Kalkstein’s big play helps Penn-Trafford earn narrow win over Belle Vernon

By: Jose Negron
Friday, September 16, 2022 | 10:38 PM

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When Penn-Trafford needed to make a big defensive play with less than two minutes to go in a six-point game Friday night, Tommy Kalkstein answered the call.

On a third-and-8, the 6-foot-2, 182-pound senior defensive back came up with a late interception of Belle Vernon’s Braden Laux to revive some hope along the Warriors’ sideline.

Penn-Trafford took over at the BV 20-yard line and later scored on a 6-yard scamper by Conlan Greene before hitting the eventual winning extra point to capture a thrilling 14-13 victory over the Leopards in a nonconference showdown at “The Beach” at James Weir Stadium.

“We got a good rush, and Tommy made a great play,” Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane said of the late interception, one of two for the Warriors in the final two minutes of the game. “I really believe our kids have high character and weren’t going to tank it at that point because we were still in the football game. Whatever they were going to throw at us, we were going to be prepared for it.”

Leading 13-7, Belle Vernon (1-2) picked up a big fourth-down stop, forcing P-T to turn the ball over on downs with under two minutes to go. The Leopards picked up a pair of 1-yard gains by Jake Gedekoh before being faced with a third-and-long situation.

“The goal was to, obviously, milk the clock,” BVA coach Matt Humbert said. “We wanted to get out and get an easy completion, and there was an outside backer who undersected that. Braden throws that pick, but that’s on me because I didn’t help him out much.”

Greene played a significant role in the victory for the Warriors (3-1).

The 6-4, 250-pound signal caller completed 6 of 10 passes for 81 yards. A Temple recruit for his prowess as an edge rusher, Greene found most of his success on the ground, carrying the ball 25 times for 130 yards and two touchdowns, including a 7-yard score in the first quarter.

“He’s a Division-I football player, and we’ve put the ball in his hands quite a bit now,” Ruane said. “He’s throwing it, he’s running it and when the game was on the line, we gave it to him and he took care of business.”

The Leopards struck first in the matchup, and it didn’t take them long.

On the Leopards’ second play from scrimmage, highly touted recruit Quinton Martin managed to get to the edge before racing down the BVA sideline for a 50-yard score that made it 7-0 after a Willie Schwerha extra point.

Penn-Trafford answered on its ensuing possession, which took more than eight minutes off the clock in the first quarter.

The 14-play, 80-yard drive was capped by Greene’s first touchdown of the night. Greene ran for 28 yards and completed all three of his pass attempts for 50 yards on the opening drive.

“He gets talked about a lot for being big, but he’s really a great athlete,” Ruane said. “We want the ball in his hands as much as possible, and he continues to deliver.”

The Warriors held possession twice in the first half, and their second drive nearly resulted in points.

P-T started at its own 42-yard line after forcing BVA to turn the ball over downs. The visitors used 10 plays to get down to the BVA 13-yard line before Logan Swartz missed a 30-yard field goal, keeping the score tied at 7-7.

BVA took over possession in the final minutes of the opening half but couldn’t manufacture a big splash play to step ahead heading into halftime.

That big splash play did come on the Leopards’ first possession of the second half as Gedekoh capped an eight-play drive by going up the middle untouched for a 40-yard touchdown run. The missed PAT made it 13-7 in favor of BVA.

Gedekoh was a big part of a Leopards rushing attack that totaled 182 yards. He matched Martin with 76 yards on 11 carries. Laux added 30 rushing yards.

“I feel for our defense because they played great once again. They did their job, and we kinda hung them out to dry offensively,” Humbert said. “We had pretty much what we wanted rushing the ball tonight, though.

“Penn-Trafford played hard as hell, but we gave that game away. That’s the thing that really stings.”

One possession after Gedekoh found paydirt, BVA had a chance to extend its lead.

Evan Pohlot picked off a pass by Kalkstein at the P-T 35-yard line, and the Leopards were able to work their way down to their own 44 after four plays. Laux then connected with Pohlot for a 44-yard touchdown strike, but Pohlot was flagged for offensive pass interference. BVA was forced to punt when faced with a fourth-and-16.

“We had positive yardage after positive yardage, and then the penalty sets us back,” Humbert said. “We just have to stop putting ourselves behind the sticks.”

Belle Vernon finished with 212 yards of total offense, and Penn-Trafford had just under 300.

Adam LaCarte totaled 17 tackles to lead the Leopards’ defense.

Belle Vernon travels to Thomas Jefferson for another nonconference matchup next week. Penn-Trafford travels to Hempfield for its Big East Conference opener.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Penn-Trafford