KINGWOOD, W.Va. — Preston coach Jonathan Tennant even admitted not many thought his team would sniff the Class AAA playoffs this season, especially after the Knights started the year 1-5.
A win over Washington last week was a step in the right direction, but next up was University. It had been 26 years since the Knights knocked off the Hawks, but that streak was slashed Friday night after PHS upset UHS 20-19 on Preston’s Senior Night.
There was celebration, there were tears and, most importantly, there is hope the Knights (3-5) can force its way into the playoffs.
“That’s the second time we’ve ever beaten them — it feels good to get that monkey off our back,” Tennant said. “I think there’s a whole lot of people who are wondering what to say. I told our kids that there are a lot of people around the state that didn’t have us doing this. I’m really proud of the kids and really proud of the coaches.”
It was clear Preston wanted to establish the run early, but it came with mixed results. Jeffrey Townsend took over the starting running back job from Jesse Gribble after Gribble injured his ankle, and Townsend hasn’t looked back.
However, with Townsend averaging less than three yards a carry in the first half against UHS (3-6), the Knights decided to get their best playmaker Colten Rosenberger more involved. And Rosenberger, matched up 1-on-1 with a Hawks’ defensive back, caught a deep route from quarterback Trevor Thomas to put PHS on the board. Right before halftime, the Knights took the lead on Townsend’s only touchdown of the night.
In the third quarter, though, Rosenberger nearly had a major mistake on a punt return, fumbling at his own 10-yard line that was recovered by UHS. Two plays later, Eliki Barner found the end zone to put the Hawks back on top at 19-14.
Rosenberger made up for it in the fourth quarter, catching his second touchdown from Thomas from 14 yards out to put PHS up for good.
And on that Knights’ scoring drive, Townsend proved his worth carrying the ball 12 times for nearly 50 yards.
“The line did outstanding,” Townsend said. “It’s been two weeks in a row now that they’ve dominated — it was just outstanding.”
UHS had a chance on its final possession to take the lead getting deep into Preston territory, but with confusion from the clock operators the Hawks made one last attempt with 11 seconds to go with a hook-and-ladder. After several laterals, the ball ended up in the hands of the Knights to end the game.
“That was a tremendous effort by Preston,” UHS coach John Kelley said. “I knew their game plan would be to run power football and shorten the game. This was just a bunch of missed opportunities with two missed 2-point plays and a couple dropped passes. I want to congratulate coach Tennant and his team — they played hard and played physical.
“It’s what I said would happen. I guess our kids didn’t believe me.
UHS will host Morgantown next Friday in the Mohawk Bowl, while Preston will look to continue its push to the playoffs at Buckhannon-Upshur and will end its season Nov. 8 at Brooke, both a winnable games. Of note, Brooke (2-6) beat Buckhannon-Upshur (1-7) on Friday night.
“Once we got by Bridgeport, we thought we had four winnable games, and this was Step 2,” Tennant said. “I told the kids that we have to come back and do what we’ve been doing — stay focused, keep grinding. We’re looking forward to next week for round 3.”
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