Week three of the 2014 Northern Tier League season is in the books and only three teams; Wellsboro, North Penn, and Troy remain undefeated.
Troy 60, Sayre 8
The Troy Trojans improved to 3-0 after dismantling Sayre by the final of 60-8. This was the second straight game the Trojans scored over 60 points and the second time this year that Sayre has allowed at least 60 points. Troy scored early and often as both Chance Lantz and Diante Jones each scored two touchdowns in the victory.
Troy’s Isaac Havens led the Trojans on the ground with 75 yards and a touchdown on nine carries and went 6-for-8 in the air for 89 yards. Jones added 60 yards on just four carries with two touchdowns. For Sayre, Tylor Belles led the Redskins with 59 yards on seven carries.
Troy will host Wyalusing and Sayre travels to Wellsboro in week four.
Towanda 56, Bloomsburg 12
The Black Knights rebounded after getting shut out in week two by South Williamsport by playing tough defense against the visiting Panthers. Bloomsburg struggled with their offensive game, even from the beginning, and the Black Knights used this to their advantage as much as possible. Towanda Quarterback Noah Huff also returned to form as he ran for two touchdowns and threw for two. Steven Yates, Dylan Bates, Keegan Kisner also scored for Towanda.
Bloomsburg’s first of two scores came on a 21 yard pass from Nick Anderson to Brandon Breisch. The Panthers’ second score. Next week Towanda travels to Hughesville and will look to even up their record.
Muncy 13, Cowanesque Valley 8
Cowanesque jumped out on Muncy early in the game as their second play from scrimmage would result in their only points of the ball game. Ethan Mead raced 58 yards to the end zone. From that point on, the game turned into a defensive battle and Cowanesque retained a 6-0 lead going into the half.
After each team exchanged four-and-outs to start the third quarter, Muncy would force another punt out of Cowanesque valley and head to work on offense.
Nixon would get things rolling for Muncy as he busted off his longest run of the evening with a 43-yard gain. He would follow that up with an 18 yard burst and put his team in great field position with an opportunity to tie the game.
Muncy would do just that as Manuel Ramos took a delayed handoff up the middle 15 yards for a touchdown. Muncy would attempt the two-point conversion to go up by two points but failed to convert. In the fourth quarter, Muncy forced three turnovers and eventually the put together a long drive to win the game.
Jeffrey Fry led the way for Muncy as the sophomore quarterback threw for 132 yards and the game winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter. He went 9-15 on the night throwing the football.
Muncy is now 1-2 on the year and will face Canton in week four while Cowanesque hosts winless Bucktail.
Jersey Shore 23, Athens 0
The Wildcats took on the defending District 4, Class AAA champions on Friday night and suffered their second straight loss as Jersey Shore won 23-0. The Bulldogs limited Athens to 79 total yards in the game. Levi Lorson led the Jersey Shore attack, gaining 212 yards on 31 carries with two touchdowns.
Kalen Keathley led Athens with two carries for 30 yards and Brandon Sturzenegger had 13 carries for 12 yards. Luke Newman had a carry for seven yards and Zane Vargason and Tyler Forbes each gained four yards on the ground.
Athens falls to 1-2 on the year and will take on undefeated North Penn in week four.
South Williamsport 46, Canton 7
The Dominick Bragalone show was on display again as he rushed for 209 yards on 14 carries and 5 touchdowns.
The game started out scoreless after the first quarter but South quickly scored to start the second quarter. John Peters scored from 18 yards out to put the Mounties up 6-0 and then the rout was on. Canton would finally get on the board when Route hooked up with Travis Butcher on a nifty 70 yard scoring strike late in the game.
South Quarterback Matt Boone was 5-8 for 146 yards passing with 1 touchdown. Tyler Cole had 37 yards on 10 carries while Trevor Route was 5-9 passing with 89 yards and a score to lead Canton.
South Williamsport looks to improve to 3-1 as they face their toughest challenge of the year as Loyalsock crosses the bridge.
