Muncy tops Lackawanna Trail in 47-46 thriller with late 2-point conversion
SCRANTON — Austin Johnson had barely broken the plane of the goal line with the football when Muncy’s Kenny Hampe and Cameron Kamerer ran over to coach Sean Tetreault. “We’re going for two,” Hampe shouted at his coach. It wasn’t a request. It wasn’t even a demand. It was a statement. Johnson’s 32-yard catch-and-run touchdown […]
Williamsport’s Defense Shines In Shutout win over Wilkes-Barre
PLAINS — Jake Howe stood in the pocket unbothered and surveyed the football field. But there was nowhere to go with the football. The junior quarterback for Wilkes-Barre with a rifle of a right arm bounced on the balls of his feet looking for any opening to deliver a pass on fourth down late in […]
Howe throws 3 touchdowns in win over Scranton
PLAINS — Gene Ardo wasn’t the intended receiver on a pass that hit him in the chest late in the third quarter Friday night. But the way he read the pass and handled it, he sure looked like the intended receiver. The problem on that red zone play for the Scranton offense is that Ardo […]
Lidge Kellum runs for 264 yards as Wyoming Area beats Pittston Area 28-0
YATESVILLE — Randy Spencer challenge the members of his Wyoming Area secondary to plan man-to-man coverage Friday night against Pittston. By doing that, Spencer could ensure some help on Patriots leading receiver Lucas Lopresto. The Warriors’ secondary lived up to the challenge. They not only picked off three Pittston passes Friday night, they challenged nearly […]
Lake-Lehman Cruise Past Hanover Area 48-6
NANTICOKE — Three Hanover defenders converged on Lake-Lehman’s Jaydon Skipalis as he tucked the football away after catching a third-quarter pass in the flat. All three players hit the Black Knights’ junior running back at the same time. Somehow, Skipalis was the only one who didn’t fall to the ground. Skipalis outraced another defender to […]
Berwick Area shuts out Nanticoke 41-0
Berwick and Nanticoke take a knee in memory of coach Scott Dennis on the opening play BERWICK — Berwick’s Ty Wilkerson was the fastest player on Crispin Field on Friday night, but it was his patience and vision which set up his first of two long touchdown runs against Nanticoke. And when his offensive line […]
Kellum’s Four-Touchdown Performance leads Wyoming Area over Berwick Area 42-20
WEST PITTSTON — Berwick linebacker Rocco Romeo ran into the Wyoming Area backfield untouched on the second snap of the second half Friday night. He had Warriors running back Lidge Kellum dead to rights. Kellum cut and ran through Romeo’s tackle on the toss sweep. And then he met a pack of Bulldog tacklers at […]
Dallas grounds, pounds way to 30-22 win over Pittston Area
YATESVILLE — The plays which sprung Dylan Geskey on two of the first four snaps for the Dallas offense on Friday were no secret. It’s a sweep play. But it’s a staple of the Mountaineers’ offense and a play they have to be able to run. Geskey set a tone at Charley Trippi Stadium last […]
Josh Vinton rushes for 140 yards as the Wildcats shutout the Comets 21-0
MOUNTAIN TOP — On a night where he ran for more than 100 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns, the biggest play Western Wayne’s Josh Vinton made Friday came when he didn’t have the football in his hands. The Wildcats’ senior ran from his own end zone toward Crestwood ballcarrier Jaden Shedlock as the […]
North Pocono cruises past Wyoming Valley West 23-7
KINGSTON — There was no secret what North Pocono’s offense was doing in the second half Friday night at Spartan Stadium. Play after play, the Trojans got downhill with running backs Brady Lavery and Joe Briskie. And play after play the two backs broke through the Valley West defensive front added 5 and 6 yards […]
Shamokin Dominant in 49-0 Victory over Lake-Lehman
LEHMAN — Marc Persing and the Shamokin football program has a tremendous relationship with its track team. It’s not as if Persing isn’t a baseball fan, it’s just that he sees the value on Friday nights from springs spent running. In the first two weeks of the season, the second-year coach is seeing the benefits […]
Jersey Shore gets two scores late to get past Dallas
Photo of receiver Evan Snyder. He had six catches, 104 yards and 2 TDs DALLAS — Midway through the third quarter Friday night, Jersey Shore coach Tom Gravish kept starting quarterback Elijah Jordan on the bench for an offensive series. Opening night had been a struggle for the converted running back, and Jordan was playing […]
Dallas edges Valley View on late touchdown run
