Tigers Open Football Season With Big Win Over Sun Valley

NEWTOWN SQUARE- Tigers opened up its 2011 high school football season with a bang on Friday night. The Tigers took the 42-0 big win over Sun Valley on Friday night at home.

Junior halfback Cimirrow Moat rushed for 248 yards and three touchdowns for the game, 204 yards of which came in the first half. Marple Newtown used their ground attack to pull away from the Vanguards early, while the Tigers' defense made sure Sun Valley's offense never got anything going.

The night belonged to Moat, who showed he is poised for a break-out season after rushing for 600 yards all of last season. His electrifying touchdown runs of 80 yards and 50 yards were the highlight of a lopsided first half. With limited touches last season, the game was a confidence-builder for the young tailback.

“It brings [my confidence] very high,” said Moat. “We take one week at a time. We think about that one game, that one week and we don't really care what anybody thinks, we think about ourselves.”

Head coach Ray Gionta said Moat will get better with more experience at the halfback position. Gionta commended his defensive line, which saw strong play from senior Ken Smith. While the coach was satisfied with the win, he sought to put things into perspective after the game.

“Overall we were very happy with the way we played tonight, but it's just one game,” Gionta said.

Senior quarterback Jamie Ridinger, who was injured for the majority of last season, added a rushing touchdown on a quarterback sneak with 26 seconds left to play in the second quarter.

Junior halfback Parker Maas scored on his own thrilling 78-yard run early in the third quarter after lining up at linebacker for most of the game.

Marple Newtown (1-0) will take on the Penncrest Lions next Friday at 7 p.m. in Media.