Lehighton pulls away from JT

TaQuan Bradley-Chambers has put up video game-like numbers all season.

The Lehighton running back looked like a real life cheat code again Saturday night.

Adding to a library of highlight reel runs, Bradley-Chambers put on another display against Jim Thorpe to lead the Indians to a 36-14 victory in the District 11 Class 3A semifinals.

“He’s been doing that the whole season, especially the last half of the season,” Lehighton head coach Tom McCarroll said of Bradley-Chambers, who had 202 yards rushing in a Week 10 victory over the Olympians. “It seems like he rises to the occasion. The bigger the game, the bigger he plays.”

Bradley-Chambers finished with 207 yards and three rushing touchdowns to help the Indians (12-0) reach the district final for the second time in three years.

“It’s just my vision. I got the vision to cut back, the speed for it, and I got the power,” he said. “I’ve been doing this since I was a kid. But I got better over time from working out, working out on it, and I just showed it on the field.”

He showed all of those skills on a game-changing 58-yard touchdown run before halftime. Bradley-Chambers hit a spin move near the sideline that froze defenders before cutting upfield for a score that gave Lehighton a 14-7 lead late in the second quarter – one they wouldn’t relinquish.

“He runs physical, he has good jump-cuts,” Olympians head coach Mark Rosenberger said of Bradley-Chambers. “He’s hard to bring down with one guy. He makes a lot of plays for them.”

So, where do those moves come from?

“It’s like when I’m playing Madden,” Bradley-Chambers said of the video game. “If I see somebody in front of me, either juke, or lower your shoulders. That’s what I do out here.”

Bradley-Chambers’ second touchdown came from 15 yards out midway through the third quarter that pushed the Indians’ lead to 20-7.

Jim Thorpe (10-2) took advantage of a short field on its ensuing possession. CJ Selby (124 yards rushing) went in from three yards out for his second score of the game to cap a drive that started at Lehighton’s 43-yardline to cut the deficit to 20-14 with 2:19 to play in the third period.

But Lehighton’s next drive ended with a 27 yard score from Bradley-Chambers to make it 28-14 with 23 seconds to play in the third quarter.

The Olympians had 1st-and-goal at the Indians six-yardline in the fourth quarter. But the Lehighton defense came up with four straight stops – the last at the one-yardline – to keep the score 28-14.

The stand kept momentum with the Tribe.

“There’s no doubt about it, and it seems like that’s been our defense’s calling card,” said McCarroll. “Kinda giving up yards, giving up points here or there. But they just seem to make a big play when it really, really matters.”

Bradley-Chambers wasn’t the only one at the controls for the Indians. Quarterback Cody Scherer delivered an 83-yard touchdown run that saw the senior barely keep his balance before outrunning the defense to make it 36-14 with 4:12 to play.

An interception by Collin Troxell on the first play of Jim Thorpe’s next possession sealed the win. Zack Crum also had a second-half interception for Lehighton.

Scherer finished with 184 yards rushing and 102 yards passing, including a 19-yard strike to Ben Schatz that opened the scoring in the second quarter.

Another strong performance by the offensive line helped Lehighton roll up 501 yards of offense.

Selby gave the Olympians a 7-6 lead with a two-yard plunge on their next possession in the second quarter.

“We played with a lot of effort tonight, and unfortunately, we just didn’t get it done,” said Rosenberger. “They made a few more big plays than we did. And that’s a credit to them. They’re a good football team.”

UP NEXT … Lehighton will face top seed Palisades this Saturday at 7 p.m. at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium.

GOOD COMPANY … Bradley-Chambers eclipsed 2,000 yards rushing Saturday night, a moment he was happy to share with assistant coach Robbie Frey. “It’s good, because he helps me out. Like if I’m going too fast, he tells me slow down, let the play develop, then go. To have him on the sideline, it’s helping me out a lot,” Bradley-Chambers said of Frey.

I’LL TAKE THAT … Selby, Nick Rosahac and Stephen James all had interceptions in the first half for the Olympians.