DALLAS — Needing a touchdown like a fish needs water, Dallas coach Rich Mannello didn’t go to any new wrinkles with his offense. He went to his tried and true way of winning football games. He dotted the Mountaineers’ I-formation backfield with bulldozing running back Dylan Geskey and just had him run right at the […]
Wyoming Area starts playoffs with win over North Pocono, 31-19
WEST PITTSTON — Josh Mruk walked off Jake Sobeski Field by himself Friday night, but he wasn’t really alone. With every couple steps the sophomore from Wyoming Area took, someone shouted his name. They wanted to get the attention of the player who swung the momentum of the District 2 Class AAAA quarterfinal game permanently […]
Aaron Crossley leads Wyoming Area to win over Pittston Area
WEST PITTSTON — To say Aaron Crossley was bottled up on the sideline would be an understatement. The Pittston defense had the Wyoming Area senior running back in a blender on his first carry of the second half. He bounced off of defenders like he was the white dot in a game of Pong. But […]
Dallas Beats Wilkes-Barre 14-7
DALLAS — The Dallas didn’t use any clever play call on a critical fourth quarter, fourth down call. They looked at junior safety Dylan Geskey and told him to go get the quarterback. Geskey moved up to linebacker on the play. Trailing by seven points, Wilkes-Barre Area had to convert the fourth-and-10 opportunity or Friday’s […]
Danville QB Madden Patrick Throws Five Touchdowns in 49-6 victory over Berwick Area
BERWICK — Carl Majer looked into the camera and said he was glad Friday night’s high school football game between Berwick and his one-loss Danville team was over. This game which his Ironmen won, 49-6, has been circled on the calendar for everyone but himself since he was hired as Danville’s coach earlier this year. […]
Dallas rolls to 42-6 win over Berwick Area
DALLAS — The numbers from the box score will tell you everything you need to know about Dallas’ 42-6 win over Berwick on Friday night at Mountaineer Stadium. The game was just as lopsided as the numbers would suggest. But to learn how Dallas got to this point — unbeaten through seven games, averaging more […]
Wilkes Barre moves to 4-2 with 34-14 win at Crestwood
MOUNTAIN TOP — Crestwood finally had some momentum Friday night when its long touchdown pass tied the score with Wilkes-Barre in the second quarter. The Comets’ offense was clicking, scoring on two of its last three possessions and now back at square one with a Wolfpack squad in the midst of a winning streak, it […]
Nanticoke Shuts Out Lake-Lehman, 42-0
LEHMAN — Nanticoke coach Ron Bruza joked senior lineman Ryan Wiaterowski was going to jump in the bus and drive the team home from Lake-Lehman High School on Friday night. Why not? The senior had done just about everything else for the Trojans in a 42-0 win over the Black Knights. Wiaterowski ran for a […]
Crestwood scores 17 unanswered points to beat Wyoming Valley West
MOUNTAIN TOP — Crestwood coach Ryan Arcangeli emerged from a postgame conversation with Wyoming Valley West coach Bob Stelma and shook his head and let out a sigh. “It’s been a long time since we had one of these,” the fifth-year Comets coach said of his team’s 17-7 win over the Spartans. “We haven’t had […]
Dallas defeats Williamsport 28-20
DALLAS — On a night when the Dallas football program honored former All-State lineman Josh Balara, the Mountaineers put together a performance he would have been proud of. Dallas’ 28-20 win over Williamsport on Friday night was by no means pretty. But it sure as heck was gutty. It was the embodiment of who Balara […]
Valley View beats Berwick 34-19
BERWICK — In the huddle prior to a key third-down play to start the fourth quarter, Berwick coach Bo Orlando warned his defense to watch for a screen on the ensuing play. That’s exactly what Valley View coach Scot Wasilchak called for. Valley View won the play. Cougars fullback Preston Reed side-stepped through a couple […]
Scranton Wins Thriller Over Wilkes-Barre, 35-27
PLAINS — The football floated into the hands of Scranton’s Elijah Ortiz as if he were a center fielder hauling in a can-of-corn fly ball. He was the only one who could catch the pass from Wilkes-Barre Area quarterback Jake Howe, and he made the most of his opportunity. Ortiz, who already had one long […]
Wyomissing Area holds off Danville for playoff win
DANVILLE – The football seemed to hang in the air as it approached the goalpost at Danville’s Ironmen Stadium. Not a sound came from the fans, the teams on the field, or their fans as the kick which would decide the fate of Friday’s PIAA Class AAA quarterfinal game. To bet on this thrilling game, […]
