SHAMOKIN – Based on the lengthy postgame celebration with friends and family on the field at Kemp Memorial Stadium, it was easy to see what Mount Carmel’s 23-7 win over Shamokin meant to everyone associated with program. The Red Tornadoes won back the Coal Bucket for the first time in three years, completed a perfect regular season for the first time since 2022, and erased the painful memory of an improbable victory by Shamokin one year ago. Mount Carmel (10-0) will open the District 4 Class 3A playoffs as the top seed, and will host Wellsboro next week in the quarterfinals.
“We had this game circled on the schedule for a year straight,” Mount Carmel fullback/defensive end Max Karycki said. “Everyone could say how they felt about last year’s game, but at the end of the day, when the clock hit zero, that was the score. We lost last year. We worked our absolute butts off for an entire year, just for this game, and being 9-0 going into it, and finishing 10-0, it’s a blessing to play with these guys. I give all the credit to my teammates and my coaches for an awesome job. Great preparation leading up to this week, and it’s the result we looked for.”
On the first two drives, it looked as if Mount Carmel would cruise to recapturing the Coal Bucket against a depleted Shamokin team that was without quarterback Logan Steele and running back Noah Ringes. Jaylen Delaney raced past the defense, and found the end zone on a 50-yard run exactly three minutes into the game. Cooper Karycki then extended the lead to 14-0 when he scored on a 4-yard run off the left side with 5:14 left in the opening quarter. Shamokin (8-2) started the game with Barrett Walsh at quarterback, but quickly switched to freshman Evan Pancher after two unsuccessful possessions.
“So, it was great to come out, score really quick there,” Mount Carmel coach John Darrah said. “I think we had a couple penalties and turnovers in the second and third quarter that were hurting us. But, to our guys’ credit, they stayed with it, and came up big when we had to at the end there.”
The shorthanded Indians did what they could to stay in the game, with a little bit of help from Mount Carmel. Max Karycki recovered a fumble to set up the Red Tornadoes deep in Shamokin territory, but Mount Carmel gave it right back on the very next play with a fumble of its own. A holding penalty would also erase any hope of a scoring threat before halftime. Despite the sputtering and self-inflicted wounds on offense, the Red Tornadoes’ defense held Shamokin to just 60 yards and two first downs in the opening half, while maintaining the two-score lead.
“I thought our defense played great tonight,” Darrah said. “We gave up a play here or there, but we seemed to continue to fight. Definitely hats off to our defense for playing a full 48 minutes there.”
Late in the third quarter, Shamokin made things interesting. Sheldon Sassani recovered a fumble at the Mount Carmel 32, and Pancher would finish the eight-play march with a 2-yard touchdown run at the 2:05 mark. With the large crowd on the home side in it for the first time all night, Delaney provided a huge momentum swing when he got free on a 38-yard run to steady the ship for his team. Delaney finished with a game-high 101 yards on 12 carries.
“I mean, honestly, I can’t even remember what the heck happened,” Darrah said in the midst of the on-field get-together. “I remember kicking the field goal, which I think was a big play. That was a great play by Josh (Miller). But yeah, our guys just played tough. It wasn’t the prettiest, but we got it done.”
The field goal Darrah referred was indeed an important play in the game. Facing a 4th-and-3 at the Shamokin 5 with just under 10 minutes remaining, Darrah decided to give Miller his first field goal opportunity of the season. Miller proved he has a big leg on kickoffs, but he also has an accurate one. His 22-yard field goal gave the Red Tornadoes a 17-7 lead, and put a ton a of pressure on a Shamokin offense that wasn’t able to generate drives on a consistent basis.
“We were kind of looking at how close we were,” Darrah said. “We were a little further away than we thought. I think if it would have been 4th-and-1, we probably would have went for it. But it was about 4th-and-3 or 4th-and-4, and Josh is a great kicker. We haven’t kicked one this year. Great time to get your first one I guess, right?”
A sack by Chance Swatski and Aidan Brokenshire forced a quick Shamokin punt, and Cooper Karycki would deliver the knockout punch. Karycki got loose down the right side on a 45-yard touchdown run to put the game away with 5:17 left. Karycki chipped in with 86 yards on 10 carries, after going over the 1,000-yard mark for the season last week against Central Mountain. Mount Carmel forced yet another three-and-out on defense, then easily ran out the clock. The disappointing 5-6 record from 2025 now seems like a distant memory, as Mount Carmel will begin the quest of trying to win its first District 4 championship since 2011.
“I think it’s big,” Darrah said. “I think our kids fought hard, and we learned a lot about ourselves last year, learning how to face adversity. And you know, it feels great to see how hard they worked, and for it to come to fruition here.”
Mount Carmel 14 0 0 9-23
Shamokin 0 0 7 0-7
Individual Scoring
First Quarter
MC-Jaylen Delaney 50 run (Josh Miller kick) 9:00
MC-Cooper Karycki 4 run (Miller kick) 5:15
Third Quarter
S-Evan Pancher 2 run (Kingston Heim kick) 2:05
Fourth Quarter
MC-Miller 22 field goal 9:41
MC-Karycki 45 run (kick blocked) 5:17
Team Statistics
……………………MC…………S
1st downs………….14…………..5
rush-yds…………44-312………33-65
comp-att-int…..2-5-0………….4-9-0
pass yds…………..4………………35
total yds………….316………….100
fumb-lost………..4-2………….2-1
pen-yds…………..5-40…………10-70
Individual Statistics
Rushing-Mount Carmel: Jaylen Delaney 12-101, TD; Cooper Karycki 10-86, 2 TDs; Mikey Higgins 10-62; Jason Klokis 7-38; Max Karycki 3-34; Team 2-(-9). Shamokin: Trey Taylor 12-48; Evan Pancher 14-13, TD; Ryan Bickert 6-8; Barrett Walsh 1-(-4).
Passing-Mount Carmel: Delaney 2-5-0, 4 yds. Shamokin: Pancher 4-8-0, 35 yds.; Walsh 0-1-0.
Receiving-Mount Carmel: M. Karycki 1-4; Higgins 1-0. Shamokin: Sheldon Sassani 3-27; Bickert 1-8.