SHIPPENSBURG — Confidence alone doesn’t push a football team to the brink of an undefeated season. Every step each week is critiqued. Each play has a purpose.
All the negative, small and big gains snowball into a wrecking ball of expectations and experience. Mechanicsburg has handled each ebb and flow of the 2024 season as well as anyone. But in Friday’s Mid-Penn Keystone Division finale against Shippensburg, the confidence burgeoned, and the Wildcats grabbed the reins of destiny.
Mechanicsburg pulled off a double-lateral touchdown pass just before halftime, Dom Baker deposited three scores, and the ‘Cats induced a second-half running clock en route to a 42-21 victory over the Greyhounds at Veterans Stadium in Memorial Park. The Wildcats (10-0, 9-0 Keystone) raised the Keystone title behind the unblemished mark, earning their first division crown since 2020. “We kind of tuned out (the noise),” Baker said.
“We didn't really let anyone tell us what we could or couldn't do. We set out our goal from the beginning of the year to be champs, and here we are. We followed what we wanted to do from the beginning of the year.
” The Wildcats’ winning concoction consisted of an explosive offense and a staunch defense. Mechanicsburg averaged 38.2 points per game across the regular season — including Friday’s drubbing — and permitted no more than 21 points in a given contest.
Both components surfaced in Friday’s ender. The ‘Cats climbed to a 28-7 halftime advantag.
