HS FOOTBALL: Scranton Prep romps past Lakeland
Aug. 27—DUNMORE — His teammates on the sidelines were praying that Jack Hartshorn would make the kick.
Mind you, it wasn't a game-winning attempt. It was only an extra point in a lopsided contest. But it was an extra point that would give Scranton Prep 70 points in its season opener.
Just as he had done on his first nine tries, the freshman booted the ball through the uprights, providing the final point in the Cavaliers' 70-7 romp of Lakeland on Saturday afternoon at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium.
"It was no problem," Hartshorn said. "A.J. Croom was my holder and Rossi (Ambrose) is the snapper. They did great and had my back. It was awesome."
One couldn't blame Hartshorn if he was a bit leg-weary in his debut. Besides going 10 for 10 on PATs, he also kicked off 11 times with three touchbacks.
It was that kind of day for No. 2-ranked Scranton Prep.
Eight players scored touchdowns with Liam Barrett and Andrew Summa each finding the end zone twice. The Cavaliers totaled 472 yards, including 353 rushing.
"We were hungry all offseason for this one," said junior quarterback Louis Paris, who threw for three touchdowns and ran for a fourth. "We tried to come out and play our best football and fire on all cylinders. I think we did that at the beginning of the game."
Five consecutive touches by Scranton Prep players produced five scores in the first quarter.
After forcing Lakeland to punt on the opening possession, the Cavaliers went 21 yards in five plays with Paris capping the drive on a 3-yard run. Hartshorn's first extra point made it 7-0 with 6:29 left in the first quarter.
One play after another Lakeland punt, Tae Weeks took a reverse 59 yards for a touchdown to make it 14-0 with 4:06 left in the first.
Barrett intercepted Lakeland quarterback David Naniewicz on the Chiefs' next possession. On first down, he took a pass from Paris 39 yards for a touchdown and a 21-0 lead with 2:23 to go in the first.
On the ensuing possession, Summa stepped in front of a Naniewicz pass and returned the interception 31 yards for a touchdown and a 28-0 lead with 58 seconds left in the first.
"I just read the quarterback's eyes," Summa said. "I saw it was a little screen. I just came up on the ball and made the play."
Lakeland appeared as if it might get back into the game on its next possession. Chris Chmiola returned the kickoff 49 yards to the Scranton Prep 37. On first down, Naniewicz broke free and appeared to be headed for a touchdown.
But a hustling Jack Doughton caught him from behind at the 2 and knocked the football loose. It rolled out the back of the end zone for a touchback, giving the ball to the Cavaliers at their 20.
From there, Quinten Palermo took a handoff and raced 80 yards for a touchdown and a 35-0 lead with 10 seconds to play in the first quarter.
Paris threw touchdown passes of 13 yards to Summa and 50 yards to Barrett in the second quarter to give Scranton Prep a 49-0 halftime lead.
In the second half, the Cavaliers' reserves kept things rolling.
Sophomore Will McPartland accounted for all 72 yards on a five-play scoring drive in the third quarter, including the 3-yard touchdown run.
Backup quarterback Tyler Mackrell had a 3-yard touchdown run and sophomore Caleb Rutkoski a 19-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
"We're lucky we have a lot of experience back and we're going to depend on them obviously as we go through," Scranton Prep coach Terry Gallagher said. "We have a nice group of young guys, too, that give us a good mix.
"The kids played well offensively and defensively. They were ready to go and played with a sense of urgency."
The Chiefs avoided the shutout on their opening possession of the second half. Josh Ponce scored on a 26-yard run and Ryan Bianchi added the extra point with 8:12 left in the third quarter.
"Scranton Prep is a good team and they are well-coached," Lakeland coach Dave Piwowarczyk said. "Offense, defense, special teams, they are very sound. We have some inexperienced guys who were on the field for the first time and it showed today."
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