Fernandez to have a huge game with over 100 all-purpose yards. On the defensive side of the ball, the Friars were able to crowd the line as much as possible because the field conditions made it difficult to throw. This made it much more difficult for Hawk running backs D’Andre Swift and Benny Walls to achieve any kind of sustained rushing success.
The Hawks as they start their pre-game warmups. - PSD Photo
In the third quarter, it seemed as if St. Joe’s might fight its way back into the game, scoring two unanswered touchdowns and putting them down 27-21. However, in the last 15 minutes of the game, the Friar defense got themselves back into first-half form and shut out the Hawks the rest of the way. In the heaviest rain of the night, the Malvern secondary forced an interception that sealed the 33-21 victory over the heavy rivals.
Though the Hawks were clearly outplayed Friday, they may still have been able to pull the game out if it weren’t for the several key special teams blunders.
Junior Captain D'Andre Swift as he muffs a punt in the first quarter. - PSD Photo
In the first quarter, D’Andre Swift tried to pick up a punt that had already bounced a few times, he muffed it and the Friars recovered the ball at the St. Joe’s 2-yard line. In the following quarter, on a 4th and long for Malvern, Zach Fernandez (who is also the Malvern punter) faked the punt and rushed for the first down. Just three plays later it seemed that it would not matter as the Friars had another 4th and long. But on the ensuing punt, not all of the Hawks got their heads around to look at the ball, and it hit off of one of the St. Joe’s player’s foot, allowing Malvern to recover for a third chance to score on the same drive. All three of these mishaps led to two touchdowns and the loss of any momentum St. Joe’s had gained by scoring the first touchdown of the game.
After losing this game as the heavy favorites, the Hawks find themselves in familiar territory. In both of the last two years, St. Joe’s has lost games as heavy favorites en route to two AAAA State Championships. In 2013, it was again the Friars that upset QB Chris Martin and the Hawks in the Thanksgiving day game 24-20. Early last season, the Hawks were defeated by Archbishop Ryan. In these last two seasons the St. Joe’s coaching staff has shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from demoralizing losses, such as these, and get their team back into winning form.
Next week the Hawks face off against St. Joe’s Regional (NJ). St. Joe’s Prep will have to play a perfect game to come out with a win next week, as Regional is among the elite teams in the entire country.