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Three first-quarter touchdowns helps Loyalsock cruise past Wellsboro 35-7

By Jon Gerardi 5 min read

Loyalsock got the opening kickoff the game and returned ti to Wellsboro's 47 yard line to get in great field position to open the game. The first offensive play saw Dyson Dupont hand the ball off to Ivan Baker and Baker took it from there.

The Loyalsock senior running back took it up the middle, quickly cut to his right, and was down the sideline for a 47-yard touchdown run.

It took just 17 seconds for Loyalsock to score, and that quick offensive strike was a microcosm of what would come. Loyalsock cruised in Friday's Week 3 home game against Wellsboro for a mercy-rule win, 35-7, to move to 2-1. It was a nice rebound win for the Lancers after a tough loss the previous week in a close game to Bloomsburg.

Loyalsock routinely got the ball into Wellsboro's territory. Of the Lancers' nine drives, six started in Wellsboro territory thanks to great punt returns, kickoff returns or interception returns.

"When it comes down to it, special teams are something people don't pay enough attention to. Field position is going to dictate a lot. There's times, especially in high school football, when you cross that threshold of 50, the game changes. You get it past the 40, it really changes because you're often looking at times of a four-play drive," Loyalsock coach Justin Van Fleet said. "You get four shots at seven instead of three (downs), it changes the whole ball game. We're excited with the field position. Our special teams are doing a lot better this year. The kids are working hard and understanding their job and responsibility. The whole season we were saying we got 44 kids; we got 44 strong. Everybody has to be ready to go and take pride in your jobs and your efforts. Not just on the field but in practice."

The Lancers scored 20 first-quarter points to break the game open.

After Baker's 47-yard run on the Lancers' first play, Loyalsock needed just two plays on its next possession to score. After forcing a three-and-out against Wellsboro, Baker had a five-yard run to open the drive from the Green Hornets' 42. After a penalty moved the ball to Wellsboro's 22, Dyson Dupont rolled out and found Carter Brown for a 22-yard touchdown strike and a quick 13-0 lead less than two minutes into the game.

Cayden Sones would punch in Loyalsock's third touchdown when he scored from two yards out with 56.8 seconds left in the first quarter on Loyalsock's fourth possession.

Baker and Sones were a solid 1-2 offensive punch on Friday night for Loyalsock. Baker ran for 124 yards on 12 carries with two touchdowns while Sones had eight carries for 39 yards and a score.

"We have a really good running back situation wtih Ivan and Cayden Sones back there. Both can get a great pop. Last year I learned a lot of lessons and one is trying to ride too hard on one player and recognizing as we go through, we need to be a team that has a committee," Van Fleet said. "We recognize also there were times in the period I've been the head coach, individuals felt they had to put on a Superman cape to make things happen. This team's not in that fashion.

"They all understand they're part of it. Ivan made some big plays, we're excited for his continued progress," Van Fleet added. "Cayden made some decent runs. Really what it comes down to if you get running game going, everything else works better."

Loyalsock had 338 yards of total offense and gained 231 on the ground while Dupont threw for 107 on 10 for 15 passing.

Wellsboro's Kody Enck picked off Dupont in the second quarter and returned it 65 yards for a touchdown, but a holding penalty negated the touchdown return and brought the ball back at the spot of the hold. Wellsboro then had a drive sputter and punted it away.

That resutled in Loyalsock going 92 yards on 15 plays to punch in another touchdown and the game went from possibly being a 20-7 Loyalsock lead to 28-0 Loyalsock. That lengthy drive resulted in Baker breaking a 22-yard touchdown run on third-and-7 from the 22 yard line.

"We were able to have a really good week at practice and were prud of the kids for coming out and finding a way every day," Van Fleet said. "From there, we had a positive result."

Defensively, the Lancers played great and limited the Green Hornets. Wellsboro was held to just 83 yards of total offense at halftime, 44 coming from the air. At game's end, Wellsboro had just 174 yards of offense, 75 of that coming on the team's final possession in which Marek Mascho broke a 60-yard run to score a touchdown to break up the shutout with 3:37 remaining.

"We were flying around the ball. It was 11 after the ball every play and understanding we had to stop the point of attack," Van Fleet said. "From there, they made it spill over and got the job done. Our guys are committed to continual improvement. That's the focus. This week I think we took a step forward."

John Day had a monster day defensively, constantly applying pressure on the defensive line and ending the game with three sacks.

"John Day is a very solid player for us. Last year was his first time ever playing. He worked his tail off and this past week after we talked to him a good amount, he was playing the edge for us almost exclusively," Van Fleet said. "This week, we moved him around and let him use his speed and aggression. He was ready to go and really found himself in this game and put together a heck of a good effort."

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