Published: November 29, 2009 12:21 am      

Golden again | Crimson Crushers capture 4th straight championship

ALTOONA — The game’s not over until the fourth quarter.

The Bishop McCort Crushers charged from behind in the fourth quarter Saturday night at Mansion Park to earn their fourth consecutive District 6 championship.

However, this District 6 Class A title was hard-fought, with Bellwood Antis holding a touchdown lead entering the fourth quarter.

Then the Crushers took over, taking advantage of some breaks that had eluded them in the first half to earn a 34-20 victory.

Bishop McCort coach Ken Salem said that the Crushers earned the win with better plays in the second half.

“I thought that we did a much better job in the second half of eliminating penalties and executing up front,” Salem said. “In the first half, Bellwood played an outstanding game. You compound that with some of the penalties we had and some of the misplays, we really put ourselves in a tough situation.”

The Crushers earned the victory the way that they have all season, emphasizing the running game. Senior Josh Seidel rushed for 208 yards on 30 carries to key the 303-yard rushing attack. He said the win was special.

“There’s no words to explain it,” Seidel said. “It’s unbelievable, especially for the seniors.”

On their first drive, the Crushers(12-0) moved from their 20-yard line to the Bellwood 5 before the drive stalled and Dane Domonkos kicked the first of his two field goals, this one from 22 yards.

However, the Crushers made a number of key mistakes in the first half. The Blue Devils responded to the Bishop McCort score, moving from their 35 to a touchdown.

Senior running back Zack McCaulley scored from 5 yards out, but the drive was aided by a key fourth-down holding call against the Crushers.

Nate Plummer kicked the PAT and Bellwood had a 7-3 advantage.

The Crushers responded by mounting a 13-play, 67-yard drive that culminated in a quarterback sneak by John Pinkerton from 2 yards out. Domonkos’ kick gave the Crushers a 10-7 lead with 6:18 left in the first half.

Then Salem gave Domonkos an option.

With a fourth-and-10 on the Bellwood 47, Domonkos lined up to kick but tried to run for a first down but failed.

Bellwood then mounted a 57-yard, 12-play drive that culminated with a Plummer to McCaulley 10-yard pass that gave Bellwood a 14-10 halftime advantage.

The Crushers narrowed that to 14-13 with a 34-yard field goal by Domonkos with 6:41 left in the third quarter.

On the next drive, the Devils then marched from their 27 to a touchdown as McCaulley burst through the middle for a 3-yard touchdown.

The PAT by Plummer missed to the left, so the lead was 20-13.

Then the Crushers exploded in the fourth quarter, with Seidel scoring from 2, 17, and 13 yards out to advance to the state playoffs.

The big play in the touchdown that tied the game at 20 was one by Chaz Merriman.

Bishop McCort quarterback Pinkerton was hit from the blind side by Bellwood defensive end Jared Minori, and fumbled the ball.

Merriman alertly picked up the ball at the 50 and sprinted through a surprised secondary to the 10-yard line.

The Devils felt that they just made some mistakes late in the game.

“(Saturday night), a lot of things didn’t go our way,” Bellwood coach John Hayes said about his team, which ended its season with an 11-1 record.

“When it’s all said and done, they’re going to appreciate their efforts for the year.”

The Crushers will face Millersburg next Saturday at noon at Hersheypark Stadium.