QUICK HIT: Behind rock-solid defense and the persuasive play of fullback Tyler Heisey, Cumberland shoved past Dallastown 33-17 Friday night and is headed back to the District 3-AAAA final. The second-seeded Eagles rushed 59 times, including 38 times by Heisey at Chapman Memorial Field. The end result was 168 yards for the brutish senior and three TD runs, more than enough to offset the staggered semifinal play from the York County 2-seed. In fact, it was a pair of CV (11-2) mistakes that allowed the Wildcats (10-3) to open scoring drives at the Eagles 20 and 19-yard lines.
With DE Brady Morris, LB Tim Spinelli and the rest of the CV defense digging in, Dallastown mustered a miniscule 64 offensive yards in the final 24 minutes. The Eagles will meet fellow Mid-Penn combatant Lower Dauphin (12-1) next Saturday for a 6 p.m. kickoff at Hersheypark Stadium.
TURNING POINT: Afforded a short field midway through the third quarter – A bad exchange between Eagles QB Christian Harrell and RB Tyler Updegraff produced the gift – one of Dallastown's top weapons finally broke through. QB Andrew Henry (5-for-13, 55 yards) found Malik Lewis in the corner of the endzone on a third-and-goal chance from CV's 13. The Wildcats' 17-14 lead, however, lasted all five minutes as Cumberland Valley embarked on one of its patented double-digit drives. Eleven plays after Updegraff was stopped for no yards, Heisey busted in on fourth-and-1 from the Dallastown 2. Although kicker Connor Long's conversion attempt sailed left, the Eagles spent the remaining 11:20 expanding its lead.
TELL-TALE STATS: Heisey clearly was unprepared to let this budding season end, carrying 19 times in each half. Updegraff, who picked off Henry's fourth-quarter pass to kickstart another CV scoring drive, finished with 22 stripes on 12 carries. Heisey's backfield mate barreled in from Dallastown's 4 to seal the win with 37 seconds left. … Harrell was named the starter on Thursday and replaced fellow senior Chris Galbraith, who was sporting a cast on his non-throwing hand. Harrell accounted for six of CV's 19 fourth-quarter points, capping the series after Updegraff's pick with a 1-yard sneak. … Dallastown's Robert Catchings rushed for 117 yards on 13 attempts, but only grabbed 34 yards on five carries after intermission.
THE BIG PICTURE: Making their 24th appearance in the District 3 playoffs, the Commonwealth Co-champion Eagles improved to 43-11 overall and are no in line for their 13th championship title. Only 3-AAA power Manheim Central (16) has snared more gold. Lower Dauphin, who shared the Mid-Penn Keystone Division with Bishop McDevitt and Cedar Cliff, outlasted top-seeded Wilson 17-14. The difference was a 46-yard field goal by Joe Julius in the waning seconds.
WHAT THEY SAID: “[Heisey] is a truck. He's an animal. If he's getting yards then keep getting him the ball. We're a duo, like you guys write in the paper. We're a two-headed monster and it's working.” – Cumberland Valley RB Tyler Updegraff
“We won. We're going to Hershey. We're Hershey happy.” – Eagles DE Brady Morris
“Obviously I expect Chris [Harrell] to play well. He practiced well all year and he was right behind Chris Galbraith coming out of camp. I knew he would be ready.” – CV skipper Mike Whitehead Jr.
Epler on Twitter: @threejacker