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Lycoming’s season has had its ups and downs

The explanation began the same way for each person: a deep sigh, eyes turned toward the ground or off into the distance and a subtle shake of the head.

Explaining how Lycoming’s season has featured so many peaks and valleys isn’t exactly easy. But that’s exactly what the Warriors’ season has entailed.

There was the emotional high of a dominant performance in a win at Widener in Week 2 which immediately followed the doldrums of a 31-point drubbing at the hands of Susquehanna in Week 1. There was the high of two goal-line stands which led to a six-point win at then undefeated FDU-Florham followed immediately by an inadequate offensive performance in a home loss to King’s.

Then there was the high of the team’s first shutout since 2014 and the most complete offensive performance of the season followed by a seven-point performance at Wilkes last Saturday.

It’s been head-scratching to say the least. Frustrating. Baffling. Disheartening. And even discouraging. But the players echoed the same sentiments following Saturday’s loss. All they can do is prepare the best they can and turn those inexplicable feelings into wins in the season’s final two seasons.

“We’re all a family,” linebacker Sam Pawlikowski said. “You have to pick up the person next to you if you see someone down. I’m sure (safety Joe) Pinzka wasn’t happy to come out of the game, but at the end of the game we were all there for him and he knew that. That’s what we have to do, pick everyone up and keep the train rolling even if it’s not on the right track.”

Nobody associated with the Lycoming football team is happy with a 4-4 record heading into this week’s game against Stevenson. This was a team which believed it could contend for a Middle Atlantic Conference championship when the season began. And when that dream died at the hands of a Delaware Valley loss, it believed it was capable of winning its final four games and participating in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series.

Now, nothing is left for the Warriors but to play out the string over the final two weeks and try to claim the program’s first winning record since 2014. Wins this week against Stevenson and next week against a Misericordia team which is leading the MAC title race would be two more highs in a season of peaks and valleys.

But it feels like more than anything, the program wants to find consistency. Defensively they have done that. The Warriors are among the league leaders in most defensive categories and has played well enough in losses to Delaware Valley and Wilkes that the Warriors should have been able to win.

The offense, however, has struggled to find that consistency. That group was left searching for answers again Saturday after it gained its second-fewest yards in its last 16 games.

“We’re not good enough in all three phases. I thought, defensively, we played well enough to win,” coach Mike Clark said. “In the other two areas we probably didn’t. We didn’t run it great and we didn’t throw it particularly well, and that makes it hard to win.”

The only thing the Warriors can do now is channel the frustration its felt throughout the season into its preparation for the season’s final two games. A 6-4 record to finish the season might not feel like a great achievement. But consider those wins could potentially derail postseason plans for both Stevenson and Misericordia it’s something of a consolation prize.

“It’s all one effort. From special teams, to offense, to defense, everyone has to do their job,” Pawlikowski said. “It’s frustrating, but at the same time, it’s stuff we can fix. At this point we have to get better this week and work hard for next week.”

Here’s a closer look at Lycoming’s 14-7 loss to Wilkes on Saturday:

TIDE-TURNING PLAY: Wilkes wide receiver Nick Yanik made a subtle jab step toward the outside and quickly cut across the face of Lycoming safety Ryan Cocciadiferro. It gave him just enough space to create a throwing window for quarterback Jose Tabora. Yanik jumped to cradle the football to his chest before taking a vicious hit from Lycoming’s Joe Pinzka. Somehow he hung on to the football. A targeting penalty on Pinzka forced the senior captain out of Saturday’s game and will make him miss the first half this week against Stevenson. The touchdown gave the Colonels its final margin of victory and sent the Warriors to their 12th one-score loss in the last four seasons.

“He hung on to make a big play,” Wilkes head coach Jonathan Drach said. “Nick Yanik and Jeff Steeber are pretty good players. And when we need a big play, those are the guys we can lean on and really depend on.”

