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Burgettstown defense shines again; Devils win outright conference title

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PITTSBURGH – As camp wrapped up for the Burgettstown High School football team in August, senior lineman Angelo Fratini pointed up to the wall in the gymnasium and confidently told his teammates, “We are updating that banner.”

Seven games with an unrelenting defense and shove-it-down-your-throat offense, the banner, which notes Burgettstown’s conference championships, officially needed a makeover after 41 years.

An eighth game was to make sure they didn’t have to share it with anybody.

In another dominating, workmanlike performance, Burgettstown’s defense barely budged again by posting its fourth shutout of the season to convincingly defeat Brentwood, 27-0, Friday night to remain undefeated and become outright Class AA Three Rivers Conference champions.

“For our community, for our school, we are bringing back the conference title,” said head coach Mark Druga, who took over a program in 2015 after it had only eight wins the previous five seasons.

“Our attitudes are so much different now. You can see it in the school hallways. You can see it in the town. We have people coming back to games that haven’t been there for 40 years. We have stalwarts that have been there through all those 40 years. It’s really a combination of many long hours and a heck of a lot of hard work.”

By Luke Campbell
Staff writer
lcampbell@observer-reporter.com

Burgettstown wins Three Rivers Conference

The stifling defense for Burgettstown (6-0, 8-0) didn’t allow the Spartans into the red zone, got a pair of interceptions from sophomore free safety Cole Shergi and only allowed two third-down conversions.

Brentwood (3-4, 4-5) likely had its playoff hopes dashed early as it failed to convert a third-down play until 46 seconds after halftime, when it trailed 24-0.

“We hear a great deal about offenses in Class 2A,” said Druga, who was in a walking boot after tearing his Achille’s tendon in neighborhood softball game. “We don’t hear too much about the defenses. Our defense has shined. We have taken a page from the old Pittsburgh Steelers, and even though nobody is going to like it, the Baltimore Ravens.”

Shergi’s first interception, which he returned 58 yards to the Brentwood 20-yard line, set up the game’s opening touchdown. Quarterback Jake Lounder took the snap from under center and plunged into the end zone for a two-yard score to give the Blue Devils a 10-0 lead with 52 seconds left in the first quarter.

Eight offensive snaps and 53 yards later, Lounder scored on a play that could’ve represented the entire season for the Blue Devils. Taking the shotgun snap, Lounder ran past the vacant defensive line of Brentwood, eyed an oncoming safety and unmercilessly plowed his 6-1, 200-plus pounds in for another score to extend the Burgettstown lead to 17-0.

“I say incredible, but I’m really thinking about the Hulk right now,” Druga joked about his quarterback. “That right there is our mentality as a football team. We are going to come at you with everything we have.”

Lounder finished with 80 rushing yards and the two touchdowns on 14 carries.

“That’s just Jake,” Fratini said. “He is going to run right through you.”

Shergi’s second interception ended a 26-yard drive for Brentwood, which was trying to score before halftime. Both turnovers fell into the waiting hands of Shergi as the Burgettstown defensive line was forcing Spartans’ quarterback John Milcic to get rid of the ball.

“It’s the easiest job I can have,” Shergi said of patrolling the deep third as his primary responsibility. “Our line creates the pressure, our linebackers flow to the ball and our defensive backs create turnovers and make tackles when we need to.”

The other points scored by the Blue Devils all came from Seth Phillis, who made field goals of 26 and 28 yards and took a jet sweep 62 yards for a score.

Burgettstown, which has secured a home playoff game, continued to strengthen its bid for becoming a top seed in the Class AA playoffs. The Blue Devils are only one of two teams undefeated in the classification. Shady Side Academy is the other.

“We still have a mission,” Druga said. “We aren’t stopping right now. We want to go perfect, then we want to continue this momentum into the playoffs. Last year, we crept in (to the postseason). This year, we aren’t creeping anywhere.”

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