Malvern Prep rolls past St. Augustine, 27-7

Pete Lancetta inherited more than a rich tradition, a talented roster, and high expectations as the new football coach at St. Augustine Prep.

He also picked up a daunting schedule.

That was clear on Friday night as St. Augustine dropped a 27-7 decision to Malvern Prep in the opener for both teams at Villanova Stadium.

Led by junior quarterback Drew Gunther, the host Friars dominated play before a crowd of around 3,000 spectators at the Wildcats' home stadium off Route 30 in Radnor Township.

The 6-foot-3, 185-pound Gunther showed a quick release and uncanny accuracy, completing 18 of 24 passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns. He completed passes to nine receivers and didn't attempt a pass after the third minute of the third quarter.

"We played a better team than us, and we didn't play our best," Lancetta said. "That doesn't equal a good ending."

The veteran coach who won 215 games in 26 seasons at Hammonton High School smiled and shrug, standing on the field after his first game in a different shade of blue.

"Welcome to St. Augustine," Lancetta said.

The game matched Augustian schools that are ranked among the top teams on both sides of the river, with St. Augustine at No. 5 in the Inquirer's South Jersey Top 25 and Malvern Prep at No. 6 in the Inquirer's Southeastern Pa. Top 25.

"They were big, quick and the quarterback was outstanding," Lancetta said.

Malvern Prep got strong work from its imposing front lines and hard running from senior running O'Shaan Allison, an Ohio University recruit who carried 19 times for 142 yards and a touchdown.

The game marked the debut at St. Augustine Prep for Lancetta, who spent the last two years as an assistant coach at Rowan University after retiring as Hammonton's coach following the 2014 season.

Lancetta took over a program that was roiled by the sudden departure of head coach Mark Reardon and his top assistant, Chalie Roman, in May, as well as the departure via transfer of star quarterback Josh Zamot and star running back Kyle Dobbins, a Temple recruit.

The game also was the debut at Malvern Prep for coach Dave Gueriera, the former boss at West Chester East.

St. Augustine junior quarterback Chris Allen was 18 for 27 passing for 169 yards and one touchdown in his varsity debut with a pair of interceptions.

"I was really, really impressed," Lancetta said of Allen. "He did a nice job. I thought he ran the offense."

The Hermits got a strong game from senior Shamere Collins, who caught 10 catches for 104 yards and also was the Hermits' most effective rusher with four carries for 31 yards.

"Losing can be more important than winning in my opinion," Collins said. "It shows your true character and what you're made of."

St. Augustine will play games against preseason Top 10 teams Millville, Vineland, Holy Spirit and St. Joseph and likely will meet a North Jersey superpower in the Non-Public 4 state tournament.

But the Hermits might not face a team as large and skilled as Malvern Prep before squaring off with a team such as Bergen Catholic or Don Bosco Prep in November.

"I think we'll be hard-pressed to play a team like that until the playoffs," Lancetta said.

Malvern Prep broke the game open with a quick-strike drive to start the second half that stretched the Friars' lead to 20-0.

Allison got the march in high gear with a 25-yard run on third and 3, squirting through an interior hole, bouncing outside and racing to the St. Augustine 47.

Two plays later, Gunther lofted a perfect strike to Kevin Boyle, who was behind the St. Augustine secondary along the right sideline

Gunther controlled the game in the first half with quick, accurate passes.

He was 17 for 21 for 184 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, with another 50-yard scoring pass called back because of a holding penalty.

Malvern Prep took a 6-0 lead late in the first half when Gunther lofted a 28-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Iacone, who made a leaping catch in the left corner of the end zone.

St. Augustine put together its best drive of the first half on the ensuing possession. Collins took a pitch around left end for 11 yards to start the march, and Collins also made a 22-yard catch to advance the Hermits to the Friars' 18.

But the drive ended with a missed field goal.

Malvern Prep took possession and went 80 yards in 12 plays. Gunther was 6 for 8 in the drive for 57 yards. His last pass was a swing to Quincy Watson, who broke a couple of tackles and powered into the end zone.

Collins was confident the Hermits would bounce back.

Asked where his team goes from here, Collins was succinct: "Up."

St. Augustine 0 0 0 7 — 7

Malvern Prep 6 7 7 7 — 27

MP: Ryan Iacone 28 pass from Drew Gunther (kick failed)

MP: Quincy Watson 19 pass from Gunther (Garrett Riley kick)

MP: Kevin Boyle 45 pass from Gunther (Riley kick)

MP: O'Shaan Allison 5 run (Riley kick)

SA: Xavier File 9 pass from Chris Allen (Nate Fondacaro)