Northern Lehigh beats Lackawanna Trail to reach Quarterfinals
DUNMORE — A couple of Lackawanna Trail offensive linemen tried to push Northern Lehigh linebacker Bailey Smith out of their way. Smith just didn’t budge. By the time the screen pass floated toward the 6-foot, 175-pounder, he looked like the intended receiver. The interception came with 2 minutes left in the first half of Saturday’s […]
Berwick beats North Pocono 28-14
BERWICK — Berwick didn’t pick up a first down in Friday night’s District 2 Class AAAA quarterfinal against North Pocono until nearly 16 minutes of game time had elapsed. It didn’t much matter, though. The Bulldogs still had a two-score lead by that point. Fourth-seeded Berwick capitalized on two early special teams mistakes by North […]
Dallas wins Old Shoe from Lehman
DALLAS – The game was in hand. Dallas had a 35-point lead and the clock was going to run non-stop for the final 24 minutes of the Old Shoe game with Lake-Lehman on Friday. But Parker Bolesta still put a tidy little bow on the Mountaineers’ return to the win column in the Back Mountain […]
Wyoming Area outgunned by Southern Columbia, 55-28, in High-Octane Matchup
FRANKLIN TWP. — Wyoming Area was 2 yards away from making Friday night’s non-conference game against Southern Columbia a one-score game. Then the Tigers’ Braeden Wisloski struck on back-to-back plays changing the entire complexion of the contest. The All-State running back and Maryland recruit stripped a Warrior’s ballcarrier on the 2-yard line ending what was […]
Parker Bolesta sparks Dallas to win over Wallenpaupack 35-13
DALLAS — As Lucas Tirpak ran down the sideline untouched to put the finishing touches on Dallas’ 35-13 win over Wallenpaupack on Friday, it was the first time the Mountaineers were truly able to feel good about the football game. A one-win Buckhorns team gave Dallas everything it could handle for the better part of […]
Zach Fox scores 5 Touchdowns to lead Nanticoke over Tunkhannock
TUNKHANNOCK — Nanticoke’s Zach Fox ripped off a 54-yard touchdown run in the second quarter Friday night at Tunkhannock only to see it called back because of a penalty. Five plays later, he scored from 26 yards out only to see it wiped off the board because of a yellow flag. And when quarterback Lucas […]
Berwick’s stingy defense leads it to win over Wyoming Valley West
KINGSTON — Rowan Slabinski didn’t really have to do much on his second-quarter interception Friday night. The Berwick defensive linemen in front of him were the ones putting the pressure on Wyoming Valley West quarterback Lucas Zdancewicz. But from his spot just behind that defensive line, Slabinski found the football floating in his direction after […]
Honesdale beats Tunkhannock
TUNKHANNOCK — Cameron Hedgelon hadn’t caught a pass all season. Facing fourth down from the Tunkhannock 28-yard line Friday night, the Honesdale junior picked a pretty good time to catch his first. He gathered in a pass from quarterback Aiden Collins as he broke toward the sideline. And just as it appeared the Tigers’ defense […]
Lake Lehman edges Holy Redeemer on late score 22-20
LEHMAN TWP. — A singular yellow flag landed among a group of Holy Redeemer defenders celebrating and quickly their joy turned somber. The Royals’ defense appeared to have stopped Lake-Lehman receiver Landon Schukers a yard short of the first down on a fourth-down screen pass late in Friday’s game. But that singular yellow flag changed […]
Crestwood beats Wyoming Area
MOUNTAIN TOP — Before the ball was even snapped, Noah Schultz knew there was going to be an open field where he was running. The Crestwood senior has been in that situation plenty of times before in his career, so he focused on taking the play where it was supposed to go and then running […]
Spartans roll over Pottsville 49-0
POTTSVILLE – With just under 9 minutes left in the first half, Wyomissing fullback Matt Kramer planted his left foot in the Veterans Memorial Stadium field and cut back toward the left hash mark. In and of itself, it was a minuscule detail that meant little in the Spartans’ 49-0 win over Pottsville on Friday […]
Southern Columbia beats Berwick Area 42-27
BERWICK – Mike Bennett rattled off everything which went so right for Berwick in the first half of Friday’s season opener against five-time defending state champion Southern Columbia. There was an effective running game. A handful of key pass plays to extend drives led to two touchdowns. And most importantly, they kept the Tigers’ vaunted […]
