York High comes one yard short of stunning comeback in opening day heartbreaker

Jahiem White pushed himself to the brink of exhaustion trying to get his team a victory Saturday.

He ― and the entire York High offense ― came one yard short.

York High nearly pulled off a stunning comeback against Woodland Hills at Chambersburg's "Peach Bowl" showcase Saturday afternoon but lost, 28-24, to the Pittsburgh-based Wolverines with just 15 seconds left in the game. White's plunge from the 1-yard was stuffed for no gain on fourth down.

Four plays earlier, the West Virginia commit made his most important play in a game with a lot of big ones. He caught a swing pass and took it 22 yards to the Woodland Hills 4-yard line on third-and-long.

After dealing with cramps all afternoon during a brutally hot day, White took a big hit at the end of the play and promptly vomited as he came off the field. He later said eating mustard to fight dehydration caused him to vomit.

Two plays later, he jogged back out on the field and raised his arms to get York High's crowd pumped up.

"I'm just upset we couldn't punch it in," he said. "I was just trying to find a hole. We need to come prepared throughout the whole game next time."

York High trailed by 20 points at halftime before storming back in a thrilling second half filled with Woodland Hills turnovers and gutsy York High plays.

The Bearcats just needed one more play for one yard that never came.

What it means

York High is 0-1 for the second straight season. Last year, the Bearcats had a very winnable game in Week 2 against J.P. McCaskey after losing to powerhouse Governor Mifflin in Week 1.

This year, they have a road matchup against a very good Hempfield team coming off a 30-13 win over Dallastown.

After that is a home game against a strong Carlisle unit. York High will need to learn lessons from the first half of Saturday's game in order to win its next games.

Key plays

York High had four shots to get in the end zone from the Woodland Hills 4-yard line in the final minute. Montress Jackson got close on first down, but a read option by quarterback Sam Stoner and two runs by White couldn't get across the goal line.

The Bearcats had numerous key plays during its comeback, including an interception by Precious Jinyemia and a fumble recover by Carmelo McKenzie.

But the most thrilling was a jaw-dropping run by White in the third quarter that cut the deficit to 28-16. The senior was horse-collared in the backfield and swung toward the ground, but somehow stayed on his feet and galloped down the sideline for a 41-yard score.

In the first half, York High gave up a 69-yard touchdown run to Elijah Nesby on Woodland Hills' first offense play of the game. The Bearcats then let the Wolverines recover the ensuing kickoff by not communicating with each other.

Those mistakes led to an early 21-0 deficit.

By the numbers

White rushed 20 times for 118 yards and a touchdown and caught five passes for 55 yards. He's now 180 yards away from York High's career rushing record.

York High quarterback Sam Stoner went 17-of-23 for 222 yards, one touchdown pass, one rushing touchdown and one interception.

Nesby ran for 128 yards and three scores on 18 carries.

York High out-gained Woodland Hills in yards (322 to 289), earned more first downs (15 to 12) and won the turnover battle (lost one and caused four). But the Bearcats couldn't earn the win.

Unsung hero

The biggest question for York High entering the season was: Who will step up at wide receiver? The answer appears to be sophomore David Warde.

Warde caught eight passes for 115 yards and a 56-yard score on Saturday.

They said it

"You let a Division I guy do what a Division I guy does. Our offensive line didn't play great on that last play and it showed. I think when we watch film, Sam's gonna be upset because he probably could've kept it and walked in. But they stepped up and made a play. They escaped." ― York High coach Russ Stoner on the final play.

"At halftime we challenged them to win the third quarter. I told them if they win the third quarter they'd win the football game. We were trying to score with six seconds left and we needed one yard. I feel terrible for our kids. The best part is, we were down 28-8 and for us not to hang our hats, I'm excited for our football team.

"I'm happy, but darn I'm too old. I want to win. The kids want to win. It's our job to win. At the end of the day, we put on a heck of a show for everybody. So (Chambersburg athletic director) Ron Coursey, you're welcome." ― Stoner

Central York opens season with win over Mid-Penn opponent

Nasir Still eliminated quite a few items from his high school football bucket list in 48 minutes of play.

Start at quarterback for Central York. Check.

Complete a touchdown pass. Check.

Run for a touchdown. Check.

Start the season with a win. Check.

"Things went pretty much the way I expected them," Still said of Saturday's 36-19 non-conference win over Central Dauphin. "It feels good to get the first game out of the way."

The passing touchdown came first.

"I saw Parker Hines going up the sideline and just threw it," Still said. Hines caught it in stride and went the distance for the 66-yard score. That touchdown came after Central Dauphin's Kayron Plummer hit Devin Shepherd for a 51-yard strike to pull within two, 8-6, of the Panthers.

Juelz Goff and Cameron Gates gave Central York a lead they never lost in the series before CD's score. Goff ran 17 for the TD and Gates added the two-point conversion.

Still added the rushing touchdown late in the third quarter when he scampered 40 yards for the end zone.

Goff tacked on touchdown runs of 1 and 39 yards in the second half to lead the Panthers. His last score sealed the win for Central York, whose lead had been cut to 10 points after a pair of quick Ram scores. Shepherd scored on a 7-yard run and Plummer followed with a 5-yard score on their next possession.

Other YAIAA Saturday action

Windber Area 57, Fairfield 0

Wyomissing 49, Kennard-Dale 0

East Pennsboro 34, York Suburban 14

Matt Allibone is a sports reporter for GameTimePA. He can be reached at 717-881-8221, mallibone@ydr.com or on Twitter at @bad2theallibone.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: YAIAA football Week 1: York High loses thriller; Central gets big win