Warrior Run 19, Wyalusing 13
The Rams fell from the ranks of the unbeatens as Warrior Run was able to control the Rams’ dynamic ground game. Wyalusing’s Luke Jennings had 115 yards on 20 carries for the Rams and Otis had 47 yards on 11 carries.
Warrior Run struck first in the second quarter when Jake Rohm caught an 11-yard touchdown from Frank James. James hit the extra point and it was 7-0. In the third quarter William Michael scored on a 28-yard touchdown and after the kick failed Warrior Run was up 13-0.
Wyalusing got on the board in the fourth as Dylan Otis scored on a three-yard run and Werner Mendoza’s kick was good, cutting the deficit to 13-7.
Warrior Run got a 23-yard score from Michael. The run failed and Warrior Run led 19-7.
The Rams cut into the deficit as Luke Jennings scored on a 20-yard run with the kick failing, to make the final score.
Wyalusing travels to Troy in week four to try and knock off the undefeated Trojans.
North Penn 50, Milton 6
North Penn got 201 yards from Bryce Zaparzynski on the ground and Bo Burleigh threw for 180 yards and three scores on 12-for-22 passing as the Panthers remained undefeated.
Burleigh hooked up with Luke Kelly at 7:42 of the first quarter on a 13-yard pass to put the Panthers on the board. The run failed and it was 6-0. Ryan Turner returned a fumble 18 yards for a touchdown at 6:23 of the quarter and the run failed and it was 12-0. Bryce Zaparzynski had a 56-yard touchdown run with 53 seconds left in the quarter. Burleigh hit Dayton Wood with the two-point try.
Milton erased the shut out in the second quarter with 55 seconds left in the half when Joevaughn Garrison ran in from a yard out but the kick was blocked.
Levi Christman had four catches for 39 yards, Wood had three grabs for 39 yards, Zaparzynski had two grabs for 54 yards, Kelly had two catches for 47 yards and Derek Nybeck had one catch for eight yards.
For Milton, Zack Bennett had 12 carries for 65 yards and he had one catch for 12 yards.
North Penn hosts Athens in week four as they look to stay undefeated.
Wellsboro 71, Bucktail 6
It took the Green Hornets only three minutes to score on the winless Bucks. After a long pass to Nick Marple, Senior Quarterback Michael Pietropola connected with Senior Nick Levindoski for three yards to put Wellsboro up 7-0 following Senior Jack Chambers‘ extra point attempt. Wellsboro’s next scoring drive saw the return of Senior Kieron Smethers for a 10 yard strike. Smethers would also score defensively for the Hornets as he sacked Bucktails’ quarterback, forced a fumble, and returned it 15 yards for the score. After a defensive safety by Junior Anthony Cooper, the Hornets were up 23-0 with 4:24 remaining in the first quarter.
Wellsboro’s next score came from Senior Running Back Levi Mack from 44 yards out. Smethers caught a 48 yard strike from Pietropola shortly after to put Wellsboro up 37-0 at the end of the first quarter. Marple got involved in the scoring parade as he caught an 80 yard pass from Pietropola following another Mack run to go up 51-0. The first half ended as Levindoski punched the ball in from one yard out to take a 57-0 lead at the half.
With Wellsboro’s starters getting a break in the second half, Sophomore Quarterback Brandon Lamphier scored twice on read options to put Wellsboro for the final two Hornet touchdowns. Bucktail would avoid the shut out as Aaron Ransdorf worked his way out of a tackle and raced 62 yards to open the second half.
Pietropola finshed 8-9 for 234 yards and 4 touchdowns through the air. Mack was the leading ground gainer as he carried the ball 7 times for 88 yards and two scores, and Marple was once again the leading receiver as he hauled in two passes for 143 yards and a touchdown.
Wellsboro will look to stay undefeated in week four as they host Sayre.
Ed Weaver is the creator of WellsboroAthletics.com and WellsboroFootball.com. You can follow him on Twitter, friend him on Facebook, or add him to your circles on Google+.
