There are many axioms in the world of sports.

Some are utilized so often that they become part of the lexicon of a given sport almost to mythical proportions.

One of these familiar fables is "Defense wins championships."

Certainly, the defense of the Manheim Township football team earned them a place in the District Three Class 6A championship game as the Blue Streaks topped Hempfield 42-7 in a semifinal game on Friday, November 18 in Landisville.

The Blue Streaks' dominant defensive effort included three interceptions by junior safety Nick Palumbo, one of which he ran back 40 yards for Township's final touchdown of the game.

It was a game between two well-coached teams, both of whom came into the game with multiple offensive weapons and a history of games with defensive dominance.

"The game was a case of Hempfield football not executing to its full potential," Hempfield head coach George Eager said. "The entire team took turns with miscues and mistakes.

"Offensively, we turned the ball over five times and never got into a rhythm," Eager added. "On defense, we didn't tackle well, and we failed to execute the game plan. When you play like we did, you can't win playoff games no matter who the opponent is."

The opponent was of course the archrival of the Black Knights whom they faced in the fifth week of the regular season at Manheim Township in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section One clash. The Knights, whose season ends with a 9-3 record, won that contest 17-14.

"We made that game a bigger game than it had to be," Township head coach Mark Evans said, referring to the regular-season setback. "Our guys should have treated it as the next game. It took us an entire half to get settled in.

"I think our mindset Friday night was that we knew we had not played up to our potential in week 5," Evans continued. "With a hail Mary touchdown pass they were up 10-7 at halftime and they scored on the opening kickoff of the second half. Two big plays put us behind the eight ball. We took too long to get started."

Manheim Township (9-3) took a 21-0 lead before the Knights could get on the board in the semifinal match. A fake punt on the scoring drive helped Hempfield maintain momentum.

"The fake punt was necessary," Eager explained. "We were down 21-0 and knew we needed to climb back in. So, we had to take a chance. It paid off and allowed us to cut the lead to 21-7 with most of the second half left to play. Unfortunately, we couldn't fight back from there."

The fake punt, which was executed by Stephen Katch, helped the Knights maintain possession and cap their drive with a four-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback Jackson Landis with 8:06 remaining in the third quarter.

Landis finished with 11 completions for 76 yards plus 19 yards on the ground. The Knights' ground game was led by Katch, who gained 69 yards on eight carries.

Landon Kennell caught a 16-yard touchdown pass from Hayden Johnson to open the scoring. Declan Clancy's 46-yard touchdown run gave the Streaks a 14-0 lead. Another Clancy touchdown came prior to intermission, giving the visitors the 21-0 advantage.

Johnson's 20-yard rushing touchdown and Clancy's third TD of the game, which came at the 10:44 mark of the fourth quarter, made it 35-7. Palumbo's pick-six wrapped up the scoring for the game. Johnson finished with 13 completions on 16 pass attempts for 132 yards. He also ran for 98 yards.

"He is starting to come into his own," Evans said of Johnson. "He has a variety of weapons. He is spreading the ball around and mixing in the run.

"Our kids got it done," Evans added. "It was a total team win."

Eager was asked to reflect on the season and what the team - the vocal leaders and the unsung heroes alike - provided for the Hempfield sports community.

"This group was able to do things Hempfield football hasn't done in close to 30 years - winning an outright section championship and defeating teams such as Wilson and Township during the regular season," he said. "These were special accomplishments.

"Our seniors such as Grant Hoover, Brian Williams, Braydon Felsinger, Gabe Benjamin, Stephen Katch, Aiden Shorter, and Jacob Karkoska helped provide the leadership we needed to do these things.

"All year long, our special teams units have been solid," Eager added. "Two guys to point out are our snapper Tyler Paul and our place kicker Cannon Biscoe. They did a great job all year.

"I love all these guys and this team with all my heart," continued the coach. "They gave this program everything and it paid off."