DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette Quarterback Tevin Williamsport of Williamsport gets the ball snapped to him against Hazleton at Williamsport High School. Williamsport won, 28-7. The Millonaires travel to Wilkes-Barre tonight for the District 2-4 Class 6A championship.

Williamsport (6-5) has turned things around following a rugged set of games against three straight undefeated teams. The Millionaires edged Wilkes-Barre in a thriller two weeks ago before routing Scranton, 43-16 in the semifinals. Williamsport has won three straight close games against Wilkes-Barre over the past two seasons, so it will be facing a team eager to even the score, especially after the Millionaires won the championship there last year.

The Millionaires or Wolfpack will face Erie McDowell or State College in staets next week.

Williamsport’s defense played one of its best games a week ago, holding Scranton scoreless until the fourth quarter when it was, 43-0. Linebacker Anthony Manley has gone over 100 tackles for a second straight year despite missing three games and Lucas Naughton is knocking on the door, also for a second straight time after missing three games.

Austin Beaghley blocked a punt for a touchdown against Scranton, Cordoza Minor has four sacks and Davahjei Dymeck three. Giovanni White is a three-way threat, has has 900 yards of offense and 10 touchdowns. He also has returned a punt for a score and added two interceptions.

Quarterback Tevin Williams has gone over 2,000 total yards and 28 touchdowns despite missing 1 1/2 games. He also returned an interception for a touchdown which helped cap a big comeback win at Selinsgrove. He ripped off a 96-yard touchdown run against Scranton and the Millionaires built a 36-0 halftime lead. Naughton has scored on long touchdown catches the last two weeks and Brayden Ungard has 20 catches in his first season playing football, also kicking four field goals.

Trey Damschroder, a junior wide receiver/defensive back, has put together a strong year, leading the team in receiving and interceptions. He had 110 yards two weeks ago at Wilkes-Barre and had a big day against Jersey Shore in Week 6. Damschroder also has picked off three passes, returning one for a touchdown against Central Mountain.

Wilkes-Barre (7-4) earned the top seed for a second straight season and blasted Hazleton, 46-20 in the semifinals, building a 40-6 lead after three quarters. The Wolfpack have won three of their last four games, scoring at least 35 points each time. Quarterback Jake Howell completed 15 of 20 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns against Hazleton.

Although Wilkes-Barre is a fairly new school, Howe’s resume will be tough to beat in coming years for future quarterbacks. The senior went over 7,000 career yards last week, has produced four straight 1,000-yard seasons and has 2,341 yards with 23 touchdowns this year.

Howe threw for 305 yards and a touchdown against Williamsport two weeks ago. Five players have caught more than 20 passes, including Jordan Kieselowsky who has 34 for 362 yards. Kevon Creech is a big-play threat, going for 516 yards and four touchdowns on 24 catches. Davion Underwood sparks both the running and passing game, totaling 843 yards and 14 touchdowns.

He is the team’s top rusher, gaining 572 yards and scoring 10 times and averaging nearly five yards per carry in the first Williamsport game. Howe adds 474 yards and six touchdowns. Linebacker Gene Ardo averages a team-high 8.8 tackles per game, Khalil Smith has four sacks and Altamir Terry three, while adding 10 tackles for loss.

Nick Saracino, a junior defensive end, leads Wilkes-Barre with five sacks and has 133 tackles over the last two seasons. He had a sack against Williamsport and has topped 10 tackles twice this year, going for a season-high 11 against Valley View.

The last three games have been close and two of those came down to the final minute. These are evenly-matched teams, so it feels like another exciting contest could be brewing.