RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montoursville’s Christian Banks (0) and Jay Houseknecht (2) celebrate after Banks runs the opening kickoff into the end zone to put Montoursville on the board during a high school football game between Montoursville and Milton at Milton on Friday.

Montoursville (9-2) gutted out a thrilling 43-42 triple overtime semifinal win against Mount Carmel to reach its first district final since 2021. The Warriors are trying to win their first crown since 2019 and get a second chance after Mifflinburg smashed it eight weeks ago.

The District 4 Class AAA champion will face either Berwick or Scranton Prep next week ins tates.

This is the second straight year these rivals have met in the postseason with Montoursville rallying from 14 down to win 28-27 in last year’s quarterfinals. The Warriors have their most wins since 2019 and are undefeated on the road. They rallied from a seven-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime last week, then erased seven and six-point deficits in the first and third overtimes. Elijah Eck found Christian Banks for a 10-yard touchdown pass and Adam Shearer drilled the game-winning extra point after Noah Rakestraw had blocked Mount Carmel’s extra point try.

Eck also hit Kingston Fisher with an eight-yard touchdown pass on a fourth-and-goal in the first overtime. Eck ran for a career-high 116 yards and two touchdowns and Banks 149 yards with three scores. Mifflinburg is the last team to hold Banks below 100 yards. He and Hayden Harvey have combined to run for nearly 2,000 yards this season.

Harvey is second on the team in tackles and Fisher and Rakestraw have combined for 24 tackles for loss. Fisher also recovered two fumbles against Mount Carmel. Kane Moore has four interceptions and he and Harvey each have returned picks for scores. Brayden Burkett returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown against Danville and Jay Houseknecht set up two scores against Loyalsock with long punt returns.

Hunter Shaffer is a two-way lineman has been a big part of Montoursville’s success on both sides of the ball. He is a good run stuffer who made four solo tackles against Mount Carmel. His blocking also has helped Montoursville feature one of the area’s most consistent offenses this year.

Mifflinburg (9-2) has won four straight games since a close loss against Southern Columbia, winning each game via mercy rule. The Wildcats dethroned five-time defending champion Danville, 56-14 a week ago, scoring the game’s final 49 points after trailing early. Quarterback Chad Martin is one of the most decorated players in program history, going over 6,000 career yards and topping 2,000 in consecutive seasons.

He also is a good runner who has gained 428 yards. Landen Murray is an explosive playmaker who leads District 4 with 43 catches for 1,143 yards and 15 touchdowns. Jackson Griffith is also dangerous, hauling in 43 passes for 726 yards. As explosive as the passing game is, however, Mifflinburg also can grind it out on the ground, proving it last week when it ran over Danville for 435 yards.

Mifflinburg also did the majority of its damage on the ground against Montoursville when it ran for 180 yards with Landon Moser going for 116 and three touchdowns on 11 carries. He also intercepted two passes in that game, helping Mifflinburg win the turnover battle, 4-1. Moser was one of four Wildcats who ran for more than 50 yards a week ago. Xzavier Croll is a standout lineman on both sides of the ball and has 14 tackles for loss. Sophomore lineman Landon Tucker also has 14 tackles for loss and Griffith three interceptions. Murray is dangerous on special teams, returning two kickoffs for touchdowns, including a 98-yarder.

Kaiden Kmett, a senior linebacker, is having his best season and leads Mifflinburg with six sacks. Kmett has 10 tackles for loss, has forced a fumble and recovered two others. He also ran for 46 yards and a touchdown against Danville.

The big difference the first time these teams played was turnovers with Montoursville giving the ball away throughout the first half and Mifflinburg cashing in nearly every time. Obviously, the Warriors must clean that up, but at the same that first game means nothing now, so anything goes here.