High School Sports

University Makes Trek To Wheeling Park

Patriots bounced back from loss to St. Clairsville

WHEELING -- Wheeling Park coach Chris Daugherty stressed starting "fast and clean" in last week's contest against Hedgesville.

His Patriots did just that in rolling to a 21-0 first-quarter lead en route to a 43-26 triumph, successfully bouncing back from a tough 36-33 setback at St. Clairsville.

Daugherty is hoping for another quick getaway this Friday when his charges welcome Morgantown-based University. It marks the second straight week the Hawks must travel to the Northern Panhandle, as they downed Brooke, 39-15, at Wellsburg last Friday.

Park and University are matching 2-1 records. John Kelley is in his 33rd year as the Hawks' head coach. He is an Oak Glen graduate.

University started slowly but used an impressive second half to defeat Brooke. The Hawks, who downed John Marshall in their opener, outscored the Bruins by a 26-0 margin after intermission.

Senior running back Logan Raber came up huge in Wellsburg. The 207-pounder rushed 19 times for 220 yards.

"Logan is a great kid. He really put on a performance last week," Kelley said. "Logan is also a force on defense. He is an excellent middle linebacker."

To say the Hawks are a young team would be an understatement.

University features a 52-player roster. Amazingly, 42 of those gridders are either freshmen or sophomores. The team has three seniors.

"It is nice to be 2-1. I really didn't expect us to be off to a good start. Being so young I was hoping to win some games in the second half of the season," Kelley said. "We were fortunate to beat John Marshall. Brooke, meanwhile, was a true team win.

"We start four sophomores on the offensive line. Our freshmen class is a very talented one. I believe we are starting to get better. But we still have a long way to go. If we can stay healthy we have some winnable games down the road."

Daugherty is pleased with how the team bounced back last week at Wheeling Island Stadium.

"I was real happy with how we started against Hedgesville. They are a real good offensive team and can score points," Daugherty said. "We wanted to get up on them early and we were able to do that. Then our defense did what they needed to do. It was a nice win."

While happy to be sitting at 2-1, Kelley fully understands the task his Hawks face Friday night.

"I thing Wheeling Park is one of the top teams in the state. They have it all," Kelley said. "They are huge up front on both sides of the ball. They average about 276 on the offensive line and 280 on the defensive line. That will be a problem for us.

"They have a great quarterback (Alex Dunlevy) and they have great speed. They take advantage of that speed. Park is also very impressive defensively. We are definitely overmatched against Wheeling Park."

Added Daugherty: "Give University and Coach Kelley credit. They have found a way to be 2-1. They take care of the ball and they cause turnovers. John is a great coach."

Like Kelley, Daugherty is big on Dunlevy.

"Alex has really stepped up this year. He makes plays," Daugherty said. "His stats stack up with some of the best in the state. He is the brains on the field for us as well."

Dunlevy was lights out last week in nuking Hedgesville. He completed 11 of 17 passes for 221 yards and two TDs. He also rushed for 48 yards and two more scores.

Park has a two-headed monster at running back. Senior Raphael Bradley and junior Stevie Mitchell share carries and both possess big-time skills.

"Raphael is not 100 percent yet while Stevie is playing two positions for us. They both are very capable," Daugherty said.

Park has the luxury of using a host of different linemen while featuring a young and improving defense.

"Our offensive and defensive lines are almost entirely different groups. It really helps to keep them fresh," Daugherty said. "Defensively, we are a young group. We start only three seniors on that side of the ball.

"It is a junior-dominated group to go with two sophomore linebackers. We just need to plug people in the right position and let them grow. We need to find out who we are defensively."

University's lone loss was a 48-14 decision at the hands of Parkersburg South.

Friday's kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Wheeling Island Stadium.