It was an electric night around the stadium at Orefield Middle School last Friday night. Homecoming floats paraded around the stadium track at halftime, and the home team paraded up and down the field.

Parkland used a couple of Bethlehem Catholic turnovers to take a big first half lead, and cruise to a 49-6 win.

The Trojans (7-1, 6-1) made some big plays offensively, and the defense was all over the field, stopping any potential Golden Hawks (4-3, 3-4) scoring drives.

The Trojans took an early 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter thanks in large part to some explosive runs from the Redmond brothers.

Najee Redmond took a handoff from quarterback Devante Cross and broke a few tackles before he crossed the goal line from 19 yards out to cap off the first drive that went for 66 yards.

On the next Golden Hawks possession, Julian Spigner took a quarterback-keeper for 38 yards and it looked as if Becahi would answer the Parkland score. But on the next play, Eli Redmond stepped in front of Spigner's pass and took it 62 yards to the house.

The Golden Hawks would eventually get back into the game on their next drive. Spigner found Freddie Simmons in the corner of the end zone from four yards out over the outstretched arms of a Trojans defender to cap an 80-yard, twelve play drive.

Those were the last points that a dominant Parkland defense would allow, as the eleven players on the opposite side of the ball came up big for the Trojans, also forcing two turnovers.

A fumble recovery at the end of the first quarter in Golden Hawks territory led to a one yard run by Kareem Williams.

The most deflating play may have come at the last play of the half. Eli Redmond took a pass on the right flat with a defender right on his hip. Redmond would break a few tackles, cut inside and outside, and use his speed to break away from all Golden Hawks defenders and dove across the goal line for a 69 yard catch-and-run.

"They've got great players who play hard and can make plays," said head coach Joe Henrich. "That play at the end of the half was a real tough one for sure."

It ended up getting even tougher for Bethlehem Catholic in the second half. The Parkland defense allowed just one more first down, and the offense ran out the clock, helped by Williams rushing for 112 of his 151 yards in the third quarter.

His five yard score, combined with a two yard keeper from Cross put the mercy rule into effect late in the third quarter.

Trojans backup quarterback Nolan Ridgway put an exclamation point on the evening with a 77-yard run in the final quarter.

It was a tough one to take for the Golden Hawks, but one that may motivate this team with their final two games coming against rivals Freedom and Central Catholic. The Golden Hawks can still qualify for the District 11 Class 3A playoffs. After a 1-9 season a year ago, that is quite a goal to aspire for.

"We're still learning how to win and how to be a team like Parkland, Whitehall and Easton," noted Henrich. "Every step along the way is a learning experience. You can't expect a 1-9 team to turn around all of a sudden and be 9-1. I know the scoreboard looks ugly tonight, but I still feel like we can do some special things over the remainder of the year."