On a third-and-13 from the Hughesville 46, Danny Dowell looked and found Ivan Baker open across the middle. Dowell connected with his receiver on a slant pattern and Bake did the rest. Baker split two Hughesville defenders and was off to the races en route to a 46-yard touchdown pass.

It gave Loyalsock a 14-0 lead and more importantly, helped spark the team. Loyalsock would score 34 points in the final three quarters to beat Hughesville, 34-6, and earn Loyalsock’s first win and, perhaps more importantly, give coach Justin Van Fleet his 100th win as the Lancers’ coach.

“I don’t really pay attention to that stuff, but a lot of other people do so I was aware,” Van Fleet said. “A couple of the kids were a little excited about it and that was that. I’m really proud of the kids for coming out and persevering.”

After Caden Sones got injured in the first half, Loyalsock had to change up its game plan and move standout receiver Jalil Coates to running back. But Coates grew up playing running back and was familiar being in the back field and he showed why. Coates was a player that Hughesville’s defense couldn’t slow down or contain as he ran for 169 rushing yards on 25 carries and had the team’s first touchdown with 11:17 to play in the second quarter to go ahead, 7-0.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Jalil Coates dives over the pack for extra yards in the fourth quarter.

“One of the things we struggled to do was get the running game going. As we’re making our way down, when you rely on the passing game, you can be successful, but it’s not as consistent at the high school level. You can’t throw the ball 35 times and feel great about it … Passing seems to be a pretty quick area to get a penalty one way or the other,” Van Fleet said. “From there, we really determined that we were going to establish the run game and unfortunately Caden Sones got hurt, but the line got feet on ground and started really pushing the pile and Jalil Coates came in and he started to hit seams. From there the confidence rose and I think that’s what we really needed was to looking the mirror and remember who we were. Today was a day that we remembered.”

Loyalsock out-gained Hughesville in total yards, 459-174 and 263 of those yards for the Lancers came on the ground. In addition to Coates’ 169, quarterback Danny Dowell proved how much of a dual threat he was by rushing for 96 yards on 11 carries — including a great 44-yard run for a touchdown — while throwing for 196 yards on 9 of 17 passing with no interceptions and two touchdown strikes.

“Danny Dowell set the tone at quarterback and then Jalil Coates was a running back most of his life, but then we moved him to wide receiver. Today we had a necessity for him to go back to the back field and we practiced it a bit making sure he was fresh and ready, but as he emerge today he reminded everyone why what he was and who he is,” Van Fleet said. “As an individual, he persevered and certainly hit some seams.”

Coates’ second touchdown saw him break a 44-yard run with 1:49 to play until halftime to give the Lancers a 21-0 lead.

Hughesville wouldn’t be denied though and relied on a little trickery to get a touchdown on the board.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock Head Coach Justin VanFleet during a time-out.

On a third-and-15 from the Loyalsock 40, quarterback Nicholas Stubbs handed off to Connor Anstadt on a sweep to the left. Anstadt waited for a second before finding a wide open Carson Stackhouse down field for a 40-yard touchdown strike to avoid the shutout and take a 21-6 deficit into the half.

“Howard (Rainy) is wonderful at that. That’s one of his staples, he can draw something up all the time and get you and he did a couple times. Really good play designs and took advantage of some things,” Van Fleet said of the Spartans. “We were flying around and sometimes that’s what happens. … They were able to get us on a pass behind a direct sweep and a couple other plays and misdirections.”

That would be the closest Hughesville came to rallying on Friday, however. Loyalsock would score in both the third and fourth quarters to increase its deficit and seal the win.

In the third quarter, Dowell found Clynton Taylor for a 30-yard touchdown pass with 3:12 to play to extend Loyalscok’s lead to 28-6. And with 4:02 to play in the game, it was Trey Borgess who scored from a yard out to increase the lead to 34-6.

Van Fleet was quick to credit numerous individuals throughout Friday’s win.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock Head Coach Justin VanFleet during a time-out.

“Our edges played well with Noah Soho, his first major varsity action, and Trey Borgess, he’s never played football before and he’s out there doing some work. Really proud of their advancement. The linebackers are brand new, all four of them, so an awful lot of work to do with them and I’m proud of what they’ve done. I’m also proud up front,” Van Fleet said. “We’ve been through a lot. We got guys who are incredible football players up there and throughout the season it hasn’t been easy. It’s been rough. We’re fighting through injuries and everything else, but Jeremiah Johnson came to play on the defensive side and really turned it on in addition to TJ King getting his job done, Connor Tallman, in addition Josh Meacham coming up big on offense and defense.”

Offensively, Loyalsock was able to routinely sustain long drives. Of Loyalsock’s drives — with the exception of a drive that ended the second quarter and one that concluded the game — Loyalsock had seven drives that all went at least 47 yards or longer. That included starting the game with drives of 55 yards (turnover on downs), 70 yards (touchdown), 80 yards (touchdown) and 56 yards (touchdown).

Hughesville struggled throughout the game sustaining drives. The Spartans were just 3 for 12 on third-down conversions and never reached the red zone. The Spartans’ first four drives resulted in punts before a touchdown score with 12 seconds until halftime. That was also Hughesville’s longest drive, going 53 yards on just four plays. Hughesville had a 47-yard drive to start the third quarter, but it resulted in a turnover on downs after seven plays.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Connor Anstadt (10) is stiff-armed and face-masked by Loyalsock's Jalil Coates (5).

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Carson Stackhouse runs the ball against Loyalsock Friday night.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock quarterback Danny Dowell throws under pressure from Hughesville's Cameron Walker (66).

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Jalil Coates runs the ball against Hughesville Friday night.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Connor Anstadt(10) runs a sweep around the Loyalsoc's Trey Borgess in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Connor Anstadt (10) runs the ball against Loyalsock Friday night.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock quarterback Danny Dowell (2) scrambles looking for a receiver in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Ivan Baker runs the ball against Hughesville Friday night.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock quarterback Danny Dowell (2) avoids a second attempted tackle by Hughesville's Nicholas Stubbs (12).

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville Connor Anstadt (10) throws for a touchdown in the second quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Chase Fowler (23) is hit hard by Loyalsock's Jalil Coates (5) and Ivan Baker (12) for an incomplete pass in the second quarter. Loyalsock was penalized for an illegal hit.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Jalil Coates (5) is pulled down from behind by Hughesville's Cameron Walker (66) in the second quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Jalil Coates (5) punches through the Hughesville defense to score in the second quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's Jalil Coates (5) runs a sweep around the Hughesville defense in the second quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock's (23) tries to brush off an attempted tackle by Hughesville's Colton Woolever (75) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville quarterback Nicholas Stubbs (12) is chased down and sacked by Loyalsock's Jahki Brister (13) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Carson Shoemaker (8) pounces on the lose ball after Loyalsock's Nicholas Avalos (1) fumbled on a kick off in the first quarter.