Making undeniable noise in the postseason on the heels of their second District 3 title in the past ten years, the Trinity Shamrocks found themselves in new territory on Black Friday – playing in the PIAA state football semifinals.
Knocking Philadelphia’s Neumann-Goretti out of the 3A tournament the week before Thanksgiving, the Shamrocks returned to the same field of victory on a frigid November 28, facing defending state champs Northwestern Lehigh at Exter Township High School in Reading for a chance to carve a path to this weekend’s PIAA championships.
After a 13-all first half, the ’Rocks looked poised to pull off a second upset in as many weeks, this time against the Tigers, who carried a 30-0 win streak into the contest. Trinity stayed step-for-step with the Tigers, finding the endzone on an 8-yard run by Brandon Harris on their second drive and then late in the second quarter on a 16-yard pass from quarterback Mason Boyer to Maddox Jarzynski.
But if ever there was a tale of two halves, Northwestern Lehigh wrote the script that night; the Tigers found their speed and rhythm at the outset of the third quarter, blazing down the field on the arm of quarterback Shane Leh to score in the opening two minutes and finding the endzone again on their next four possessions while Trinity struggled to move the ball offensively past midfield.
“They’re state champs for a reason, they’re 30-0 for a reason,” Trinity head coach Kevin Yarnevich said of Northwestern Lehigh. “But our guys came in here not backing down; look at the first half. They got a couple breaks in the second half and it just started going downhill from there. But I love the way we fought.”
For Trinity, Boyer threw 11 completions on 22 attempts for 95 yards, and Harris had 22 carries for 104 yards. Leh completed 12 of 14 passes for 200 yards for the Tigers.
When the final horn sounded, the Tigers took a 48-13 victory on their way to their third consecutive state championship appearance, while Shamrock teammates united to console and commend one another on a truly historic season for their football program.
After the game, Yarnevich spoke with sincerity about his team and their drive that defined the season.
“It’s the way they fought. These guys had grit,” he said.
“Last year when I got the interim job, [the current seniors] were just as important as the seniors last year. They came together and said we’re going to go win districts and just kept fighting. They were the leaders in the weight room, leaders in the off-season, leaders on the field. We’re going to miss them tremendously. A lot of them are going to have great careers and I’m just so proud of them,” Yarnevich said.
“It was a great season. There’s nothing to hang your head about. We are one of four teams that were still playing tonight in 3A. Yes, it stinks to lose. You want to win and go to the dance, but I’m just proud of them,” he said.
Yarnevich told members of the media that Trinity’s historic season will chart a new path going forward: “Win districts, move on and make a run for state. That’s the standard.”
(Photos by Jen Reed, The Catholic Witness.)
By Jen Reed, The Catholic Witness
