Northern Tier League Roundup – Week 9

Written by: Ed Weaver on Monday, October 27th, 2014. Follow Ed Weaver on Twitter.

Wellsboro 28, Towanda 21

Wellsboro recorded their second straight win over the Black Knights as they hung on for a 28-21 win. Towanda scored on their opening drive as they put together a six play drive that was capped by a 32 yard pass from Noah Huff to Dylan Bates to put the Black Knights up 7-0 with 8:16 remaining in the opening quarter. Wellsboro was unable to pick up a first down on their opening drive and were forced to punt the ball back to Towanda. The Wellsboro defense buckled down on Towanda’s next possession and forced them to punt on fourth down for their own 30-yard line.

Wellsboro scored on their second possession to even the score. After a one yard pass from Senior Quarterback Michael Pietropola to Senior Wide Receiver Kieron Smethers, Pietropola found a seam in the Towanda defense and raced 86 yards to the end zone. Senior Jack Chambers‘ made the extra point to tie the game at 7-7.

Again, the Hornet defense stepped up and forced a three-and-out after sacking Huff for a seven yard loss. A 23 yard punt return by Junior Anthony Cooper gave the Hornets excellent field position inside the Towanda 25-yard line. Dean got the Hornets down to the six-yard line on a 16 yard run before Pietropola connected with Smethers for a six yard touchdown as time expired in the first quarter to take a 14-7 lead.

The Hornet defense forced their first of five turnovers on the night as they dropped Steven Yates for a four yard loss and caused a fumble after Towanda moved inside the Wellsboro 25-yard line after a 33 yard kick return by Huff set them up at the 50-yard line. The Hornets went right back to work as Pietropola scrambled for 24 yards and then connected on a 25 yard pass to Senior Nick Levindoski to move into Towanda territory.

Following an incomplete pass, Pietropola picked up a first down on a 10 yard run and Dean broke free on runs of 17 and four yards to put the Hornets at the Towanda 2-yard line. The following play, Pietropola ran over a Black Knight defender for his second touchdown of the night. Chambers made the extra point and the Hornets led 21-7 with 7:13 left in the first half.

The Hornets and Black Knight traded possessions for the rest of the second quarter and Wellsboro took a 21-7 lead into the half.

The Wellsboro defense caused their second caused their second turnover and scored six points of their own as they dropped Huff for a four yard loss and caused him to fumble. Smethers was in the right place at the at the right time as he picked up the loose football and ran the remaining 29 yards to give Wellsboro a 28-7 lead with 6:08 left in the third quarter.

Towanda found life in the fourth quarter as they put up 14 points to cut into the Hornets lead. Noah Huff and Steven Yates were able to find running lanes in the Wellsboro defense. Huff’s one yard run and kick by Tyler Basse brought the score to 28-14 Wellsboro with 7:34 remaining in the game. Yates scored late in the quarter to bring the score to 28-21, but Towanda’s onside kick attempt following the touchdown failed to go the required 10 yards giving Wellsboro the ball and the win.

Canton 52, Cowanesque Valley 27

The Canton Warriors rushed for over 350 yards and six touchdowns as they handed the visiting Cowanesque Valley Indians their fifth consecutive loss.

Canton struck first as Noah Barnett returned the game’s opening kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown. Trevor Route, the hero from last week’s 37-36 victory over North Penn, missed his first extra point attempt and Canton led, 6-0.

CV would answer Canton’s opening score with one of their own on their opening drive. Ethan Mead scored his first of two touchdowns as he scampered all over the field from his 19-yard line to tie the game at 6-6. One play later Mead converted the extra point try to give CV their only lead on the night at 7-6.

The score remained 7-6 CV until Barnett scored his first rushing touchdown of the night from 65 yards out to give the Warriors the lead back. Jimmy Bowman put Canton up 14-7 as he received a direct snap on the extra point try and found the end zone for the two-point conversion.

