Times Leader..WEST PITTSTON — The moment Will McPartland returned from offseason ACL surgery, Scranton Prep was transformed from an 0-3 team into a contender.
Wyoming Area got a firsthand look at that Friday night.
The Cavaliers brought a 5-5 record into the postseason but looked anything like a .500 team with McPartland leading the way as they reached the mercy rule less than 2½ minutes into the second half of a 42-0 romp over the Warriors in a District 2 Class 3A semifinal at Jake Sobeski Stadium.
“He’s certainly the catalyst for their team,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “He did a great job tonight. What he came back from and to be able to be in the position he’s in and to elevate his team going forward, I certainly have a tremendous amount of respect for him and their whole team.”
McPartland had all his carries and pass attempts in the first half while helping Scranton Prep build a 28-0 lead. He hit 11 of 13 passes for 208 yards, ran for two touchdowns and was in on six tackles.
“He’s a special kid,” Scranton Prep coach Terry Gallagher said. “He’s a once-in-a-lifetime kid, and I’m very lucky to get to coach Will McPartland.”
Scranton Prep came into the game with mixed credentials.
The Cavaliers were just the fourth-place team in the seven-team Division 1 of the Lackawanna Football Conference, but they had not played another Small School and were also the four-time defending district champion. Their five wins were by an average of 27 points, including putting up 51 against Jersey Shore, a state-ranked Class 4A team, just two weeks ago. Their three in-state losses were by a total of 10 points and the only losses with McPartland were to unbeaten North Pocono and Abington Heights, the top seeds in two higher classifications.
Quite simply, the Cavaliers are a much better Class 3A team than their record indicates, something that was painfully evident to the Warriors from the second series on Friday night.
“No excuses,” Spencer said. “Our kids played hard. Credit to Scranton Prep, an outstanding football team that made a lot of big plays tonight.”
Scranton Prep scored quickly on its second possession. The Cavaliers then rattled off four touchdowns in 11:18 going into and coming out of halftime to open the 35-point lead that speeds up the game, getting everything done before 9 p.m., or long before Wyoming Avenue Halloween festivities wound down.
The Cavaliers made far better use of the strong wind in the field position and kicking game, but also scored their three second-quarter touchdowns into those strong gusts.
McPartland opened the game by hitting his first five passes for 130 yards. He then hit his last five, all in a two-minute drill that resulted in the 28-0 halftime lead on a 22-yard pass to A.J. Croom.
Wyoming Area started its average possession from the 23 and the closest the Warriors came to scoring was when they reached the Cavaliers 27 as time expired in the first half.
The Warriors (9-2) suffered their only regular-season loss to unbeaten Berwick, the team that will host Scranton Prep in next weekend’s district championship game.
After producing three regular-season wins from deficits of 13 or more points, they could not come up with an answer in the playoff opener.
“We just couldn’t capitalize,” Spencer said, “but I’m very proud of the kids as the season they had.
“They fought through some adverse situations and really represented themselves and the program well.”
Citizens Voice..The football laid on the ground all by its lonesome on the Wyoming Area 25-yard line early in the second quarter. The product of a wind gust, which knocked the ball down before it ever got to a Warriors return man, the loose football was free for anyone to recover.
For Scranton Prep, it was an opportunity. And when the Cavaliers’ Brandon Farmer jumped on the ball without obstruction, it was disaster for No. 2 Wyoming Area. Scranton Prep had just taken a two-score lead and was starting to find its offensive rhythm. Now, it was knocking on the door of the red zone with a chance to make the Warriors’ 14-point deficit even bigger.
Scranton Prep needed just two plays to cash in the opportunity, and the writing was on the wall for the way Friday night’s District 2 Class 3A semifinal was going to play out. The No. 3 Cavaliers dominated every facet of the game and posted a 42-0 win at Jake Sobeski Field. The Cavaliers (6-5) now get a shot at their fifth consecutive District 2 championship in a season where they started 0-3. Scranton Prep travels to unbeaten Berwick, a 49-9 winner over Hanover Area, next week for the district title game.
