Northwestern Lehigh came up with a big second-half performance to push its record to 15-0 on the season and earn the first trip to the PIAA finals for the program. The Tigers outscored Wyomissing 26-7 in the second half to down the Spartans by a 33-24 margin.
The Tigers went into the locker room down by 10 at halftime and coach Josh Snyder worried less about game planning and more about laying out the honest truth about where his team stood.
“I told them at halftime that if our offense played like they did in the first half, they would be taking off their gear for the last time this season and for the seniors, it would be for the last time forever,” said Snyder. “Dalton Clymer said ‘there’s no way this is the last time.’ I think that kind of spurred the rest of the guys.”
Clymer finished the game with two touchdown runs that set a team record for most touchdowns in a season with 34, snapping the record set by Brett Snyder in 1995.
The Northwestern defense spurred the second half comeback on the first drive of the second half. Wyomissing quarterback Logan Hyde dropped back to pass and was sacked by Bryer Reichard, who now has a team-high 10 sacks this season. On the next play, Hyde again looked to throw, and this time got the pass off, but junior Eli Zimmerman stepped into the path of the ball for his 10th pickoff of the season, tying the school record for interceptions in a season.
Northwestern was down 17-7, but with the offense given a mission to step up its game in the second half, it went to work. The drive was capped when quarterback Shane Leh dashed 26 yards and Seth Kern added the extra point to make it a three-point game.
With 2:09 left to play in the third quarter, Northwestern went on top for the first time in the game when Clymer went in from three-yards out. A missed extra point put the Tigers’ lead at 20-17.
Wyomissing (13-2) put together a long, drawn-out drive with plenty of twists and turns. With a fourth-and-four at the Northwestern 11, Wyomissing was going to go for it, but an illegal motion penalty moved the Spartans back five yards and they opted for a field goal.
The kick was good, but a roughing the kicker penalty gave Wyomissing a first-and-goal. Spartan head coach Bob Wolfrum decided to take the points off the board and accept the penalty, which gave his team a first and goal at the Northwestern 8-yard line.
Wyomissing gained four yards in its first play from the eight, but a holding penalty then moved them back to the 14. On second-and-goal, Wyomissing went to the air and Zimmerman broke up the play, nearly pulling in another interception. On a third-and-goal, the Spartans were called for a delay of game before Hyde rushed to the one and Eisenhower took it over from there on fourth down and the kick made it 24-20.
“We weren’t down at all,” said Northwestern’s Devon Hildebrand. “We just knew what we had to do and even though they were a big, physical team. We knew we had to go at them.”
The Tigers took over with 5:49 left in regulation and went about marching toward the end zone. Hildebrand came in on the series as a wildcat option for the Tigers and took a direct snap from the Spartans’ six and rushed over the left side and into the end zone and Kern added the much-needed extra point to make it a 27-24 game with just under three minutes to play.
Wyomissing looked to get into field goal range, at least, but Hyde couldn’t find his receivers and the Spartans turned the ball over on downs at their own 21. Clymer rushed 20 yards and then capped the two-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run, giving the Tigers their 33-24 edge.
An interception by Daniel Jenkins capped the win for Northwestern as the Spartans looked for one last gasp.
“It’s an unreal feeling,” said Shane Leh. “Our offense wasn’t really good in the first half, and we came out and the defense really gave us a lot of motivation and energy and I really have to thank them. Eli (Zimmerman) did a great job tonight and the defense gave us a great run.”
Northwestern’s lone touchdown in the first half came after Hildebrand returned a kickoff 43 yards to start the Tigers second drive of the game at the Wyomissing 45-yard line. Just when it appeared the drive would stall on a fourth-and-seven, Leh hit Clymer on a right-side screen that Clymer took 25 yards into the end zone and Kern added the extra point that tied the game at seven.
The PIAA championship game will be played Saturday afternoon at Cumberland Valley High School with Northwestern facing Belle Vernon, who beat District 10 champion Hickory 42-16 in the other semifinal game.