Blue Raiders topped Line Mountain 41-0
MANDATA – Tamaqua has traditionally been a running team. This year, head coach Sam Bonner would prefer his offense be more balanced with approximately an equal number of run and pass plays. But if quarterback Brayden Knoblauch plays like he played in Friday’s opener at Line Mountain, then the Blue Raiders might transform into an […]
Southern pulls away in second half to top Mount Carmel for fourth straight District 4 Class 2A title
ELYSBURG – From the beginning of the 2018 season, it had been anticipated by many that Mount Carmel and Southern Columbia would meet in Week 13 for the District 4 Class 2A championship, as both teams distinguished themselves above the rest of the field during the season. Furthermore, no team has played the juggernaut that […]
Southern Columbia rolls over Troy, sets up district final matchup with Mount Carmel
ELYSBURG – Even though his team may be heavily favored in some games, such as Saturday’s District 4 Class 2A semifinal against Troy, Southern Columbia head coach Jim Roth is always one to show respect to his team’s opponent. But after the Tigers topped the Trojans 69-16 after racing out to a 55-0 lead, one […]
Mount Carmel over North Penn-Mansfield
MOUNT CARMEL – Mount Carmel had reason to be concerned at halftime of its District 4 Class 2A semifinal against North Penn-Mansfield on Saturday afternoon. Despite holding a 157-58 yards advantage over the Panthers, the Red Tornadoes only held a slim 14-7 lead, as it was hurt by 72 yards of penalties, which included a […]
Montoursville defeats Athens 50-8
MONTOURSVILLE – Montoursville coach J.C. Keefer had some concerns heading into Saturday night’s District 4 Class 3A quarterfinal game against Athens. Playing on a Saturday for the first time all season, he had some concerns about how the extra day of waiting around to play might affect his team. Those concerns were put to bed […]
Muncy over Sayre 19-7
MUNCY – When a team turns the ball over seven times in a game, they almost never win, and that’s exactly what happened to Muncy two weeks ago at Sayre in a 28-14 loss. Muncy coach Sean Tetreault was fairly certain his team wouldn’t commit seven turnovers again, despite the poor weather and field conditions […]
Warrior Run overcomes first-half turnovers to top CMVT, likely clinch final D4 3A playoff spot
TURBOTVILLE – Close but not quite enough. That, along with missed opportunities, has, unfortunately for them, been one of the themes of Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech’s 2018 season. It was again the theme in Week 10, and although it took until the fourth quarter, Warrior Run was the beneficiary as the Defenders scored three touchdowns, including two […]
Turnovers hurt Lewisburg in loss to Central Columbia
SOUTH CENTRE TOWNSHIP – With Central Columbia and Lewisburg in third and fourth place, respectively, in the District 4 Class 3A standings heading into their Week 9 game and with both having identical 5-3 records, the winner was sure to gain a leg up in the standings, especially with both squads figuring to be favored […]
Mount Carmel over South Williamsport
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT – Over the years, Mount Carmel has developed a reputation as a ground-and-pound team offensively that will put together long, methodical drives and use its array of running backs to wear down the opposing defense. The run game is still the Red Tornadoes’ bread and butter, but lately, Mount Carmel has not only […]
Mount Carmel Area shuts out Hughesville
MOUNT CARMEL – When one football team is significantly bigger, faster and stronger than the other in a given game, the result is often lopsided. That was exactly the case on Friday as Hughesville was held to just five offensive yards and did not cross midfield until late in the fourth quarter as a bigger, […]
Southern Columbia over South Williamsport
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT – Over the last eight years, it would come as no surprise to anyone that follows District 4 football or even Pennsylvania high school football at large that Southern Columbia has the most wins of any program in the district, which includes a pair of state titles. Likely not as many people would […]
Shamokin over Lewisburg
SHAMOKIN – There is an undeniable excitement around the Shamokin football program that has not existed in quite a while. That excitement has been building ever since the Indians’ thrilling comeback win back in Week 1 against Milton. And although the Indians dropped games to North Schuylkill and Southern Columbia, who are a combined 10-0, […]
Mount Carmel’s John Ayres leads Red Tornadoes over Jersey Shore
JERSEY SHORE – About midway through the fourth quarter of Friday’s Mount Carmel-Jersey Shore game, fireworks began going off in the distance outside the Bulldogs’ Thompson Street Stadium. The fireworks were a part of the nearby Antes Fort Fall Heritage Days, but they might as well have been the cap on a night full of […]
Shamokin over Central Mountain
SHAMOKIN – Both Central Mountain and Shamokin were looking to bounce back from disappointing losses last week as the Wildcats and Indians clashed in a Week 3 matchup at Shamokin’s Kemp Memorial Stadium. For Central Mountain, the Wildcats were looking for their first win of the season, after a respectable performance in a loss to […]
Mifflinburg over Hughesville