Canton would increase their lead by two early in the second quarter. After driving down to CV’s two-yard line and failing to convert on fourth down, Jimmy Bowman and Malachi Washington tackled Connor Calaman in the end zone for a safety. Canton failed to produce on the drive following the free kick and would turn the ball over on downs after a wide open Washington dropped a pass in the end zone on fourth down.

The Indians would put a few plays together before Calaman’s pass was intercepted by John Bowman. This time Canton would capitalize on the opportunity as Jimmy Bowman ran the ball three times for 53 yards on the drive and scored a two yard touchdown to put Canton up 22-7.

Canton scored once more before the first half concluded as John Bowman threw a 16 yard strike to Mason Moore in the corner of the end zone with 13 seconds left to put Canton up 34-7 as the teams hit the locker room.

Canton’s next scoring drive didn’t happen until late in the third quarter as Bryce Cole broke a 19 yard run to put the Warriors up 40-7 after a failed two-point conversion. CV would turn the ball back over on their next possession as John Bowman intercepted a Calaman pass to five the Warriors excellent field position. Washington would add his only score of the night as he plowed into the end zone from two yards out to put Canton up 46-7 as time ticked down in the third quarter.

Cowanesque would answer back on their following possession. Mead used his speed to torch Canton’s defense on a 70 yard run to make the score 46-13 Canton after the two-point conversion failed. The Indians would get the ball back as Joey Brown recovered a Canton fumble to give CV excellent field position. The Indians took advantage of the opportunity and pulled to within 46-19 after Bell scored from six yards out.

Canton struck again on their following drive as Barnett found the end zone for his third rushing touchdown as he found the end zone from 24 yards out to give the Warriors a 52-19 lead. Cowanesque would score one more time. Calaman kept the ball and swept around the left end for a 70 yard score. Bell would convert the two-point conversion as the score would be 52-27.

North Penn 36, Wyalusing 15

Following a last-second, 37-36 loss to Canton last week, North Penn kept their perfect NTL Division 1 record intact as they handed the Wyalusing Rams the loss. North Penn’s leading rusher Bryce Zaparzynski was out of the lineup, but Levi Christman stepped in to lead the Panthers in rushing and receiving yards on the night and scored three touchdowns.

Christman started the scoring as he recovered a fumble as ran it 27 yards to the end zone for the score. The Panthers’ ensuing two-point conversion attempt failed and they led 6-0 with 9:05 remaining in the opening frame. Five minutes later Christman found the end zone again, this time on a 22 yard run. Dayton Wood caught Bo Burleigh’s two-point conversion pass to put the Panthers up 14-0.

Wyalusing cut into the Panthers’ lead with 10:30 remaining in the first half as Luke Jennings found the end zone from 13 yards out. Werner Mendoza converted the extra point to make it 14-7 North Penn.

Wyalusing would be dealt a huge blow later in the quarter as Jennings would exit with an injury after tallying 78 yards on 18 carries and would not return. The junior has rushed for 1,664 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2014 including four 200+ yard games and one 300+ yard game.

The teams traded possessions for the remainder of the second quarter before Burleigh connected with Wood on a five yard touchdown pass with 51 seconds remaining. Brad Pequignot ran in the two-point try to make it 22-7 North Penn at the half.

The game stayed 22-7 into the fourth when Christman caught a three yard pass from Burleigh and Luke Kelly caught the two-point try from Burleigh to extend the Panthers’ lead to 30-7 with 9:45 remaining in the game. Wyalusing got the points back just a minute later when Ryan Kipp ran in from 24 yards. Justin Haley ran in the two-point conversion to make it 30-15 North Penn.

The Panthers capped the scoring with 2:25 left in the fourth quarter as Kelly caught a 18 yard pass from Burleigh to give the Panthers the 36-15 win.

