Clearfield entered its Senior Night matchup against the Dutch with the Mountain Athletic Conference Nittany League title on the line, and perhaps a little revenge on their minds for last year's playoff loss to the Flying Dutchmen.
All that considered, the Bisons put on a dominating performance, particularly on defense, to clinch the Nittany League championship at the Bison Sports Complex.
The win also gave Clearfield (8-2) the top seed for this weekend's District 9 Class AAA title game where the Bisons will once again play the Dutch. St. Marys (6-4) slipped into the title tilt when Corry scored a late touchdown and two-point conversion to edge Bradford, 28-27, Friday night. Bradford, which led most of the game, would have played Clearfield with a win.
Clearfield opened the game with a little trickery as receiver Brandon Sass, a quarterback last year, hit Trey Campman for 42 yards on a double pass. The play seemed to ignite the Bisons and their fans as Clearfield went on to score on its first two possessions en route to a 21-0 halftime lead.
Clearfield's defense held St. Marys to virtually no yards in the first two quarters until the Dutch ripped off two 20-yard runs in the final minute with the Bisons playing a prevent defense.
The Bisons' defense continued its strong play in the second, scoring a safety midway through the third quarter following a 49-yard punt by Parker Herrington that pinned the Dutch inside their one-yard line. The Dutch, who finally scored with just over two minutes left in the game, managed just 164 total yards, 90 on the ground.
"It was a very emotional night, especially with it being Senior Night," said Clearfield head coach Tim Janocko. "It's not very often that you get to clinch a championship on your Senior Night, and that says it all right there.
"We played very well on defense and special teams, and that set up some opportunities for us. Nick Redden's interception was big for us, as was Parker's punt. He kicked really well for us tonight.
"We've accomplished a lot of our goals already - a winning season and capturing the MAC title. We beat out a lot of good teams like Tyrone, Central, Huntingdon and played a stiff schedule to win this championship. I want the kids to take today and celebrate, but we're going to see them again and next week will be an entirely new ball game."
Clearfield quickly gained the momentum with its trickery on the game's first play as Jarrin Campman threw a long lateral to Sass, who hit Trey Campman for 42 yards down to the Dutch 25-yard line. Bison Isiah Morgan followed with three carries for 16 yards but the Dutch defense quickly keyed on Morgan, who ran for only two more yards the rest of the first half.
Jarrin Campman capped the drive four plays later as he scored on a QB sweep on fourth down from the 3. Herrington's extra point gave Clearfield a 7-0 lead just 4:01 into the game.
Clearfield's defense then pushed St. Marys back five yards on its first two plays, forcing a punt. The Bisons took over at the Dutch 47 and promptly went on a 15-play, 47-yard scoring drive. Campman hit brother Trey Campman for 10 yards on a third-and-six and also picked up two first downs with his legs on short fourth downs.
Campman carried the ball 11 times for 37 yards on the series and capped it with a four-yard score with 10:10 left in the second quarter. Herrington's kick made it 14-0.
After the teams traded punts, Nick Redden gave Clearfield prime field position after he tipped a St. Marys screen pass to himself in the left flat at the Dutch 13 and returned the pick to the 3.
After the Dutch defense stuffed Clearfield on two straight plays, Campman powered his way in from the three on third down for his third TD of the first half. Campman ran for 62 yards on 18 carries in the first two quarters, then had just two totes for six yards in the second half. Herrington's PAT gave Clearfield a 21-0 lead.
Clearfield appeared to have another interception on the Dutch's next drive but a penalty gave the ball back to St. Marys. The penalty have the Dutch their first first down of the game before having to punt.
St. Marys got the ball back with 58 seconds left in the half and got itself into positive yardage with a 21-yard run by quarterback Greg Simchick and then a 22-yard jaunt by Kyle Bennett as time expired in the first half.
The teams traded punts to open the third quarter with the second being Herrington's 49-yard boot. Bison Trey Campman let Herrington's punt roll after a good bounce and downed it inside the one. Clearfield's defense took over from there, stuffing St. Marys' Kevin Hoy in the end zone for a safety on the Dutch's first play. The two points gave the Bisons a 23-0 lead with 5:30 left to go in the third period.
A nice return by Trey Campman on the ensuing free kick gave Clearfield the ball at the Dutch 38, and the Bisons put the game out of reach with a seven-play, 38-yard touchdown drive. This time Morgan shouldered the load, carrying the ball six times for 32 yards. He capped the drive with a 3-yard score. Morgan ran for 54 of his 72 yards in the second half.
St. Marys finally got on the board in the final minutes aided by a 64-yard pass. Simchick aired it out to Michael Feldbauer on a first-and-10 at the St. Marys' 25 and the Dutch senior hauled in the throw before being caught near the Bison 25. Feldbauer pitched the ball to teammate James Swanson who ran it down to the Clearfield 11 before being tackled.
Simchick hit Feldbauer for a 10-yard score two plays later, but Frank Barber's extra point was blocked by Derek Danver to set the final at 29-6.
"We got beat in every facet of the game and were beat by the better team tonight," said St. Marys head coach Joe Schlimm. "I congratulate Clearfield on winning the league title, and we look forward to next week and the opportunity to see what we can do against them again. We're fortunate to be in that situation."
The District 9 Class AAA title game will played at a neutral site at 7 p.m. Friday.
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