CHAMBERSBURG - From the coin toss to the final tick of the clock, the Chambersburg Cardinals dominated in every area possible during a Gridiron Developmental Football League game at Trojan Stadium Saturday night, crushing South Jersey 65-6.
"We finally played all three phases of the game," Chambersburg coach Chad Fauson said after the game, according to the team's website. "The biggest improvement was guys were out there communicating. They were talking about and understanding what we had gone over in practice and as a coach that pleases me more than anything."
South Jersey had the ball on the 22 yard line to open the game, but as their quarterback stepped back to pass, he was rushed by the Chambersburg defense. The ball was knocked loose, and Justin Young picked it up and ran it in for the touchdown.
Chambersburg quarterback Bill Ashburn followed with three touchdown passes to Kevin Cooper, Ivan Randolph and Jerell Jones. South Jersey did manage one score. Midway through the second quarter, Keith Jones launched a 69-yard pass to Clifford Horsey who dodged the only Cardinal defender who stood between him and a touchdown. After the extra point kick was missed, Chambersburg led 28-6.
Allowing a score seemed to fire up the Cardinals even more. The next play Douglas Kilpatrick leaped to snag South Jersey's onside kick and then returned it 50 yards for a score. That was immediately followed by a Chambersburg interception by Armar Watson who raced 48 yards down field to extend his team's lead. Later in the quarter, the Cards capitalized on a fumble recovery by Darnell Christian. Ashburn connected once again with Jerell Jones for the touchdown.
Jones scored again with a 75-yard punt return to put Chambersburg up 56-6 as the game headed into the second half. The Cardinals scored twice more before the evening was over. Christopher Wright found a gap and caught a 25-yard pass, and two more points were added for Chambersburg after a bad snap resulted in the ball rolling out of the end zone for a safety.
Seven different Cardinals scored during the game, and Fauson was glad to see such a team effort. "Next week we have the No. 2 team in the country coming here (the South Buffalo Celtics). That's a big game. It could determine the rest of our season." Even though they know the impact the next game could have, Fauson's players are confident in their ability to keep their four-game winning streak alive. "Tonight was outstanding on all sides of the ball right from the first play," said veteran Reginald Foster. "We are never intimidated. We plan to rise to the occasion."
Information used in this story was provided by the Chambersburg Cardinals.
