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WRIGHT TWP. — About the only time Lance Blass stopped on Friday night was when he reached the end zone.
The Crestwood standout kept getting loose. He kept scoring. And he’d even have the occasional sprint back to the bench after crossing the goal line.
After missing three games with an injury and seeing limited snaps on offense in his return a week ago, Blass had plenty of energy to pile up 325 yards rushing and all four Comets touchdowns in a 28-20 win over Hanover Area.
It was the best ground performance by any player in the Wyoming Valley Conference so far this season. And it certainly wasn’t something Blass had experienced before.
“Absolutely not,” he said with a smile when it was over. “I’ve never had that type of offensive workload before.”
With Blass and quarterback Chase Passman sharing the backfield, Crestwood (3-5) was able to return to the high-output, big-play offense it had been known for in recent years.
Blass scored three of his touchdowns in the second half after Hanover Area had taken a 14-8 lead into the locker room. The touchdowns came from 48, 21 and 39 yards out. He also ripped off a 72-yard run with the Comets backed up near their own end zone.
“One-hundred percent credit tonight goes to the offensive line,” Blass said. “Those guys stepped up in a big way. They played a fantastic game.”
Yeah, he looked plenty healthy on this night.
“I think he’s back to 100 percent,” Crestwood coach Greg Myers said. “Last week we used him in limited action. Our plan was to sort of open him up a little bit this week. In a game like this, he needs the ball in his hands. He proved that.”
But the Comets would need more than just a career performance from Blass to hold off the pesky Hawkeyes.
Hanover Area (4-4) hit a number of big plays to keep it close throughout as Sean Coleman scored on a 64-yard run in the second quarter on the play after the Hawks defense recovered a fumble.
That gave Hanover a 14-8 lead at the break, after which the Hawks drove deep into Crestwood territory before lining up for a 26-yard field goal.
Instead of a two-score lead, however, Kevin Klusewitz blocked the kick. Six plays later, Blass was in the end zone to give Crestwood the turning point in the game.
“Absolutely. Gave us some life there,” Myers said. “Coming out from halftime and them marching down, you could see the wind come out of our sails a bit. That was a big play, swung the momentum and gave us a little confidence.”
The Hawkeyes had a chance to tie in the fourth quarter as Brandon Chafin (144 total yards) hit Christian Percy down the left sideline for a 31-yard touchdown to pull within 22-20.
Crestwood sniffed out the ensuing 2-point conversion, however, to stay in front as Owen Grigas brought down Chafin in the backfield.
“That was the play we were expecting,” Myers said. “We’ve seen that two-point pay a few times this season and I think maybe even last season.
“We drilled it all week. Obviously our kids listened to us and stepped up for us.”
Crestwood 28, Hanover Area 20
Hanover Area`0`14`0`6`—`20
Crestwood`8`0`7`13`—`28
First quarter
CRE — Lance Blass 1 run (Chase Passman run), 8:18
Second quarter
HAN — Tyheim Taylor 3 run (Taylor run), 6:57
HAN — Sean Coleman 64 run (kick failed), 3:40
Third quarter
CRE — Blass 48 run (Alex DeSpirito kick), 5:29
Fourth quarter
CRE — Blass 21 run (DeSpirito kick), 4:39
HAN — Christian Percy 31 pass from Brandon Chafin (run failed), 2:24
CRE — Blass 39 run (kick failed), 0:05
Team statistics`HAN`CRE
First downs`10`17
Rushes-yards`28-198`52-391
Passing yards`53`11
Total yards`251`402
Passing`3-9-0`1-6-1
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`4-35.8`3-31.3
Fumbles-lost`1-0`3-1
Penalties-yards`8-35`6-59
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — HAN, Brandon Chafin 10-91, Sean Coleman 6-69, Tyheim Taylor 11-29, Brandon Brueckner 1-9. CRE, Lance Blass 28-325, Chase Passman 14-50, Jacob Barney 1-10, Mike Macri 7-6, Pat Rother 1-3, Kevin Klusewitz 1-(minus-1), TEAM 1-(minus-2).
PASSING — HAN, Chafin 3-9-0-53; CRE, Kyle Richards 1-2-1-11, Blass 0-1-0-0, Passman 0-3-0-0.
RECEIVING — HAN, Christian Percy 1-31, Cameron Holeman 1-17, Brueckner 1-5. CRE, Blass 1-11.
INTERCEPTIONS — HAN, Zakee Nettles
MISSED FGs — HAN, 26 (blocked)