“I’m proud of our kids. But, you know, enjoy it until (Saturday) and then you have to get back to work,” Scranton Prep coach Terry Gallagher said. “We’re going to face another really good football team next week. My hope is we got better this week, and we still have to get better next week because we want to continue to play.”
Coincidentally, it was an unintentional onsides kick a week ago, which ended up spring-boarding Wyoming Area to a win in its season finale against rival Pittston Area. But Tyler Bianchi’s second-quarter kickoff Friday following the second Will McPartland touchdown run looked nothing like an onsides kick. The football hovered into a gust of wind, which stole every ounce of momentum, and it fell between the upbacks and the Warriors’ three dangerous kick returners.
For a second or two, the ball sat on the grass just begging for anyone to pick it up. Enter Farmer, a sophomore who has been a special teams ace for the Cavaliers all season. Even once he jumped on the ball, nobody really jumped on him, as he had the ball all for himself.
Two plays later, McPartland handed the ball to Noah Krzywiec on a jet sweep to the left. Krzywiec initially bobbled the handoff before corralling it with his left hand behind his back. He then outran the Wyoming Area defense to the corner and tightroped the sideline to get inside the pylon for a 25-yard scoring run.
All of a sudden, Scranton Prep’s lead was 21-0. Wyoming Area hadn’t sniffed the end zone to that point, and it just allowed two scores in a matter of 17 seconds.
“Brandon is a maniac on special teams for us. He’s gonna be a really good football player, and I thought he made a huge play for us right there,” Gallagher said. “He probably had five tackles on special teams today, and he’s done it the last couple of weeks for us.”
“Yeah, that was a big play at the time, but we still had some opportunities,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “We had a couple forced turnovers and chances to create some plays, and we just didn’t capitalize on some of our opportunities.”
Three times in the first half Wyoming Area penetrated Scranton Prep’s side of the field, but its only real scoring opportunity ended 27 yards from the goal line when the first half clock ran out. The Warriors averaged less than 3 yards per play in the first half, while Scranton Prep churned out more than 10 yards a play and more than 18 yards per completion.
The 147 yards rushing by Wyoming Area was its third-lowest total of the season, and its 4.2 yards per carry were its fewest since a loss to Berwick in Week 6. Every time it felt like the Warriors had a crease for running back Nick Ciampi or quarterback Jack Gravine, the hole was quickly closed by a Scranton Prep defense, which not only hit like a runaway Mack truck but also flew to the football with the quickness and shiftiness of a gnat.
Wyoming Area was shut out at home for the first time since suffering a 21-0 defeat to Honesdale on Sept. 2, 2022.
“I thought our front seven played really well,” Gallagher said. “There were a couple times I thought we overpursued a little bit and Wyoming Area was able to cut it back. So that’s something we still have to work on. But again, they played really well.”
“When you’re playing against that level of players, yeah you have some things initially, but they run to the ball and they close things,” Spencer said. “Those plays that are big gainers against other teams, they minimize against a team like that. It’s the physicality, the hustle of running to the ball play in and play out. They certainly did a good job of executing that.”
The three-score lead in the second quarter was more than enough, but the Scranton Prep offense operated at peak efficiency all night. McPartland completed 11 of 13 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, all in the first half.
The Cavaliers picked apart the Warriors defense with a short passing game and continuous screen passes, which left Scranton Prep receivers in one-on-one situations with defenders. And quite often, they won that matchup to gain extra yards.
“They put a bunch of guys in the box to try and slow the run game down,” Gallagher said of Wyoming Area’s defense. “So, we thought we had opportunities in our one-on-one matchups, including some of the things we do in terms of crossing routes, and we executed it. The kids made plays and then it opened up some stuff in terms of the run game in the second half.”
Now, a Cavaliers team, which had to battle just to finish the regular season at .500 thanks to a brutal early-season schedule and waiting for McPartland to return from a torn ACL, seems to be clicking on all cylinders. They took out a nine-win Wyoming Area team by rolling up nearly 400 yards of offense and keeping one of the best running games in District 2 from hitting the home runs it hit so often in recent weeks.