MIFFLINBURG – It has often been said that the best part about freshmen and sophomores is they become juniors and seniors, meaning experience matters. While playing several young players, Mifflinburg has taken its lumps over the last couple of seasons, going a combined 5-16 over the last two years. If Friday’s opener was any indication, […]
Bethlehem Catholic survives shootout
SHAMOKIN – The margin for error can be so very thin in the postseason in any sport. Football is no different and in a game where there were five combined missed PATs or two-point conversions and any one being made could have affected the game’s trajectory at any time, Friday’s Class 4A state quarterfinal between […]
Wyalusing over Montgomery for District IV Class 1A title
MONTGOMERY – Midway through the regular season and sitting with a 2-3 record following a disappointing two-point loss to Cowanesque Valley on Homecoming, first-year Wyalusing coach Jordan Clark never lost faith in his team, even if others counted the Rams out. The same could be said after the Rams lost four of their last five […]
Shikellamy over Athens
SUNBURY – Over the last several years, District 4 3A (now 4A after the class expansion) has been largely dominated by Selinsgrove and lately Jersey Shore, as those programs have combined to win the district title in all but two seasons since 2004. One of those two seasons was 2010, when Shikellamy won the district […]
North Schuylkill over Mount Carmel
ASHLAND – Backyard rivalries often produce close and exciting games and there are also the occasional classics. Friday’s Mount Carmel-North Schuylkill game would probably quality as all of the above. Looking to break a three-game losing streak to North Schuylkill, Mount Carmel raced out to a 20-7 halftime lead with an outstanding first half performance […]
Bloomsburg over Warrior Run
BLOOMSBURG – The Bloomsburg Panthers scored just seven points in a disappointing seven-point loss to Danville in Week 1 before being blown out by perennial state power Southern Columbia last week. So, the Panthers may have had some frustration build up due to not only the way they lost those first two games, but also […]
Jersey Shore blanks Mifflinburg
MIFFLINBURG – Coming off a District 4 4A championship last year, few had expected Jersey Shore to be challenged by Bellefonte in its season opener last week, much less lose. So, the Red Raiders stunning Jersey Shore last week may have served to get the Bulldogs’ attention. After a good week of practice that was […]
Muncy over Warrior Run
TURBOTVILLE – Sometimes, a football game can be somewhat of a ho-hum affair in the early part, only for the action to pick up late and feature an exciting finish. Except for the final drive, Friday’s season opener between Muncy and Warrior Run was the exact opposite. The teams combined for 28 points and 281 […]
Late TD propels Steelton-Highspire to 24-20 win over Williams Valley
SHAMOKIN – In a close game, particularly a playoff contest, it can often come down to just a handful of plays that can make the difference in a game. For Steelton-Highspire, it was three straight passes late in the fourth quarter of its PIAA Class A quarterfinal against Williams Valley. Trailing 20-17 with just 1:44 […]
Central Mountain over Shamokin
SHAMOKIN – The look on Pat DiRienzo’s face said it all. It was one of bafflement and searching for answers. By contrast, the looks on James Renninger’s face and those of his team were all smiles. Needing to win on Friday against Renninger’s Central Mountain squad to have any chance at staying in the District […]
Loyalsock over Mifflinburg
MIFFLINBURG – Earlier in the week, Loyalsock coach Justin Van Fleet remarked that he’d like to have a game when the outcome wasn’t in doubt so late in the contest – with the Lancers on top, of course. His Loyalsock team was coming off two straight overtime contests, including a double OT game last week, […]
Danville over South Williamsport
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT – It’s anyone’s guess as to when the last time Danville and South Williamsport played. Available records showed nothing dating back to 1993, and South Williamsport coach Chris Eiswerth, who graduated from South in 1987, can’t remember ever playing the Ironmen. So, despite being theoretically quite unfamiliar with each other, both teams play […]
Warrior Run big over Muncy
MUNCY – Warrior Run and Muncy opened the year against each other for the third straight season on Friday, and Warrior Run’s 32-7 victory followed the same trend as the last two season openers, which were also lopsided wins. Two years ago, it was Warrior Run winning 29-6. Last season, Muncy ran for 272 yards […]
Lancers top Trojans, 40-21
LOYALSOCK TOWNSHIP – Troy took its option attack down to Lycoming County to take on Loyalsock Friday in a non-conference tilt that could end up having playoff implications when all is said and done. But instead of the Trojans running over their opponent as they have done to so many teams recently, it was Loyalsock […]
Montoursville shuts-out Central Columbia
MONTOURSVILLE – Montoursville certainly looked the part of a District 4 AA contender on Friday as the Warriors romped over defending Heartland Athletic Conference II champion Central Columbia by a 41-0 score and while Montoursville displayed plenty of positive signs, the Warriors just enough mistakes as well to give themselves plenty to work on in […]
