Parkland football runs its way through Northampton for opening win

Parkland 49, Northampton 14 – Rapid Recap

Parkland High School’s football team started sharp and finished strong on Friday night.

The Trojans, ranked third by lehighvalleylive, defeated Northampton 49-14 in an Eastern Pennsylvania Conference cross-divisional contest at Al Erdosy Stadium.

Parkland, paced by tailback Isiah Rico, churned out 429 rushing yards.

Turning points: Northampton gave Parkland a first down with an offsides penalty on a third-and-5 deep in Trojans territory.

Parkland made the most of the help by putting together a 13-play drive that went 75 yards and ended on a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback Tanner Lewis, giving the visitors a 14-0 lead with 10:43 remaining in the second quarter.

The Trojans seemed to put the game out of reach when Angel Santos, on his first carry of the night, broke off a 54-yard run during Parkland’s first possession of the second half. Santos finished off the series with a 6-yard TD to give the Trojans a 21-0 lead.

Northampton battled back to narrow the score to 28-14 in the third quarter with a pair of scoring runs by quarterback Joe Kerbacher.

Parkland, however, overwhelmed the Konkrete Kids on the ground in the final period and initiated the mercy rule with 4:54 remaining in the fourth.

Top performers: Rico finished with 209 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries. Lewis added 72 yards and a pair of scores on eight runs, while also going 12-for-16 with 90 yards through the air.

Santos rushed for 106 yards and a score on five second-half carries.

Kerbacher paced the Northampton offense with 18 carries for 100 yards, as he accounted for all of the Kids’ points.

Double ouch: Parkland’s Nick Johnston had punt return touchdowns nullified on back-to-back plays in the closing moments of the first half. Johnston, who went 67 and 66 yards to score, had his first return wiped out by offsetting penalties and second wasted by a roughing the kicker foul.

What it means: Parkland (1-0) opened the season with an impressive win, as it tries to reestablish its credentials among the area’s best, after having its streak of six consecutive District 11 titles snapped during a seven-victory campaign in 2018.

Northampton (0-1) hasn’t defeated any of the programs that currently play in the EPC South Division since beating Bethlehem Catholic in a then-Lehigh Valley Conference contest in 2012. The Kids, however, showed enough to confirm their status as a North Division contender.

FULL STORY: Rico’s return helps Parkland rumble over Northampton

Kyle Craig may be reached at kcraig@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KyleCraigSports. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.

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