“I don’t think our record is indicative of who we are as a team, but you can cry and whine about how we should have done this or that,” Gallagher said. “You have two choices. You can sit here crying and point fingers at people, or you can toughen up, suck it up, get off the ground and start working. And if you do that, you get better. And my hope is that we’ve done that and we’ll continue to do that.”
District 2 Class 3A semifinals
Scranton Prep 42, Wyoming Area 0
Scranton Prep`7`21`14`0 — 42
Wyoming Area`0`0`0`0 — 0
First quarter
SP – Will McPartland 4 run (Tyler Bianchi kick), 7:23
Second quarter
SP – Will McPartland 11 run (Bianchi kick), 8:53
SP – Noah Krzywiec 26 run (Bianchi kick), 8:36
SP – A.J. Croom 22 pass from Will McPartland (Bianchi kick), 1:09
Third quarter
SP – Anthony Prince 5 run (Bianchi kick), 9:35
SP – Prince 40 run (Bianchi kick), 1:07
Team Statistics`SP`WA
First downs`14`10
Rushes-yards`29-197`35-156
Passing yards`208`26
Total yards`405`182
Passing`11-13-1`3-12-2
Sacked-yards lost`1-4`1-6
Punts-avg.`1-50.0`5-24.2
Fumbles-lost`1-1`1-1
Penalties-yards`3-20`2-15 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — SP, Prince 5-68, Krzywiec 3-31, Will McPartland 7-31, Owen McPartland 4-27, Brandon Farmer 3-21, Owen Jeffers 3-10, Braedon McPartland 3-6, Ethan Barrett 1-3. WA, Jack Gravine 14-56, Nick Ciampi 13-51, Nicholas Kondrosky 4-32, Dominic Bartell 1-9, Jamari Yates 1-6, Trustin Johnson 2-2.
PASSING — SP, WMcPartland 11-13-1-208. WA, Gravine 3-11-2-26, Team 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING – SP, BMcPartland 4-101, Krzywiec 3-26, Croom 2-43, Sean McCormack 1-34, Mackey Lynett 1-4. WA, Ciampi 2-22, Luke Kopetchny 1-4. INTERCEPTIONS — SP, Charlie Speicher 1-10. WA, Kopetchny 1-0. MISSED FIELD GOALS – None.
Week 10: October 24, 2025 WARRIORS Defeat Patriots 41-22
Times Leader..Nick Ciampi spent the season proving he could be more than just a speedy, big-play threat for the Wyoming Area football team.
Ciampi made his case with toughness and durability, leading up to the opportunity to be the featured performer for the Warriors in their 61st meeting with rival Pittston Area.
The Warriors patiently dug out of a 15-point hole with Ciampi powering his way to the Carmelo Falcone Award as the game’s Most Valuable Player in a 41-22 victory Friday night at Anthony “Jake” Sobeski Stadium.
Ciampi carried 25 times for 228 yards and three touchdowns and was also in on six tackles, two of which stopped Pittston Area for losses.
“Throughout the season you saw his playmaking ability grow, you saw his competitive confidence grow,” Warriors coach Randy Spencer said. “It was just a natural arc that we were seeing from Nick and we were just so fortunate that he was able to get stronger and stronger to the point where he was able to have the type of game he had tonight.
“What an outstanding game it was from a playmaking standpoint, from his explosiveness and his durability as well.”
Ciampi’s carries doubled from the first half of the season to the second half. Then, he doubled that workload in the meeting of 8-1 teams.
Combined with the defensive work of Caden Reynolds and a boost from Hudson Sharpe, Ciampi helped the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 runners-up end a seven-game winning streak by the Division 1 champions.
The comeback from a double-figures deficit was the third of the season by the Warriors.
“It’s all mental,” Ciampi said. “It’s on to the next play, every play.
“The next play’s the most important play every time. That’s it.”
Wyoming Area found ways to turn things around offensively, defensively and on special teams.
The Warriors went backward on their first possession, then punted after getting caught in a fourth-and-17 situation on their second possession.
Pittston Area took a 15-0 lead in the first 7:02 on the first of two Brody Spindler touchdowns and a 75-yard run by Lucas LoPresto.
Ciampi started the comeback with runs of 14 and 20 yards to set up his 10-yard touchdown.
