The Parkland High School football team was playing without its starting quarterback in junior Luke Spang last Friday night. The offense had a tough time getting going and putting points on the scoreboard. It also didn’t help that the Trojans had three turnovers during the course of the game, including a costly one at the goal line of a one-score game with just about two minutes left to play.

Central Catholic fell on the ball in the end zone and then was able to take a couple of kneel downs to run out the clock of a 21-14 Eastern Pennsylvania Conference South Division victory last Friday night at Parkland School District Stadium.

It was the second time in as many games that Parkland (2-2 overall, 2-2 EPC) was on the losing end of a game against the Vikings (3-1, 3-1). Central also won by one score (14-7) during the 2021 regular season, handing Parkland its lone loss during the season.

“They have a great team and are always tough to play against,” said assistant coach Mike Facchiano. “We made some mistakes that cost us and they took advantage of them.”

The two offenses put up similar numbers at the end of the game. Parkland finished with 222 yards, while Central had 240 yards, including 194 on the ground. Vikings running back, Caiden Shaffer, made the difference. He ran for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 27 attempts.

“Their rushing attack was difficult to stop,” Facchiano said. “They had a couple of really good backs that were tough to bring down. They really wore us down physically.”

Senior wide receiver Nakhi Bullock started at quarterback for Spang and played most of the snaps behind center. He threw for 97 yards and rushed for another 49 yards and a score. Bullock found the end zone from nine yards out in the fourth quarter to cut his team’s deficit to one score at 21-14.

Freshman Marquez Wimberly, who recorded 59 yards on eight rushing attempts, scored the game’s opening points on a 12-yard scamper to put Parkland ahead 7-0 in the first quarter. It capped an opening five-play, 75-yard drive for the Trojans.

Shaffer then scored his first of two second quarter touchdowns to tie the score at 7-7 with 7:08 left in the first half. Parkland then had a pass intercepted at its 20-yard line on the ensuing possession and Shaffer cashed in from three yards away as the Vikings took their first lead at 14-7, one which held to halftime.

In the second half, a 41-yard punt return set Central up to Parkland’s 32. Nathan Schultz then scored from seven yards out, which proved to be the deciding score.

Parkland will look to bounce back when it travels to take on Whitehall (2-2, 2-2) this Friday night.