Not much defense, Bucks won 65-40 with 36 unanswered points in the second half.
MIDDLETOWN — If football was a one-half game, the Montgomery County All-Stars would have celebrated on Heartbreak Ridge Monday night.
Quarterbacks Casey Decker and Joe Curotto combined for 304 passing yards in the first 24 minutes of the second annual Bucks vs. Montco Lions All-Star Football Classic, which helped the Montco squad put up 40 points. It took an 11-point edge to the locker room and the Bucks defense looked lost in being able to stop further damage.
But things changed drastically in the second half. The Bucks' defense began to get pressure and ultimately took over the game to the tune of allowing less than 30 yards by Montco. It wound up pitching a shutout in the final 24 minutes, and an efficient offense did the rest, scoring 36 unanswered points in a 65-40 victory at Neshaminy High School.
"It was a great team win," Bucks quarterback and Neshaminy senior Mason Jones said. "To come together and get a win, it's something special to be a part of."
Jones, who will play at the University of Delaware, completed 16 of his 19 passes on the night for 224 yards and three touchdowns. Those scores went to fellow Neshaminy senior Zach Tredway, Pennridge's Jagger Hartshorn and Central Bucks West's Kevin O'Hanlon.
Hartshorn did more than that, too, as he hauled in 99 receiving yards and also had an 11-yard touchdown run in the first half off a backward pass from Jones.
Tredway caught seven passes for 94 yards and brought a kickoff back for a 93-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
"It was fun playing wideout," said Hartshorn, who was Pennridge's quarterback in the regular season and is headed to Wagner University. "(Jones and himself) have this great connection on and off the field.
"Our momentum started going up and up, and then we came out here and did what we had to do and just kept rolling from there."
Despite the offensive success, which included 92 rushing yards by Bensalem's Malcolm Carey and another 44 by Neshaminy's Will Dogba, the Bucks defense made the difference. Interceptions by Noah Wood and Gerald Whea, both on drive-opening plays by Montco, led to touchdowns in the second half. Two sacks also helped the cause, and after great first halves, Curotto and Decker were held to a combined two-for-nine passing in the final 24 minutes.
North Penn running back Jake Hubler did have 129 offensive yards in the losing effort, while Abington's George Reid caught five passes for 86 yards and three touchdowns. Upper Dublin's Mike Cottom added 114 receiving yards and a score.
"It was fun actually doing well and doing what I know I can do in this game," said Reid, who will play defensive back at Temple University. "We just didn't come out with the same intensity as we did in the first half."
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