JEFFERSON TWP — The 5 on Matt Goodlin's jersey means more to him than just a number.

It's a call back to the history of Knoch running backs. It is couched in tradition and meaning.

And Goodlin was happy to add to its mystique.

“It means a lot to me. You have to play with pride when you wear it,” Goodlin said.

The Knights' junior running back rushed for 233 yards and a pair of touchdowns as Knoch beat Freeport, 26-7, on a soggy and windy night at Knoch High School.

In the process, Goodlin broke the single-season rushing record at the school, eclipsing the mark of 1,431 yards set by the late Tim McNerney — who also wore jersey No. 5 — in 2007.

Goodlin finished the season with 1,443 yards.

McNerney was killed Oct. 4, 2012, while he was a student and football player at Washington & Jefferson College.

“It means a lot,” Goodlin said of breaking the record. “I have to thank all my teammates, my linemen, my A-backs. It means a lot, too, because lately I've been dedicating all the games I play to Tim. It means a lot for me to go out with my teammates and do that.”

Goodlin proved to be a handful for Freeport, especially in the second half.

In the first half, the Yellowjackets did a fairly good job bottling up Knoch's star back, holding him to 75 yards.

The first two quarters were a slog for both teams. There were only three offensive plays that covered more than 10 yards.

The biggest play came at the end of the half when Jim Johnston stepped in front of a pass by Freeport quarterback Austin Romanchak and raced 39 yards into the end zone for a touchdown to make it 6-0.

The third quarter, though, began with a bang.

Austin Romanchak sprinted 67 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the second half to give the Yellowjackets a brief 7-6 lead.

It was brief because Goodlin began to gain traction on a rapidly muddying field.

Knoch is one of the few schools in WPIAL 4A that still have a grass field.

Goodlin rumbled 38 yards to the Freeport 1 and then finished off what he started with a 1-yard plunge to give Knoch the lead for good at 13-7.

Goodlin also had runs of 49 and 30 in the second half after being held to a long run of 9 yards in the first two quarters.

“Goodlin is amazing,” said Freeport coach John Gaillot. “We had some key stops in the first half, but they kind of wore us down. We just didn't have traction out there tonight. A lot of us didn't have the right spikes on to get us traction.”

Goodlin had no such trouble.

“We've been playing on this field for a few weeks now,” Goodlin said. “We're getting pretty used to it.

“It was a lot of fun,” Goodlin said. “You have all these turf fields around, it's fun to play in mud games.”

Knoch coach Frank Whalen was happy to see Goodlin achieve the single-season record.

“Tremendous,” Whalen said. “Matt is just a special kid and he has special guys up front blocking for him. Hats off to Noah Cetnar and Jimmy Johnston and Kam Grassi, the A-backs. They are really the most critical part of this (option) offense because they do everything. They have just played terrific football all year long.”

Johnston added another score on a 50-yard run that gave Knoch a comfortable 20-7 lead early in the fourth quarter.

“With an athlete like they have (Romanchak), you have to get up two scores because he can break one at any time,” Whalen said. “You saw him break one.”

Goodlin put the capper on the night with a 30-yard run. Goodlin had all 81 yards on that drive.

For Freeport (5-4), the loss stung, even though it will do little to change the Yellowjackets' fate beginning next week in the WPIAL 3A playoffs.

“Every game means something to me,” Gaillot said. “It was a game we needed to win and we didn't. That's on me. I didn't get them prepared. We need to move forward from there.”

This game certainly meant a lot to Knoch, even though it needed New Castle to win by fewer than three points against Ambridge for the Knights to get into the playoffs.

New Castle won 41-0.

It meant a lot for Knoch because it wanted to close what was an up-and-down season strong with a win against a close rival that it hadn't played since 2005.

The Knights (5-5) won their last three games.

“We talked to them all week long about the importance of finishing well,” Whalen said. “How you finish is much more important than how you start. I'm just very proud of the kids for finishing well.”

Whalen, though, lamented a schedule that pitted his team against two non-conference foes in the final two weeks.

Knoch is playing its best football now, but won't have another game.

“It is what it is,” Whalen said. “Go into the offseason on a high note like we did last season beating Mars. We'll take it from there.”

Freeport 0 0 7 0 — 7

Knoch 0 6 7 13 — 26

Second Quarter

K — Jim Johnston 39 interception return (kick failed), 1:14

Third Quarter

F — Austin Romanchak 67 run (Ricky Hunter kick), 11:31

K — Matt Goodlin 1 run (Josh Goldscheitter kick), 10:18

Fourth Quarter

K — Johnston 50 run (Goldscheitter kick), 11:05

K — Goodlin 30 run (kick failed), 8:40

Individual Statistics

Rushing:Freeport, Austin Romanchak 15-105, Conor Selinger 21-104, Jalen Brown 2-3, Isiah Bauman 1-2, TEAM 1-(-10). Knoch, Matt Goodlin 29-233, Jim Johnston 2-52, Chase Mullen 5-11, Noah Cetnar 2-6, TEAM 1-(-19)

Passing:Freeport, Austin Romanchak 3-11-26-1. Knoch, Chase Mullen 3-5-37-0

Receiving:Freeport, Jalen Brown 1-18, Brodey Woods 1-12, Conor Selinger 1-(-4). Knoch, Heath Erdos 1-20, Scott Frasier 1-11, Jared Schrecengost 1-6