Troy 38, Athens 28

Troy won their eighth game of 2014 after defeating an Athens team that was on the rebound after winning their previous two games. Troy struck first after both teams traded opening possessions that ended in punts. Nick Stephani and Brandon Mattocks rotated running the ball on Troy’s second possession, setting them up at the Athens 12-yard line. From there, Chance Lantz busted through the middle and into the end zone for the first score on the night. With 4:55 left in the quarter, Stephani’s extra point would make it 7-0.

The Wildcat offense answered right back within the next minute. On third-and-10 on their own 25, Tyler Forbes completed a 75 yard pass to Kalen Keathley for a touchdown with only 3:49 to play. The Trojans would keep their lead at 7-6 as Austin Lister’s extra point attempt would fall short. Troy extended their lead to 14-6 on their next drive as they continued to run the football. Ben Sherman and QB Isaac Havens tossed in some yards along with Stephani and Mattocks, bringing the ball to the Athens five-yard line for a first and goal before Lantz found the end zone for the second time on the night.

Troy then went up 21-6 as Havens would keep the ball and run 46 yards for the touchdown with 9:53 remaining in the opening half. Athens cut the lead to 21-14 as Forbes connected with Lister on a 16 yard pass to finish the Wildcats’ 11-play drive. The Wildcats would then set up for the extra point, but they went for the fake as Aaron Barry completed a pass to Bill Bennett for the two-point conversion with the clock reading 4:54.

Troy added one more score before the half ended when Stephani scored from 20 yards out and kicked the extra point to take a 28-14 lead at the half. The Trojans added to their lead at the 6:20 mark of the third quarter as Stephani scored from 33 yards away and added the extra point as well to make the score 35-14 Troy.

Athens would rebound with 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. After forcing a Troy punt on fourth-and-24, Athens executed a quick, two play drive that ended with a Payton Lewis touchdown grab to bring the score to 35-21 Troy with 10:25 to go in the game. Just a few minutes later, Athens recovered a Mattocks fumble and regained possession at the Troy 37-yard line. Forbes worked his magic, throwing three complete passes until finally, at the three-yard line on first-and-goal, he ran it into the end zone for the easy score. Lister added the extra point, and with 8:29 to play in the game, the Wildcats cut the lead to 35-28.

Despite Athens’ attempts to stop the running game, Troy continued to eat up yards and found themselves outside of the Wildcats’ end zone. Athens stopped Troy on third down from the three-yard line, but Stephani added a short field goal to claim the 38-28 victory.

South Williamsport 55, Sayre 24

Senior Dominick Bragalone continued his stellar 2014 season as he rushed for 259 yards on 11 carries to lead the Mounties to a blowout 55-24 win against the Redskins. Bragalone started the scoring with 9:43 left in the first quarter as he scored from 25 yards to put the Mounties up 7-0 after Logan Wein’s kick. Bragalone then scored at 7:16 on a 32 yard run to make it 14-0.

With 4:16 left in the opening quarter South’s John Peters ran in a score from 11 yards out to make it 21-0 after the Wein point after. At the start of the second quarter Bragalone scored on a 47 yard run to put South up 27-0. Back-to-back four yard runs from Peters and quarterback Matt Boone made it 41-0. Boone would then hit Riley Thomas for a three yard scoring strike to take a 48-0 lead.

Sayre eventually got on the scoreboard with 2:14 left in the second quarter as J.P. Harbst ran the kickoff back 72 yards to cut the deficit to 48-8 as Matthew Ingrassia punched in the tw0-point conversion. South would score once more before the half ended as Boone hit Thomas on a 22 yard pass to go up 55-8.

The Redskins got two scores in the fourth quarter. The first came on a two yard run by Tylor Belles with 8:33 left to play. Gavin Lundy-McCutcheon hit Harbst for the two-point conversion to make it 55-16. Then with 4:03 left to play, Bradly Hatch ran in a touchdown from five yards out followed by Matthew Eberlin running in the point after to make it a 55-24 final.

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+.

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