(CORRECTED) NTL FOOTBALL: BIG PLAYS HIGHLIGHT WYALUSING ROMP OVER COWANESQUE VALLEY (24 PHOTOS) (2020-09-18)
BY TIM TAYLOR
Northern Tier Sports Report
WYALUSING — Big plays highlighted Wyalusing's 46-21 Northern Tier League romp against Cowanesque Valley here Friday night. The Rams put the ball in the end zone seven times — five of their touchdowns being 15 yards or longer.
After giving up a TD to the Indians on the game's opening drive, the hosts pulled within a point on its second possession of the evening, then took control of the contest in the second quarter.
Wyalusing coach Jimmy Buchman was pleased with the win, but still sees room for improvement.
"A win's a win and we feel comfortable putting 46 on the board, but still, a lot to work on, a lot of issues," he said. "We do have a lot of athletes and a, lot of good football players, but too many missed tackles. I think we had third-and-long twice and they scored two first downs on that. We have to correct and fix all that stuff."
Senior quarterback Mitchell Burke put the Rams up on a 16-yard keeper just 78 seconds into the second quarter and junior running back Brian Arnold made it 14-7 on a penalty-shortened point-after run. The TD was set up when CV muffed a punt on the bounce and senior Elijah Yoder recovered it.
Not long after CV junior wide receiver Tanyan Brown turned a short pass from junior QB Tucker St. Peter into a 40-yard gain to the Ram 35. Then, 6-foot-3 junior Isiah Way tipped a St. Peter pass into the air, then picked it off.
A Wyalusing penalty would give the home team the ball on its own 10, but on the very next play, junior wide receiver Kashawn Cameron grasped the pigskin, headed to his right, then cut back across the field, leaving the CV defense in his wake on a 90-yard dash to paydirt. The PAT run failed, but the Rams had a 20-7 advantage with 6:29 remaining in the first half.
It looked like the teams would exchange punts following a pair of three-and-out efforts, but when it was Wyalusing's turn to boot the ball away, Burke (also the team's punter) tucked the ball away and weaved through the CV defense for a 64-yard scoring run. Sophomore Alex Hunsinger split the uprights with the PAT kick and the Rams led, 27-7, with 3:39 left in the half.
The Indians' only points of the first three quarters came after picking apart the Wyalusing defense on their initial drive. St. Peter threw to sophomore tight end Jacob Schmitt for 19 yards, then found senior wide receiver Tre Slawson open for 35 yards and a first-and-goal at the 10. St. Peter kept it on the next play for the TD at 9:41 and the PAT kick made it 7-0.
The Rams put their initial points on the board on Cameron's 30-yard end around. That score came one play after freshman defensive lineman Josh Shadle pounced on a CV fumble. The PAT kick failed, but Wyalusing was down just a point.
Wyalusing had the advantage in numbers, size, strength and experience, but that may have hurt the Rams a little early on.
"We tried to go after the big play a little too early tonight, then we just found the run game. We just kind of stayed with that," Buchman said. "Our philosophy is if something's working, keep going until the defense adjusts to it and that's what we did tonight."
The run was clearly working as Wyalusing racked up 411 of its 518 total yards via the rush — on just 36 carries.
After dominating the second quarter, the Rams continued to control the tempo in the second half. Junior Jacob Bruyn's 35-yard kick return put the ball on the CV 45 to begin the third quarter. Senior running back Alex Mosier carried twice for 31 yards. Burked tacked on 18 more and Mosier scored from 1 yard out. The PAT run failed, but the Ram lead increased to 33-7.
The Indians turned the ball over on downs at the Wyalusing 36, and the Rams rode a 10-play drive to the end zone, capped by Mosier's second 1-yard TD plunge of the night. Hunsinger's kick made it 40-7 with 1:24 to go in the period.
Cowanesque, silenced since its early score, would get back on the scoreboard at 8:40 of the fourth quarter following junior RB Elliott Good's 13-yard run. The PAT pass failed to leave the score at 40-13.
The Rams responded with one more TD. Following a pair of Mosier runs for 16 yards and a 25-yard Burke-to-Cameron aerial, Wyalusing scored on a 15-yard pass when Burke found Way open on a quick slant across the middle. The PAT run was unsuccessful, but the Rams' cushion was 46-13 with 6:09 to play.
CV responded with a 20-yard TD pass from St. Peter to Schmitt with 2:58 on the clock and Cody Fleming's PAT run made it a 46-21 final.
Last week, the Rams didn't start clicking until the second half. They were a more complete team in the second half again this week, but did start to respond to opportunities earlier in this game.
"I don't know what it is, why we're starting slow, but it seems right now that we're a second-half team, which is fine, but for you to be a complete football team you have to play all four quarters the exact same way and that's something we need to work on." Buchman said. "We have a couple things we need to work on, but it's easier to work on things you have to clean up when you 2-0 as compared to 0-2."
Cameron finished the night with 177 yards (3-124 rushing, 3-53 receiving). On the ground, Burke had 10 rushes for 131 yards, Mosier carried 14 times for 92 yards more and Liam Franklin added a 50-yard run on his only touch. Burke went 7-for-16 for 89 yards through the air with one TD and one pick. Way added 32 yards on three catches.
St. Peter went 9-for-16 for 150 yards with one TD and one interception. Brock Fenton was CV's leading ground gainer with 56 yards on 11 carries and Slawson was the top receiver with two receptions for 64 yards.
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IN PHOTO 1: Wyalusing's Alex Mosier. ... PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.
