Published: October 04, 2008 12:27 am         

Central Cambria stuns Forest Hills in shutout

EBENSBURG — Complete domination.

The Central Cambria Red Devils shocked everyone Friday night with a 27-0 pasting of undefeated Forest Hills, but what was shocking was the way in which they pulled off the upset on a homecoming night.

The Red Devils dominated every aspect of the game, and they took advantage of six Forest Hills turnovers – four interceptions and two fumbles – to earn the win. 

While the Red Devils amassed 341 yards of total offense, coach Ken Bussard pointed to one aspect of a team which is often overlooked: The linemen.

“That’s where we won this football game,” Bussard said. “Our guys up front were able to neutralize their strength, which is their offensive and defensive lines.”

Senior running back Andrew O’Saben followed those linemen and had 130 yards on 24 carries.

O’Saben credited his linemen for providing him with the blocking necessary to reach that number. However, he also recalled what the Red Devils had to do when they were 1-2 after a loss to Penn Cambria earlier in the season.

“We said the other week that it was a new season,” O’Saben said. “We started everything off new, and right now, we’re 3-0.”

The Red Devils scored on their first possession, moving 57 yards on 12 plays, culminating in a 32-yard scoring pass from quarterback Tim Myers to Dom Deyulis.

Tyler Delauter’s kick for the PAT gave them a 7-0 halftime lead.

O’Saben electrified the crowd on a kickoff return to open the second half, moving it from his own 11-yard line to the Rangers 45.

The Red Devils added a touchdown as Tim Myers scored on a 3-yard quarterback sneak.

After a Forest Hills offside penalty, Bussard decided to run the same play for the two-point conversion, and Myers followed them in for a 15-0 advantage with 9:19 left in the third quarter.

The Central Cambria defense also came ready to play.

The Rangers were averaging 228 yards on the ground, but managed a net of just 11 against the Red Devils. 

Forest Hills averaged 202 yards passing, yet managed 71 on Friday night.

“Any time that you shut out Forest Hills (you played well),” Bussard said. “(Forest Hills) wasn’t at the top of their game, but our defense pretty much handled them.”

The Red Devils scored two touchdowns in the final quarter, the first on a 16-yard interception return by Tyler Davidson. The last was a 37-yard run by Max Michkofsky.

Davidson and Marshal Lipnic each had two interceptions for Central Cambria.

Rangers’ coach Don Bailey was succinct in his appraisal of his team’s play.

“They beat us in every aspect of the game,” he said.

The Rangers will host Penn Cambria next week, while Central Cambria travels to Bishop Guilfoyle.

     

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.