by Josh Barr
Washington Post
11-18-2007

Maryland 3A West FOOTBALL Semifinal
Lerch Finds a Way in Seneca Valley's Win

By Josh Barr
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, November 18, 2007; Page D13

George Lerch isn't the fastest player on the football field, and he doesn't always look particularly smooth when he drops back to pass. But with two seasons of experience as a starter, Seneca Valley's junior quarterback has learned to play with poise and knows just what he needs to do to succeed.

Though teammates might poke fun at him for not being the most athletic player, they know they can rely on him. Yesterday, in a Maryland 3A West Region semifinal, Lerch calmly directed a hurry-up offense for one touchdown drive, then converted several key plays during another late scoring drive as the Screaming Eagles beat host Urbana, 27-21, before a crowd of 2,000.

Lerch finished with 14 carries for 37 yards and completed 14 of 20 passes for 147 yards as Seneca Valley won a matchup of two traditional Maryland powers.

"He's not a gifted athlete, he's just a guy who overachieves, works hard and maximizes his potential," Seneca Valley Coach Fred Kim said. "He's just one of those tough guys who, when you need a play, he comes up with them. And at critical moments, he's making plays."

The key one might have been the 18-yard pass to Aron McDonald on a fourth down late in the first half, which led to the second of three short touchdown runs by Jamaal Martin (145 yards on 27 carries). Maybe it was one of two third-down scrambles that Lerch converted into first downs as the Screaming Eagles drove for a 27-14 lead late in the fourth quarter.

Either way, they all felt much better to Lerch than his postseason performance last season, when he completed 2 of 15 passes in a region semifinal loss to Kennedy.

"I needed to bounce back and get people to start noticing," Lerch said. "I didn't think we did that great this game, but we did what we needed to do."

While Seneca Valley (9-2) counted on Lerch's experience, Urbana had to turn to sophomore quarterback Jesse Heon -- making his varsity debut -- after starter Joe Novotny was taken out of the lineup for a violation of school rules this past week, Coach Joe Polce said.

Heon, who spent the regular season on the junior varsity team, threw a 51-yard touchdown pass to Chris Patton that pulled the Hawks within 27-21 with three minutes left. After Urbana (7-4) recovered a fumble on its 4-yard line with 1 minute 21 seconds remaining, Heon moved the offense to midfield, but the drive stalled in the final seconds.

Seneca Valley 27, Urbana 21 Getting It Done: Quarterback George Lerch failed to throw or rush for a touchdown for the first time this season, but he was still efficient enough for Seneca Valley. Up Next: Seneca Valley will play Friday night at No. 9 Damascus in the Maryland 3A West Region final. Damascus won the teams' regular season meeting, 21-7, on Oct. 27. Seneca Valley 27, Urbana 21 Getting It Done: Quarterback George Lerch failed to throw or rush for a touchdown for the first time this season, but he was still efficient enough for Seneca Valley. Up Next: Seneca Valley will play Friday night at No. 9 Damascus in the Maryland 3A West Region final. Damascus won the teams' regular season meeting, 21-7, on Oct. 27.