On Friday night, the Catasauqua Rough Riders were expected to beat the Pen Argyl Green Knights for the third year in a row. However, Pen Argyl came out with an energy that could not be matched, putting up 14 points before the half and keeping Catty at zero. The Rough Riders did not respond until the third quarter, and by that time, their attempted comeback was too little too late. The Green Knights capped the game with a 36-14 win.
Damian Tyminski, backed by a tough offensive line, ran the ball heavily for Pen Argyl. Tyminski rushed for 73 yards Quarterback Brad Rissmiller rushed for 64 yards. The Green Knights have been pass-heavy all season, but it is clear they can do both.
Catasauqua had a total of only 13 rushing yards, which is in part because they are missing a key piece of their offense, running back Hunter Reitz. Reitz had 154 rushing yards last Friday against Mahanoy but has been out with two shoulder dislocations since then.
On the passing side, quarterback Aiden Hess had a total of 187 yards, outweighing Rissmiller’s 113 yards. However, the connection that Hess usually has with his receivers was not there on Friday. He completed 14 out of 27 pass attempts.
The first half was slow and Pen Argyl was in control. Alex Moser kicked off the scoring late in the first quarter with a 12-yard pass from Rissmiller with 5:37 left. The remaining time was a back-and-forth game of turnovers on downs and both offenses falling short. This carried on until the end of the half when Tyminski had a two-yard run to the endzone and a two-point conversion to give the Green Knights a 14-0 lead.
To start the second half, Pen Argyl recovered their own kickoff 29 yards before the endzone. Within the first two minutes, Rissmiller had a 20-yard run to score and Reid Kotulka made it seven points with a PAT.
The Rough Riders trailed 21-0 before Hess connected with Rodney Brodie for 62 yards which put the first points on the board for the Rough Riders. It looked like Catty might make a comeback, but the Green Knights retaliated with great ball control. They took it slow on their offense and crept up the field to maintain possession.
With 1:41 left in the third, Tyminski had a seven-yard touchdown followed by another PAT from Kotulka. The Rough Riders scrambled to close the gap before the fourth but were unsuccessful.
Still trailing 28-7, Catty put points on the board within the first two minutes of the fourth quarter. Chad Beller had a nine-yard rushing touchdown and Jayden Olivencia scored the PAT.
For the remaining ten minutes of the game, Pen Argyl was in control, putting eight more points on the board after a touchdown by Mason Soos followed by two points from Rissmiller.
With 4:22 left in the game, that 36-14 score would hold, giving Pen Argyl and Catty both a record of 3-2. Next Friday Catasauqua will travel to Schuylkill Haven (4-1) and Pen Argyl will travel to Minersville (4-1).
