Warrior Run scored touchdowns on four of their five first half possessions .. from 63, 54, 30 and 11 yards .. and added a safety while jumping out to a 15-0 first quarter lead and taking a 29-7 advantage into the locker rooms. 

The Black Knights sustained several long drives in the first half and had 24 first downs on the night, compared to 10 for the Defenders, but a pair of interceptions killed 13 and 8-play drives for Towanda, and a fumble inside Warrior Run’s 5-yard line took away another scoring opportunity for the Knights.

Towanda senior Riley Vanderpool accounted for 300 yards of offense in his final game for the Black Knights .. 150 rushing, 114 passing, 36 receiving .. while running for a pair of TDs and catching another from freshman Reese Sluyter. 

The Defenders first big play of the game came less than two minutes in as James Keifer found Samuel Hall for a 63-yard touchdown and after a good XP attempt Warrior Run led 7-0. 

Towanda started their first possession of the game on their own 35. Four runs by Vanderpool, a pair of completions to Reese Sluyter and Tahshon Gardner and a pass interference penalty on Warrior Run set the Knights up at the Defenders 21. They’d manage just two more yards before Vanderpool found Gardner on a 4th-and-8, but Gardner’s catch was ruled incomplete along the sideline and Warrior Run took over at their own 19.

The Knights’ defense forced a Warrior Run 3-and-out and took over on their own 20-yard line, but were themselves forced to punt, and after the snap sailed into the end zone the Defenders settled for the 2-point safety and a 9-0 lead with 4:37 left in the opening frame. 

Forced to kick off from their own 20, Towanda surrendered a huge return and Warrior Run started at the Black Knight 11 and took just one play to find the end zone. Towanda got a hand on the PAT attempt and the Defenders led 15-0 with 4:17 left in the first.

Towanda put together a nice drive on the ensuing possession that spanned the end of the first and beginning of the second quarter, using 12 plays to reach the WR 13-yard line, but on their 13th play Vanderpool was picked off in the end zone. The Defenders took just five plays to capitalize as Hall went untouched for a 54-yard TD run. After the good PAT Warrior Run led 22-0 with 7:26 remaining in the first half.

The Black Knights finally finished off a drive on their next possession, taking 10 plays .. highlighted by a pair of completions by Vanderpool for 12 yards each to Reese Sluyter and Will Schrawder .. that ended with a 2-yard TD run by Vanderpool. Jack Wheaton was good on the extra point kick and Warrior Run’s lead was cut to 22-7 with just over two minutes left to the break.

Any thought of Towanda taking momentum into the half with their score was erased as Warrior Run took less than a minute to tack on another score .. this time as Hall made a phenomenal, one-handed catch in the end zone from 30 yards out, giving the visitors a 29-7 lead after the good extra point.

The Knights had time to try and score before halftime, but on the 8th play of their two-minute drill offensive series, Vanderpool would again get picked off to make the Defender 29-7 lead hold up into the break.

Coming out of the locker rooms, the Knights got a nice return by Sluyter to midfield, followed by an 18-yard gain by Caden Delameter. Vanderpool would break loose and get inside the WR 5-yard line, but a fumble recovered by the Defenders ended another Knight drive short of the end zone.

The teams traded punts before WR scored on a 36-yard run to take a 36-7 lead with 4:38 left in the third, and Towanda answered with a Vanderpool 21-yard score with :31 left on the 3rd-quarter clock. Wheaton made it 36-14 and then attempted an on-side kick which Warrior Run fell on to start at midfield. 

The Defenders took over five minutes off the fourth-quarter clock as they drove to the Black Knights’ 1-yard line, punching it in for a 43-14 lead after another good PAT attempt.

Towanda, now with Reese Sluyter taking snaps, took just three minutes and six plays before the freshman QB found Vanderpool for a 36-yard hook-up. The two point try came up short, providing the 43-20 final.

Vanderpool completed 9-of-19 passes for 114 yards and two interceptions, while Sluyter was 3-of-4 for 58 yards and the TD. Delameter finished with 24 yards on five carries, while Garner had four catches for 51 yards, Rylee Sluyter had three catches for 48 yards and Schrawder had three grabs for 32 yards. 

Towanda finishes their season 9-3, while Warrior Run advances to the District final against Troy, a 69-28 winner over Southern Columbia in the other 2A semifinal. 

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Warrior Run (8-4)    15 14 7  7 - 43

Towanda (9-3)          0   7  7  6 - 20

First quarter

10:32 - (WR) Samuel Hall 63-yard pass from James Keifer (Hunter kick), 1:28

4:37 - (WR) Team Safety

4:17 - (WR) Eli Butler 11-yard run (kick blocked), :20

Second quarter 

7:26 - (WR) Samuel Hall 54-yard run (Hunter kick), 2:38

2:12 - (T) Riley Vanderpool 2-yard run (Wheaton kick), 5:14 

1:16 - (WR) Samuel Hall 30-yard pass from James Keifer (Hunter kick), :56

Third quarter

4:38 - (WR) Eli Butler 36-yard run (Hunter kick), 2:25

:31 - (T) Riley Vanderpool 21-yard run (Wheaton kick), 4:07

Fourth quarter

7:42 - (WR) Eli Butler 1-yard run (Hunter kick), 4:49

4:40 - (T) Riley Vanderpool 36-yard pass from Reese Sluyter (run failed), 3:02

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Statistics

                                       WR                            T            

First downs                     14                             24

Rushes-net yards        29-228                      43-150

Passing yardage           108                          172

Passing                      4-5-2-0                    12-23-1-2

Fumbles-lost                  0-0                           7-1

Penalties-yards            8-75                         8-70

 

RUSHING: Warrior Run: Eli Butler (20-136-3), Colby LeBarron (7-39), Samuel Hall (1-54-1), Team (1-(-1)); Towanda: Riley Vanderpool (28-150-2), Caden Delamater (5-24), Rylee Sluyter (3-12), Gage Evans (3-0), Reese Sluyter (2-2), Team (2-(-38))

PASSING: Warrior Run: James Keifer (4-5-108-2-0); Towanda: Riley Vanderpool (9-19-114-0-2), Reese Sluyter (3-4-58-1-0)

RECEIVING: Warrior Run: Samuel Hall (3-99-2), Eli Butler (1-9); Towanda: Tahshon Garner (4-51), Rylee Sluyter (3-48), Wil Shrawder (3-32), Riley Vanderpool (1-36-1), Reese Sluyter (1-5)

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