CHAMBERSBURG -- Mike Baldwin returned a fumble for a touchdown and the Central Penn Piranha defense recorded ten sacks Saturday night in a 28-6 win over the Chambersburg Cardinals in the Sweet 16 of the Gridiron Developmental Football League playoffs at Trojan Stadium.
Baldwin scooped up a fumble by a Chambersburg receiver in the fourth quarter and returned it 72 yards for a score, giving the Piranha (13-0, 12-0) a 26-6 edge and sealing the victory. Central Penn will face the Fayetteville (N.C.) Horizon on September 15 in the fourth round.
The Central Penn defense was exceptional, forcing three turnovers and totaling ten sacks for 55 yards. "They've been struggling a little bit this year, and we haven't had a game like that in a while," Piranha coach Ron Kerr said, according to the Cardinals' website. "To have a game with that many sacks with an offensive line that good, that says something. That just says a lot of Brian Smith, Melik Brown and Bo Thomas."
Piranha quarterback Mark Jarmon was 2 of 7 passing for 61 yards; but hit Darren Echols on a 42-yarder in the second quarter to make the score 7-0.
Chambersburg (9-2,9-2) countered roughly five minutes later; on a 22 yd pass from Bill Ashburn to Ottis Lewis. The Cardinals defense held Central Penn to just 15 net yards passing and registered six quarterback sacks.
The Cardinals, playing in front of 3200 fans, were also penalized 14 times for 105 yards.
"It was very obvious tonight that we killed ourselves," said Chambersburg veteran center Adam Hoffman. "We had a lot of mental mistakes. If we get rid of those, it's a different ball game. That's something we're going to have to live with, and unfortunately, it didn't go our way tonight."
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