The Shenandoah Valley Blue Devils''s recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fifth straight loss. They took a 35-17 bruising from Mahanoy Area. Shenandoah Valley lost against Mahanoy Area in their previous head to head back in October of 2022, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 48-12 score last time.
Shenandoah Valley's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Ben Dempster, who rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown, and Nick Ryan who rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown.
Colm McGroarty was his usual excellent self, rushing for 241 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 12.1 yards per carry. McGroarty is on a roll when it comes to rushing yards, as he's now rushed for 100 or more in the last seven games he's played. Kyler Quick was another key contributor, rushing for 73 yards and a touchdown.
Shenandoah Valley's loss was their seventh straight on the road (dating back to last season), which dropped their overall record down to 2-9. Those losses could be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they only averaged 13.0 points per game. As for Mahanoy Area, the victory was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 4-6.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Shenandoah Valley will take on Salisbury Township at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Pennsylvania (Salisbury Township is ranked 524th, while Shenandoah Valley is ranked 507th). As for Mahanoy Area, they will head out on the road to face off against Pen Argyl at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.
