Greensburg Salem dominates Laurel Highlands in key matchup

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, September 21, 2018 | 10:36 PM

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If Greensburg Salem jotted down a pregame checklist before playing Laurel Highlands, it probably looked something like this:

• Score an early touchdown.

• Mix runs effectively between power back Aaren Putt, quarterback Trent Patrick and shifty Dajauhn Hertzog.

• Come up with a couple of momentum-altering defensive plays.

• Turn triple-option running Laurel Highlands into a passing team.

The Golden Lions accomplished those tasks and added dominant play from their offensive line Friday night at Offutt Field in a Class 4A Big Eight Conference game in which the winner would take a major stride toward a WPIAL playoff berth. Greensburg Salem took those steps with a thorough 48-12 win, No. 692 in team history.

“I felt pregame that we were really ready to play,” Greensburg Salem coach Dave Keefer said. “Our No. 1 goal was to come out and just be physical.”

The Golden Lions (2-3, 2-0) certainly were the tougher team, much to the disappointment of Laurel Highlands coach Jake Just, a 2002 Greensburg Salem graduate in his first season leading the Mustangs (2-3, 0-2).

“We did not play physical. We let them push us around. We basically quit,” Just said. “They played much more physical than we did, and that’s why we’re 0-2 in the conference.”

How’s this for physical? Greensburg Salem rushed for seven first downs in the second quarter, 20 for the game. Putt finished with an eye-popping 199 yards on only 14 carries, aided by a 46-yard run late in the second quarter and a 77-yard touchdown that put the game out of reach in the third.

But Putt wasn’t alone in doing damage against the Laurel Highlands defense.

Patrick, who passed for 101 yards with a 58-yard touchdown to Ryan Thomas, also rushed for 54, mostly after initial contact. Hertzog opened the scoring with a 13-yard run for a 7-0 lead at the 4:23 mark of the first quarter, and he added a second touchdown on a 28-yard fumble return late in the third quarter that put the 35-point mercy rule into effect.

“On offense, our outside schemes and our inside schemes all seemed to be working,” Putt said. “I was running up the middle. Our quarterback is a great runner, and we have a bunch of guys who can make plays. It really all started with our line. They were blocking everybody.”

Only one of Greensburg Salem’s rushing attempts went for negative yards, and it came on Putt’s first carry.

“This was an important game, and we treat every conference game like it’s a playoff game,” Keefer said, “but this really was a big one for us. I’m very proud of how our offensive line opened up holes for Putt and (Patrick).”

Keefer also liked the play of his defense, particularly during a second-quarter sequence.

Laurel Highlands responded to Greensburg Salem’s opening touchdown with a 14-play drive that mostly featured runs up the middle by Cheikh Dossou, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound bruiser. The Mustangs capped the drive with a 4-yard pitch to Miguel Brumfield and trailed 7-6 after a missed extra point.

Greensburg Salem fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and the Mustangs’ Ryan Fike recovered at the Golden Lions’ 31. On a second-and-7, Kenneth Shea pressured LH quarterback Conner Basinger, who was flagged for intentional grounding. Good field position turned into a third-and-30 for Laurel Highlands.

Greensburg Salem quickly capitalized behind Patrick, who threw the touchdown pass to Thomas four plays later.

From there, the Golden Lions were off and running, and they finished things with rushing touchdowns from Shea and Roberto Smith.

“Our out-of-conference schedule was against good teams, but we learned a lot of things from those games,” Putt said. “Being 2-0 in the conference, that’s huge. That’s really where we want to be.”

Mike Kovak is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Mike at mkovak@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MKovak_Trib.

Tags: Greensburg Salem, Laurel Highlands