In a battle between a pair of run-happy offenses, Council Rock South's wishbone scheme packed considerably more punch than Garnet Valley's triple-option attack.
Netting 325 yards on the ground, the top-seeded Golden Hawks stormed past the fifth-seeded Jaguars, 38-24, Friday night in a District 1 Class AAAA semifinal at Walt Snyder Stadium in Newtown.
C.R. South scored on its first six possessions to secure a berth in the final for the first time in its 10-year history.
"Every week, we see a different defense," senior right tackle Tom Trampe said. "Our coaches do a great job of preparing us. We had a good week of practice coming into this one."
Next weekend, at a site and time to be determined, the Golden Hawks (12-1) will take on 11th-seeded and defending champion North Penn for the title. The Knights ousted 15th-seeded Pennsbury, 27-3, in Friday's other semifinal.
Senior halfback Anthony Alimenti led the charge against Garnet Valley with 21 carries for 140 yards and two TDs.
Also making key contributions, as usual, were quarterback Brian Donnelly (14 carries for 87 yards) and fullback Ryan Whiteley (13 for 46).
The offensive line was made up of center Justin Flor, guards Andrew Cohen and Eric Gallo, tackles Trampe and Mike Yost, and tight end P.J. Gallo.
The Golden Hawks opened with a 10-play, 59-yard drive that was capped by Alimenti's 10-yard, right-side TD burst. Soon after, Donnelly, headed to Rider for baseball, raced 36 yards to make it 14-0.
Early in the second quarter, junior Christian Crane's 5-yard run put the hosts in front, 21-6. After Ben Solis added a 26-yard field goal, the Jaguars closed the halftime gap to 24-12 on Ryan Corkery's 2-yard toss to Rockne O'Leary.
With C.R. South ahead by 31-12 in the third quarter, Crane, on a halfback-option play, fired a 35-yard TD pass to wideout Nick Coco.
"We work on that play a lot," said Crane, who doubles as a defensive back. "It's great when your number is called and you have a chance to impact the game."
Early in the second half, the Jaguars (11-2) lost Corkery (13-for-16 passing, 118 yards) to an apparent left-knee injury. Sophomore Christian Portale filled in from there.
Senior fullback Justin Pyle paced the Central League champs with 129 yards on 14 attempts. He scored on runs of 6 and 26 yards.
Garnet Valley, which came in averaging 37.8 points per game, finished with 195 yards rushing and 123 passing.
Garnet Valley 6 6 0 12 - 24
Council Rock South 14 10 14 0 - 38
CRS: Alimenti 10 run (Solis kick)
CRS; Donnelly 36 run (Solis kick)
GV: Pyle 6 run (kick failed)
CRS: Crane 5 run (Solis kick)
CRS: FG Solis 26
GV: O'Leary 2 pass from Corkery (kick failed)
CRS: Alimenti 1 run (Solis kick)
CRS: Coco 35 pass from Crane (Solis kick)
GV: Bennett 15 run (pass failed)
GV: Pyle 26 run (run failed)
Contact staff writer Rick O'Brien at 610-313-8019, robrien@phillynews.com, or @ozoneinq on Twitter. Read his blog, "The O'Zone," at www.philly.com/ozone.
