With the game tied late in the third quarter, Susquehanna Township was on the move, driving into Gettysburg territory. However, disaster struck for the Indians when they faced 3rd-and-10 at the Warriors’ 45-yard line.
Freshman linebacker Toryn Evans dropped back to pass and was completely smothered by Gettysburg senior linebacker Dan Kessel. The ball bounced off Evans and was picked off by Gettysburg’s Preston Burnett, who took it 49 yards for a 23-16 lead in Gettysburg’s Mid-Penn Colonial football game Friday night at Roscoe Warner Field in Harrisburg.
“I swam in their center and got to the defender. At first I didn’t know it was a fumble, I thought it was an incomplete pass,” Kessel said. “Then Preston scooped it up and everyone started cheering.”
The win gave the Warriors a division title, their first since winning the YAIAA-2 in 2018 and their first in the Mid-Penn Conference since capturing the Keystone Division in 2007.
Gettysburg (8-2, 6-1) had a chance to tie the game on its next possession, but it was negated by a fumble at the Indian 29-yard line with 9:17 to play.
A few punts later, the hosts took over at their own 17-yard line with 2:31 and two timeouts. However, Gettysburg’s defense turned them over on a long-overdue 32 and ran out the clock.
“I’m proud of our guys. They faced some serious adversity tonight and overcame it,” Gettysburg head coach Matt Heiser said. “Defense has come up big for us in different games this season.”
Susquehanna Twp. (6-4, 4-3) trailed 9-8 at the half and took possession early in the third quarter right down the field with a 6-yard run by Darian Smith. Javon White’s conversion run gave the Indians a 16-9 lead with 8:56 left in the frame. Gettysburg helped the run with a pair of free throws that gave Township another set of downs.
The Warriors responded with a drive that saw them down to the home side’s 1-yard line. But Jaden Johnson was sacked for four yards and quarterback Brady Heiser was hurt on the play.
With the sophomore signaling on the bench as he was checked by the team’s trainer, Johnson took the next two snaps. He was stopped at the line of scrimmage on third down, followed by a promising misdirection pass to Tanner Newman until Newman was pushed at the 1-yard line.
“We knew Tanner scored on that play, so we were mad the officials didn’t give us a touchdown,” Kessel said. “It inspired us to play harder.”
Gettysburg forced a punt and took over at its own 47-yard line, and Heiser returned to the field.
A 53-yard march that took 12 plays – all runs – was capped when Johnson went in from four yards out with 2:17 to play in the third quarter. Jermaine Gandwe’s conversion tied the score at 16-16.
The Maroon & White jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the first quarter, scoring on their first drive of the contest when Gondwe drilled a 28-yard field goal through the uprights just over two minutes into the game.
Heizer then scored on a 4th-and-1 on Gettysburg’s next possession.
Smith scored Township’s first-half touchdown from 7 yards out with 50 seconds left before halftime.
After three straight games of over 200 yards, Heizer was limited to 7-of-14 passing for 80 yards. But he did carry the rock for a career-best 104 yards on 13 carries. Johnson added 88 yards on 28 carries, while Burnett carried 11 times for 66 yards.
“We talked at halftime how we were picking up pieces on the ground and we wanted to go fast with our offense,” Matt Heiser said. “So we just stuck with the game after the break.”
Heizer attempted just one pass after intermission.
The win appears to have earned Gettysburg a first-round bye and a home game in the quarterfinals of the District 3 Class 5A tournament. This game will take place on Friday, November 11. The official grids will be announced on Sunday.
“I’m so proud of these kids for winning the division, especially our seniors. They did a great job leading this team,” Matt Heiser said. “I feel confident about the guys going into the postseason.”
Kessel added: “It’s been building for us since we lost to Warwick in the counties last year to end our season. Since then, we have worked hard.”
Follow Tom Sixeas on Twitter at @TomSixeas
Gettysburg 9 0 14 0 — 23
Susquehanna Twp. 0 8 8 0 — 16
Jermaine Gandwe 28 field goal, 9:55
G-Brady Heiser, 1 run (2-point attempt failed), 6:29
ST-Darian Smith, 7 runs (Javon White, 2 points, run), :50
ST-Smith 6 drive (White for 2 points), 8:56.
G-Jaden Johnson, 4 runs (Gandwe kick), 2:17.
G-Preston Burnett 49 fumble return (Gondwe kick), 0:03.
Rushing yards 58-280 41-155
In a hurry: Gee-Heiser 13-104, Johnson 28-88, Burnett 11-66, Tanner Newman 5-22, Cody Furman 1-0; ST-Smith 26-120, Sirun Tillman 5-16, White 1-7, Laronda Tucker 2-6, Rahi Sevilla 1-4, Torin Evans 6-2.
Walkthrough: G-Heiser 7-14-80-0; ST-Evans 8-16-90-0.
Getting: G-Sean Higgins 2-45, Newman 2-11, David Beamer 1-19, Jacari Anderson 1-5, Johnson 1-0; ST-White 2-33, Ryan McClain 2-28, Smith 1-12, Jarrett Kern 1-7, Lex Cyrus 1-5, Darian Brown 1-5.
https://www.gettysburgtimes.com/sports/article_de5794d5-320d-5210-8996-7ae3d7af6469.html