Spartans shut out Ephrata
- 11 October 2008
Following Friday night's game with Ephrata, Garden Spot head coach Matt Zamperini spoke to his team about the focus and desire necessary to be great.Luckily for Zamperini and the Spartans, on a night when the offense struggled to find its rhythm, the defense showed that desire and focus in sparking a 30-0 victory [boxscore].
"We talked about tightening up on defense," stated Zamperini. "They really stepped it up tonight.''
Leading the way for the Spartans (3-1 Section Two, 5-2 overall) was defensive back Derek Deshaw, who tallied three of their five interceptions. The biggest of the three came midway through the third quarter when Deshaw returned an overthrown pass by Ephrata quarterback Lance Kopp and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown to give Garden Spot a 14-0 lead.
Deshaw also sparked the offense in the fourth quarter. Following a fumble recovery at the Ephrata 19, Garden Spot quarterback Weston Martin connected with Deshaw in the corner of the end zone to push the lead to 20-0.
Ephrata (0-4, 0-7) moved the ball behind the tough running of George Murray and clutch passes to Greg Forstater and Jordan Yarbrough, but saw its comeback bid halted by Joe Strangarity's interception midway through the fourth quarter.
Running back Andersan Beamer would ice the game with a 19-yard touchdown run minutes later.
David Stoltzfus wrapped up the scoring with a 23-yard field goal to give the Spartans a win that was closer than the score indicated.
"We've got to get all our cylinders firing," declared Zamperini. "We need to put all the phases together."
Both defenses controlled the first half, combining third-down stops and key turnovers to keep the respective offenses out of the end zone.
The only exception came in the blink of an eye on a big play by the Garden Spot offense.
Facing third-and-8 late in the first quarter, Martin lofted a screen pass to Beamer, who took dodged two would-be tacklers, racing down the sideline for a 51-yard touchdown to give Garden Spot a 7-0 lead.
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