Esbenshade, Conestoga Valley passing attack shines in road win at Ephrata

Written by: TJ Eck on Saturday, September 14th, 2024. Follow TJ Eck on Twitter.

It was a play they practiced during the week and when the time came to execute on gameday, Conestoga Valley was ready.

The Buckskins scored on their first offensive snap Friday night against Ephrata as CV quarterback Sawyer Esbenshade connected with Konner Fisher for a 59-yard touchdown that jumped-started an offensive explosion by the Buckskins in a 42-7 road triumph.

“The whole week, we knew we were going to run that play,” Esbenshade said. “I saw the look that I wanted. I looked off the safety a little bit and he was just wide open right down the middle.”

Esbenshade and Fisher’s connection was just the beginning for a potent Buckskin passing attack. The junior quarterback completed 15-of-19 passes for 323 yards and five passing touchdowns in front of a packed house at Ephrata’s War Memorial Field. 246 of Esbenshade’s passing yards came in the first half and his five TD tosses went to five different receivers with Fisher, Jayden Johnson, Elijah Tlumach, Cordell Bair, and Josh Dennis hauling in scores.

“He’s a fun kid to coach,” Conestoga Valley head coach Jon Scepanski said of Esbenshade. “He puts in a lot of extra time. (He) busts his butt and he’s really growing in the mental side of the game. He’s starting to see what we see. It’s fun to coach a kid that can learn and then go out and play like that.”

Friday night’s matchup between the Buckskins and Mountaineers was the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 opener for both squads. With the victory, Conestoga Valley improves to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in league play. CV has outscored its opponents 165-19.

While some may have questioned the strength of Conestoga Valley’s resume through the first three weeks, Friday night’s result is sure to open eyes around the L-L League, PIAA District 3, and eastern Pennsylvania.

“People were saying we haven’t really played much competition but I think we really showed what we are about,” Esbenshade said.

Scepanski added: “We were able to come out with a win against a good football team. We’ll just take it one at a time and if people view it as a statement, then fine, but we’re gonna focus on us and that’s all.”

With the loss, Ephrata falls to 2-2 overall (0-1 L-L League). The Mountaineers will look to rebound next Friday against Elizabethtown while the Buckskins visit Spring Grove next Thursday for a non-league contest.

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