Lancers Easily Remain Perfect

Hard to believe by looking at the final score, but there actually were a few anxious moments for 13th-ranked Linganore last night. Their opponent had taken the opening kickoff and marched for a quick touchdown and then the Lancers went on offense with backup quarterback Ricky Conner, the coach's son, calling signals in a meeting of unbeaten teams.

Conner, a junior who also starts at safety, wasn't nervous, remembering his dad's pregame advice to "just play football." Having the oldest of his three boys thrust into his first start at quarterback and trailing so quickly had Coach Rick Conner a bit antsy.

"Oh my god, what the heck is going on here?" the seventh-year coach thought to himself, he later recounted.

But any anxiety quickly was quelled. In 12 seconds, to be exact. That's how long it took running back Pat Balderson to turn a simple off-tackle play into an 80-yard touchdown, changing the momentum. Soon it was a rout.

Conner threw two touchdown passes to Ryan Dixon, and Zach Zwinak rushed for two more scores as Linganore routed visiting Westminster, 58-7, before an overflow crowd of 3,500 in Ijamsville.

"It was pretty big, my longest run of the season" Balderson said. "We needed something like that."

Linganore's only other reason to worry came when Balderson fumbled on first and goal from the 2 on the following possession. But on the next play, linebacker Shawn Laudick burst through to tackle a running back in the end zone for a safety and a 9-7 lead.

Then it was up to Linganore's offense. While the diminutive Balderson -- who is 5 feet 8 and said he has no idea the last time he stepped on a scale -- provided the immediate response to Westminster's early score, it was the burly Zwinak who helped the Lancers (6-0, 2-0 Monocacy Valley Athletic League Chesapeake Conference) build the lead.

The two running backs couldn't be any different. A 6-2, 238-pound junior, Zwinak is tough to tackle, and he recently was offered a scholarship by Maryland. He scored on an easy one-yard plunge for a 23-7 lead. On Linganore's next possession, Zwinak took a handoff to the left, slipped some tackles and rumbled 64 yards for his eighth touchdown this season.

Ricky Conner, subbing for Nick Marth, who was out with a hip pointer, finished 7 of 8 for 151 yards and had an interception on defense. Westminster (5-1, 1-1), which had 59 yards on its opening drive, finished with 98 yards of total offense.

"They're tough," Westminster Coach Brad Wilson said. Zwinak "is a man."

No. 13 Linganore 58, Westminster 7 Getting a Pointer: Linganore QB Nick Marth, who sustained a hip pointer last week against Middletown, is expected back in the lineup Thursday against Tuscarora. Extra Fireworks: In addition to the fireworks on the scoreboard, there was a 10-minute postgame pyrotechnic display.