Emmaus 27, Bethlehem Catholic 13
A quarterback change. A dominant defense. And a heavy dose of Brandon Camire.
Add those ingredients up, and Emmaus walked away on Senior Night at East Penn School District Stadium with a huge 27-13 win over Bethlehem Catholic Friday night.
Coach Harold Fairclough’s Green Hornets improved to 5-4 overall and 3-4 in East Penn Conference South Division action. With the win, they took an important step toward clinching a District 11 Class 6A playoff berth.
Bethlehem Catholic is now 6-3 overall and 4-3 in the EPC’s South Division.
Emmaus spotted the Golden Hawks a 13-point advantage but the Green Hornets, who scored a crucial touchdown on the last play of the first half, tallied the game’s final 27 points to pull off the upset.
Camire was Emmaus’ workhorse and second-half star, carrying 36 times for 220 yards and three touchdowns — each coming after intermission.
His 26-yard scoring sprint tied the score at 13 with 3:59 remaining in the third quarter; his 16-yarder gave the Green Hornets a lead with 10:01 remaining; and his 29-yarder with 2:45 left put an exclamation point on the comeback.
“I feel good right now,” said Camire, a junior. “I feel really good. At that point late in the game, I was just following my line. They made a wall and I was able to walk into the end zone a couple times.”
Freshman sensation
Fairclough opted to replace starter Jake Moyer with freshman Jake Fotta early in the second quarter.
Fotta, in his first significant varsity action, looked like he was ready for the bright lights.
He guided Emmaus on an 11-play, 69-yard touchdown drive late in the second quarter. Fotta capped the possession with an 8-yard TD pass to Chad Newhard on a second-and-goal play from the 8 as time expired. Fotta avoided heavy pressure, scrambled to his right, bought time with his feet and threw a pinpoint pass in the back of the end zone.
The effort impressed both Fairclough and Camire.
“That was amazing,” Fairclough said. “One helluva an effort. He made something happen.”
“I looked back and saw him being chased by both linebackers,” Camire said, “and they have some good linebackers. I can’t believe he got out of that. Then to make that throw, it’s unbelievable.”
Fotta also completed a key fourth-down pass for 14 yards on the team’s go-ahead drive. He finished 5 of 7 passing for 51 yards. He also carried nine times for 38 yards.
“Our staff did a great job putting together a solid package,” Fairclough said. “If it was up to them, they probably would’ve put [Fotta] in a little while ago. He’s a freshman, though, and I didn’t want to put him in a tough situation. But our back was to the wall, so we put him in and he paid dividends for us.”
Dominant D
One week after giving up 63 points in a mercy-rule loss to Freedom, the Green Hornets held Bethlehem Catholic scoreless in the second half.
They limited the Golden Hawks’ tag-team of Tavion Banks and Malik Thomas to 91 yards rushing on 22 carries.
Bethlehem Catholic gained only 48 yards after halftime.
“Stopping the run,” Fairclough said of the key to his defense’s performance. “We had lots of guys flying to the football. [Defensive coordinator Jake] Hildebrand and the rest of the defensive staff did a great job of preparing our kids for the opponent.”
Becahi blues
The Golden Hawks scored their only touchdown on their opening drive, as quarterback Jared Richardson completed each of his five pass attempts. Rahmel Terry capped it with a 22-yard run.
They also got two field goals from kicker Anthony Barczynski.
Otherwise, coach Joe Heinrich was less than pleased with Bethlehem Catholic’s performance.
“I’m extremely disappointed in every facet of what happened tonight,” he said. “But it doesn’t take away from how I feel about our football team. The quality football team we have been and can continue to be. Right now I want them to be hurt and frustrated, but then come Monday, we need to flip it and realize we need to get back to work. We couldn’t get out of our own way tonight.”
Fast forward
Both the Golden Hawks and Green Hornets wrap up the EPC portion of their schedules with games on Friday, Oct. 25.
Bethlehem Catholic welcomes Allentown Central Catholic (5-3 overall, 3-3 EPC) to BASD Stadium, while Emmaus travels to Orefield Middle School to take on Parkland (7-2, 5-2). Both games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
Michael Blouse is a freelance writer for The Morning Call.
EMMAUS 27, BETHLEHEM CATHOLIC 13
Becahi 10 3 0 0 – 13
Emmaus 0 7 6 14 – 27
First quarter
BC – Rahmel Terry 22 run (Anthony Barczynski kick), 8:31
BC – FG Barczynski 26, 4:54
Second quarter
BC – FG Barczynski 19, 3:13
E – Chad Newhard 8 pass from Jake Fotta (Alex Orlando kick), 0:00
Third quarter
E – Brandon Camire 26 run (kick failed), 3:59
Fourth quarter
E – Camire 16 run (Orlando kick), 10:01
E – Camire 29 run (Orlando kick), 2:45
