AMBLER – In the teams’ unforgettable first meeting during the regular season, LaSalle They outlasted St. Joseph’s Prep 35-34 in four overtimes, handing the Hawks their first loss to a Pennsylvania team in three years.

The Prep tied the score at 21-14 in the higher-stakes Philadelphia 6A Catholic League championship game Saturday afternoon despite a pair of touchdown passes from the junior quarterback. Gavin Sidwar to junior receiver Joey O’Brien (30 and 66 yards). Prep faces Imhotep Charter, a 28-26 winner over Abraham Lincoln, next weekend for the District 12 crown.

In front of an overflow crowd at Wissahickon, Prep claimed its ninth straight PCL title, with its last loss in the championship game coming to La Salle (29-28) in 2015. The Hawks have won six state titles over the past eight seasons .

“I think they just made a few more plays than us,” said first-year La Salle head coach Brett Gordon. “I don’t think we played our best game today, which is a little frustrating. We knew we were going to have to play our best game to win.”

Heavily recruited O’Brien had a big day, catching five passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns, making an interception and contributing a big hit on third down as La Salle (10-1) got the ball back with 1:59. . remaining. But Prep (7-2) stopped the Explorers without a first down and ran out of time.

O’Brien’s first touchdown came on a tipped ball up the middle. He caught it and went down the wing, allowing La Salle to tie the score at 7 early in the second quarter.

“I thought we were rolling right there,” O’Brien said with a smile. “We had everyone in the crowd with us, but it’s okay. We’ll be back next year.”

Sidwar’s second score on O’Brien came when La Salle trailed 21-7. O’Brien got behind the defender, who fell, caught a deep ball and completed the 66-yard touchdown with 4:47 remaining to close the gap to seven points.

“That’s what you have to do in a game like this: make plays,” O’Brien said. “Gav gave me a chance and I just did my best.”

O’Brien led La Salle in receptions (67), receiving yards (1,023) and receiving touchdowns (12) this season.

Sidwar completed 19 of 39 passes for 233 yards, two touchdowns and one interception on Saturday.

“They kept us in (the game),” Gordon said of Sidwar and O’Brien. “We know how talented they both are. In a couple of scenarios, we needed two other guys to step up.”

Sidwar, who lives in Warrington, finished his junior campaign 218 of 319 for 2,720 passing yards, with 31 TDs and six interceptions.

“I’ll take this one,” Sidwar said. “This is on me because I don’t think I played as well as I could and I let my team down, but I’ll be back. We thought we were going to win, but today they were better than us.”

Sidwar announced on social media on October 27 that he would withdraw from Rutgers “after careful consideration.”

After Saturday’s game, he said he wanted to focus primarily on the rest of La Salle’s season after being released and that he doesn’t have any recruiting visits scheduled yet.

“It’s different,” he said of being a free agent. “Recruiting got a little better. We’ll see how things go from here.”

As a strong group of seniors graduate, O’Brien, Sidwar and the rest of the returning players are looking forward to a second season with Gordon, a record-setting quarterback at La Salle and Villanova, running the show .

“Coach Gordon changed the whole dynamic,” O’Brien said. “Just him being there, our whole work ethic changed. It’s going to be that way as long as he’s here.”

“He’s a great coach,” Sidwar said. “Last year we were 6-5 and this year we were 10-0 coming into this game. He’s the best coach I’ve ever met. I can’t say enough about him.”

What it means for St. Joe’s Prep

The Hawks will face Imhotep Charter in the District 12 title game next weekend for a spot in the PIAA state quarterfinals.

What it means for La Salle

The Explorers’ magnificent season ended with Saturday’s loss.

Key game

St. Joe’s Prep sophomore Masiia Acrey returned the opening kickoff 60 yards to the La Salle 20-yard line, setting the stage for the Hawks’ first score in a game in which they never trailed.

By the numbers: St. Joseph’s Prep vs. LaSalle

La Salle junior receiver/defensive back Joey O’Brien caught five passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns, had an interception and made a big hit on third down to give La Salle the ball with less than two minutes remaining.

game balls

John Leuthe, senior at La Salle from Sellersville had a pair of tackles for loss to lead the Explorers’ stellar linebacking corps.

La Salle junior quarterback Gavin Sidwar He completed 19 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns, while also punting three times from a deep shotgun setup for an average of 40 yards and all three were downed inside Prep’s 12-yard line.

they said it

“It was intense because they’re the two best teams in the state,” La Salle junior receiver and defensive back Joey O’Brien said. “You know you’re not going to get off the field much and you know it’s going to be close.”

“They’ve been resilient all year,” La Salle head coach Brett Gordon said. “It’s a testament to his character. We had our opportunities, that’s all you can ask for.”

Tom Moore: [email protected]; @TomMoorePhilly He is a sports columnist for PhiladelphiaBurbs.com. Support our journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared in Bucks County Courier Times: La Salle falls to St. Joseph’s Prep in PA high school football