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Wash High shuts down, shuts out Burgettstown

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter Washington HighþÄôs Nick Welsh gets around BurgettstownþÄôs Ethan Brothers during a game at Burgettstown Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2017.

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter Washington HighþÄôs Ronnie Paith breaks the hold of BurgettstownþÄôs Ethan Brothers during a game at Burgettstown Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2017.

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter BurgettstownþÄôs Nicolas Speer carrying the ball with Colby Green by his side during a game Washington High during a game at Burgettstown Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2017.

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter Washington HighþÄôsZack Swartz hands hands off the ball to Nick Welsh during a game at Burgettstown Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2017.

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter BurgettstownþÄôs Seth Phillis picks up yards against Washington High during a game at Burgettstown Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2017.

BURGETTSTOWN – “A small town with a big heart.”

That’s what the welcome sign reads when entering Burgettstown.

A dominating third quarter from the Washington High School football team not only broke the hearts of the home faithful but also took the air out of Hill Memorial Stadium.

The Prexies scored three touchdowns less than five minutes apart, forced two turnovers and limited the Burgettstown offense to minus-12 yards in the third quarter to defeat the Blue Devils 33-0 in a Century Conference game Friday night.

The dominating win, during which Burgettstown gained 76 total yards, extends Washington’s regular-season winning streak to 37 games.

“I think in the end, Washington’s athletes were the difference maker,” said Burgettstown head coach Mark Druga. “They have some guys where, one play, they can go the distance. We fought as hard as we could, but their athleticism was the difference.”

That big-play ability from the Prexies was evident early in the third quarter, when Nick Welsh gave them a 14-0 lead on a 48-yard touchdown run 19 seconds into the second half.

After the Washington defense forced a three-and-out, Welsh capped a five-play, 64-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown run that put Washington up 21-0.

Washington linebacker Isaiah Schoonmaker intercepted a Blue Devils pass and was rewarded on offense when sophomore quarterback Zack Swartz found him on the very next play for a 40-yard touchdown pass with 6:41 left in the third quarter.

“We just wanted the kids to keep their composure and come out ready to play in the second half,” Washington head coach Mike Bosnic said after his team led only 7-0 at halftime despite controlling the game.

“We knew that we made some mistakes and shot ourselves in the foot a couple times in the first two quarters. We came out and played much better.”

It wasn’t only the Washington (6-0, 8-0) offense that was flexing its muscles in the second half. The Prexies’ defense allowed two first downs in the second half, the first with 7:48 remaining in the fourth quarter on a penalty for roughing the Blue Devils’ punter.

Of Burgettstown’s 27 offensive plays in the second half, 22 resulted in either no gain, lost yardage or a turnover.

“We came into this game knowing we had to get three or four yards every play,” Druga said. “At first, it was working, at times. We were eventually put into bad situations. You can’t have that, especially against a team with a skill set like Washington. You don’t want to be in long down-and-distance situations with that team.”

The emergence of Swartz in his first year at quarterback has created a balanced offense for the Prexies. Swartz was 11 of 18 for 270 yards and three touchdowns. Schoonmaker caught two of those touchdown passes while junior Dan Walker snagged the other.

“They are both great playmakers and can make things happen after they catch the ball,” Swartz said. “I’ve just been trying to get better week by week. I’m getting more experience and just keep trying to make plays.”

Swartz helped keep the offense composed, even after the Prexies committed 11 penalties for 110 yards, negating two touchdowns and giving Burgettstown (5-2, 6-2) three first downs from infractions.

“We can run and throw the ball but still have a lot of things to clean up,” said Bosnic. “We’re still making mistakes and can be better, but we’ve still been winning a lot. Hopefully we can finish things out next week and keep it going into the playoffs.”

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