HS Football: Maloney, Scranton defense doom North Pocono
Sep. 24—MOSCOW — Scranton's defense created opportunities and quarterback Billy Maloney and the offense took advantage.
The second-ranked Knights scored 21 points off five turnovers to cruise to a 35-0 win over No. 8 North Pocono in a Lackawanna Football Conference Division I game Friday at Trojan Stadium.
Elijah Ortiz had two interceptions for Scranton, including one in the end zone to stop North Pocono's opening drive in which the Trojans picked up three first downs and drove 51 yards. Scranton (5-0, 2-0 Division I) broke a scoreless tie on the first play of the second quarter when Maloney rolled right and found Matt Shilling in the front right corner of the end zone for a 29-yard touchdown.
"All offseason me and him have been working on all kinds of catches, all kinds of passes, all kinds of routes," Maloney said.
On Scranton's next drive, Maloney was 2 for 2 passing for 27 yards and had three carries for 36 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown on a quarterback sneak to give the Knights a 14-0 lead.
"I couldn't ask for a better kid back there right now," Scranton coach Steve Shumbres said. "He understands the game, he sees it. We call some runs for him. Some pass plays, if they're not there, he's able to use his legs. I think he's probably one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the area."
Late in the second quarter, Scranton recovered a fumble near midfield. Maloney had a 21-yard run on the ensuing drive and then found Donato Stepney on a slant for a 9-yard touchdown pass and a 21-0 lead with 41 seconds remaining in the first half. Dohnavin Laybourn-Boddie intercepted a pass on the first play of North Pocono's next drive and returned it 24 yards to the Trojans 27. Maloney dropped back to pass on Scranton's first play, ran up the middle, made a defender miss and ran in for a touchdown and a 28-0 lead.
"The defense has been playing excellent all season, creating turnovers and putting us in good field position and tonight we were able to take advantage in that second quarter," Shumbres said.
In the first half, Scranton had four drives start on North Pocono's side of the field and scored on three of them.
"It's easier to get everybody on the same page when you can smell the end zone, you're closer to the goal line," Shumbres said. "The kids understand that we're on the plus side of the 50, we have momentum after a turnover and now we have to go take advantage of it."
North Pocono (2-3, 0-2) drove inside the Scranton 10 on its first drive of the second half, but Ortiz intercepted another pass in the end zone on fourth-and-goal. This time, Scranton drove 80 yards on 11 plays and Lamiare Saldano scored on a 27-yard run.
Contact the writer: hsmith@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9125; @sportsTT on Twitter