BEST DEFENSIVE STAND: Preventing a fourth-down conversion has become a bit of a rallying cry for the Lycoming defense. The unit has yet to allow a fourth-down conversion this season, one of just two teams across all NCAA divisions which can say that. So when Drach sent the Wilkes offense on the field to convert fourth-and-inches from the Lycoming 29-yard line, the Warriors’ defense dug in. Tabora faked a simple dive, tucked the football on his left hip and turned toward his right on a naked bootleg. Cocciadiferro wasn’t fooled and held his containment assignment on the outside, stopping Tabora in his tracks. Sam Pawlikowski helped clean up on the play, and for the 11th time this season the Warriors stopped an opponent on fourth down.

“It’s a tough spot, but we go off on that,” linebacker Trey Smith said. “We like making big stops on third and fourth down. We pride ourselves on that.”

BEST OFFENSIVE PLAY: On the very next play following the defense’s fourth-down stop of Tabora, Clark dialed up a deep ball to try and immediately flip the field. Nick Costello was able to beat him man down the right sideline and quarterback Elijah Shemory dropped a pass in his lap which ended up being a 39-yard completion. It set up the Warriors with a first down at the Wilkes 32 in a tie game. And although the Warriors didn’t end up scoring on the drive, it was one of the few times Saturday either Costello or fellow receiver Brock Zollicoffer was able to get free for any plays down the field.

“We were pretty physical with them. We did a great job of keeping things in front of us and coming down and making tackles. And we’re solid tacklers,” Drach said. “When you do that consistently and make teams drive the length of the field on a day like (Saturday), field position is so much more important and everything else is amplified because of the conditions.”

LOCAL ROUNDUP: Lycoming — Jersey Shore graduate Elijah Shemory completed 13 of 25 passes for 162 yards, but did not throw a touchdown pass for the third time in four games. Montoursville graduate Keith Batkowski was Lycoming’s leading rusher, gaining 29 yards on 10 carries, and he did score the Warriors’ lone touchdown. He also caught a pass for 4 yards and returned one kickoff 17 yards. Hughesville graduate Trey Smith recorded five tackles, including 1 1/2 for loss. He also had one of the defense’s three interceptions. Jersey Shore graduate Dom Loffredo was in on four tackles, including recording half of a sack of Tabora.

Wilkes — Montoursville graduate Anthony Washington, a freshman defensive back, appeared in the game but did not record any statistics for the Colonels. Washington has played in all nine games for Wilkes, making five tackles in his first season.

LYCOMING OFFENSIVE MVP: On a day where not much went right for the Lycoming offense, receiver John Kim again provided a nice contribution, matching his career high with four receptions. His 39 receiving yards were just shy of his career high.

LYCOMING DEFENSIVE MVP: Sam Romanofsky has been his most disruptive over the last two weeks for the Warriors’ defense. This week it finally showed up in the final game numbers as the senior recorded 2 1/2 sacks, three tackles for loss and seven total tackles. He, combined with Matt Stankiewicz, were a big part of the reason the Warriors were able to move Tabora off his spot in the pocket and get him on the move. Tabora had his third-lowest passer efficiency rating of the season, tied for the most interceptions he’s thrown in a game, and had his second-lowest completion percentage.

“He plays with a lot of passion,” Pawlikowski said. “He’s a very talented player and he brings it like it’s his last play every play. It shows out there. I expect him to do that.”

UNSUNG HERO: Stankiewicz continues to put together a fine freshman season. He was second on the team with nine tackles Saturday and was a general nuisance for Wilkes to deal with. He also recorded half a sack and 1 1/2 tackles for loss. His ability to converge on Tabora along with Romanofsky was a big reason Lycoming held the Colonels to just half its average scoring output.

Mitch Rupert covers Lycoming football for the Sun-Gazette. He can be reached at 570-326-1551, ext. 3129, or by email at mrupert@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Mitch_Rupert.

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