Slippery Rock shuts out Hickory in District 10 3A semifinal
Nov. 12—NEW WILMINGTON — With the rain and wind on Friday night, the high-flying Hickory and Slippery Rock offenses were forced to pivot. The ground game took center stage at Greyhound Stadium in New Wilmington.
And the linemen for Slippery Rock came ready to play. Moving the line of scrimmage defensively and opening holes for their running backs in the second half of a 28-0 win.
With the win in the District 10 Class 3A semifinal, the Rockets punched their ticket to another district title game. The Rockets beat the Hornets last season in the playoffs 23-17.
"You can't forget those five guys up front," Slippery Rock head coach Larry Wendereusz said. "Those guys and 'Zip' running the ball, they get all the accolades. But you take a look at Brody (Galcik), Isaac (Bell), Austin (Patsilevas), Braiden Reich and Matt Cratty and Ian Fair rotating in there, those guys were getting the movement in the second half."
Maddox Allen led the way for Slippery Rock (7-4) with a game-high 84 yards rushing with a touchdown on 14 attempts. Sal Mineo added 56 yards with a score on eight carries.
Rockets quarterback William Mokel ran for 38 yards on nine carries. He also finished 8-for-11 passing with 80 yards and a touchdown.
Mineo and Sam Schwartz were tied with a game-high three receptions. Mineo led all receivers with 37 yards, and Schwartz had 25 yards with a touchdown.
For Hickory (5-6), the running game never got going. The Hornets were held to 66 yards rushing on 30 carries.
Sean Kennedy was the leading rusher for the Hornets. He ran for 20 yards on nine carries before he left the game with an injury.
The Hornets split time at quarterback between Logan Woods and Zander Telesz, a common move since the midway point in the season. Woods was 7-for-14 passing with 49 yards and an interception. Telesz went 3-for-8 passing for 35 yards.
Keenan Scullin, Luke Nevil and Nash Porada each had two receptions. Porada had a team-high 20 yards receiving, Scullin had 13 yards and Nevil was held to 4.
The Rockets opened the scoring late in the first quarter. With Woods on the bench with an ankle injury, Telesz stepped in at quarterback for the Hornets' second drive.
The sophomore dropped back to pass but was flushed from the pocket. Braiden Reich stripped the ball for a sack. The ball kicked around a bit before linebacker Brett Galcik scooped it up for a 10-yard return for a touchdown.
"The guys up front set the tone for the game," Reich said. "We don't get the credit but we sure get the love."
Slippery Rock struck again late in the second quarter. Mokel connected with his favorite target, John Sabo, for a 12-yard completion on third and eight from the Hornets' 22-yard line. Two plays later, Mokel hit Schwartz on a slant route to the left side for a 9-yard touchdown with 1:49 left in the half.
Following a scoreless third quarter, the Hornets forced a fourth down early in the fourth. But Hickory was called for 12 men on the field. The Rockets capitalized with a 41-yard run by Mineo on fourth down. Mineo capped the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run to make it 21-0 Slippery Rock.
"Down 14-0, we're still in the game, we're gonna get the ball back. It's inexcusable to have 12 men on the field," Hickory head coach Bill Dungee said. "Just a microcosm of the night. Miscommunications. Just things didn't go well."
After a short punt by Hickory on the next possession, Allen carried the ball twice on a two-play drive. He found some running room for a 27-yard touchdown run to cap the scoring.
Dungee didn't make excuses after the game. He didn't blame the downpour, instead he credited Slippery Rock for playing well.
He also credited his seniors. The upperclassmen helped lead the Hornets through a tough stretch in September. Hickory started the season 2-4 and didn't win a game that month.
The Hornets turned things around, however, to qualify for the district tournament. The senior class was Ty Holland, Zac Lanshcak, Peyton Lawrence, Gavin Rogers, DayMar Trawick, Ethan Hamelly, Ryan Cox, Luke Klingensmith, Matthew Rodemoyer, Porada and Woods.
After the team left for the locker room, the seniors stayed on the field and talked with Dungee before taking a group photo for a parent.
"Just so proud of that senior group," Dungee said. "They gave me everything."
The Rockets will advance to face Grove City in the D-10 final. The Eagles got the better of Slippery Rock 22-21 in the regular season matchup at Forker Field in Grove City.
Next week's meeting with be a rematch of last season's 3A title. Grove City beat the Rockets 28-20 to claim the D-10 championship in 2022.
"Right now we gotta enjoy the fact of getting back (to the District 10 championship) for the second time," Wendereusz said. "This district hasn't had that for a while. We need to enjoy that in the district and know that our job's not done, but let's enjoy it tonight."
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DISTRICT 10 CLASS 3A SEMIFINALS
HICKORY 0 0 0 0 0
SLIPPERY ROCK 7 7 0 14 28
Scoring plays
SR — Bre. Galcik, 10 fumble recovery (Kingerski kick)
SR — Schwartz, 10 pass from Mokel (Kingerski kick)
SR — Mineo, 8 run (Kingerski kick)
SR — Allen 27 run (Kingerski kick)
Team stats
HICKORY S.ROCK
10 First downs 13
177 Rushing yards 66
80 Passing yards 84
11-8-0 Att-comp-int 22-10-1
257 Total yards 150
6-1 Fumbles-lost 1-1
6-46 Penalties-yards lost 4-35
Individual stats
Rushing: HICKORY — Kennedy 9-20, Holland 2-19, Telesz 9-18, Woods 4-6, Trawick 6-3; SLIPPERY ROCK — Allen 14-84, Mineo 8-56, Mokel 9-38, Allison 1-4, Bre. Galcik 1-(-5).
Passing: HICKORY — Woods 14-7-1-49, Telesz 8-3-0-35; SLIPPERY ROCK — Mokel 11-8-0-80.
Receiving: HICKORY — Porada 2-20, Acrie 1-19, Scullin 2-13, Holland 1-12, Krivosh 1-11, Telesz 1-5, Nevil 2-4; SLIPPERY ROCK — Mineo 3-37, Schwartz 3-25, Sabo 1-12, Allen 1-6.
