After emerging as a standout wide receiver in 2010, West Chester Rustin's Anthony Nash has been attracting a lot of attention from opposing defenses this year.
Golden Knights coach Mike St. Clair got his star wideout the ball early and often Saturday and it paid off as Rustin dominated Ches-Mont League American Conference rival Oxford, 37-13.
Nash, a 6-foot-4 Duke recruit, finished with eight catches for 106 yards and a touchdown, with 96 of his yards coming in the first half.
"We wanted to try to throw the ball a little bit more today," St. Clair said. "We saw that when they came out they were single-covering Nash, so we tried to take advantage of that."
Nash said he knew right away that the Golden Knights could have success through the air.
"The corners were playing off, and we saw that early, so we wanted to get them," he said. "We wanted to see if they'd play up so the run game could help out. The corners never came up, so we were just killing them with the pass."
With defenses concentrating on Nash, the Golden Knights have used seniors Cordairo Taylor and Conor Burke in a two-pronged rushing attack to gash defenses on the ground.
After opening up a 23-0 lead in the first quarter Saturday, Rustin (7-1 overall, 4-0 league) returned to form. Taylor had 15 carries for 119 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown early in the second half. Burke added 97 yards on 10 carries.
"We've tried to get him the ball, but people are double- and triple-covering him," St. Clair said of Nash. "We can't force the ball in to him, so we just run away from where they're loading up."
But that wasn't a problem Saturday, as the Golden Knights targeted Nash 13 times. Nash acknowledged it's been tough getting the ball this year, but "that's not a problem as long as we're winning. Every time we play a new team, the defense changes and shifts the safeties over. They probably have a linebacker jamming me and have a corner over the top."
Nash limped off the field late in the third quarter after tweaking a hamstring, but he said he was fine after the game.
For Oxford (4-4, 2-3), coach Mike Pietlock said he saw some positives that his team could build on, including the potential of quarterback Ethan Herb.
Despite throwing three interceptions, the sophomore moved the ball against a tough Rustin defense, finishing 15 for 30 for 138 yards.
"Ethan is hopefully going to be a good one," Pietlock said. "You saw a kid that made some mistakes and forced some throws, but the next play, he goes out and throws again. At the end of the day, I think he did more good than bad."
Oxford 0 7 0 6 – 13
West Chester Rustin 23 0 7 7 – 37
WCR: Joe Palladino 12 run (Dylan Jenkins kick)
WCR: Safety, quarterback sacked in end zone
WCR: C.J. Steinmetz 70 kickoff return (Dylan Jenkins kick)
WCR: Anthony Nash 12 pass from Mike Delancey (Dylan Jenkins kick)
O: Anthony Prigg 1 run (Julio Rios kick)
WCR: Cordairo Taylor 43 run (Dylan Jenkins kick)
WCR: C.J. Steinmetz 25 interception return (Dylan Jenkins kick)
O: Musti Mahmud 6 run (kick failed)
Contact Alex Lee at rallysports@phillynews.com.