That began a stretch in which the Warriors scored on six of nine possessions. When they weren’t scoring, they were holding the ball, keeping it away from the Patriots until it was too late.
Jack Gravine also accounted for three touchdowns, running for two and throwing to Luke Kopetchny for another.
The defense also overcame a slow start.
Pittston Area turned seven offensive plays into 115 yards in the first quarter, then got an 82-yard run from Spindler on the first play of the second quarter.
Spindler’s long run set up his second touchdown, but after scoring 22 points in 14:08, the Patriots did not reach the end zone again over the final 33:52.
Reynolds began slowing the Patriots down after their first three drives produced scores. He made tackles for losses on the next two Pittston Area plays, added another in the third quarter and recovered a fumble on the Patriots 10 after a Josh Mruk sack.
“It feels great,” Reynolds said. “Beating Pittston my senior year is the best thing I could ever ask for.”
The Warriors got help from their kicking game.
After Ciampi’s first touchdown made it 15-6, Hudson Sharpe caught the Patriots by surprise with an on-side kick that he followed and recovered himself. Though his punting average was low, Sharpe, who also had a late-game interception, kept the ball away from LoPresto, who has six touchdowns on defense and special teams this season.
Ava Musinski followed up that effort, going 4-for-5 on extra points and leaving the Patriots return men befuddled with her sideline kickoff placement that pinned the Patriots at the 12, 14, 15 and 23.
“LoPresto is such an impactful player in the return game,” Spencer said. “For her and Hudson Sharpe to not give him an opportunity and for us to execute that was really a great job by those two players.”
Citizens Voice..Hudson Sharpe laid the football sideways on the kicking tee. He had no intention of kicking it deep to a trio of dangerous Pittston Area returners.
Was the Wyoming Area freshman’s intention to make an onside kick attempt? Maybe not. But it worked out that way.
Sharpe recovered the loose football at midfield late in the first quarter with Wyoming Area trailing by nine points. From that moment, the Warriors outscored the rival Patriots by 28 points on their way to a 41-22 win in a Wyoming Valley Conference game at Jake Sobeski Stadium on Friday night.
Wyoming Area (9-1) is the No. 2 seed and will host No. 3 Scranton Prep (5-5) next week in the District 2 3A semifinals. Pittston Area closes its regular season with an 8-2 mark, its most wins since 2022. But the loss Friday night cost the Patriots the top seed in the District 2 Class 5A playoffs. They drop to No. 2 and will host No. 3 Delaware Valley (5-5) in a semifinal next week.
“That onside kick was a game-changer,” Pittston Area coach Paul Russick said. “You know, it’s a momentum-based game, and we lost our steam a little bit there. Credit to Wyoming Area.”
Pittston Area pulled ahead quickly thanks to a Brody Spindler 37-yard run that set up the first of his two touchdown runs, and a Lucas LoPresto 75-yard scoring run. The Patriots were ahead, 15-0, in the game’s first seven minutes while Wyoming Area was spinning its wheels.
But the Warriors settled in after LoPresto’s touchdown.
Quarterback Jack Gravine converted a third-and-10 with a 26-yard screen pass to Josh Mruk, and Nick Ciampi scored on the next play to get the Warriors on the board.
That’s when Spencer sent Sharpe out to kick. The freshman laid the football sideways on the tee rather than propping it upright and he nudged it down the field for a squib kick. But none of the Patriots front line were able to jump on the ball. And after a brief scramble, Sharpe came out of the pile with the football and thrust all the momentum back in Wyoming Area’s favor.
And when Gravine scored on a 15-yard run four plays later, even though the Warriors still trailed, the game felt different.
“So (the onside kick), wasn’t necessarily called, but it worked out,” Spencer said. “It’s a great hustle play by Hudson.”
Even though Pittston Area extended its lead on its next possession thanks in part to Spindler’s 82-yard run to set up his second touchdown, Wyoming Area was in control of the game because of the consistency with which its running game was gashing the Pittston Area defense.
Ciampi, who had his third 100-yard rushing game in his last four games last night, posted a career high with 227 yards on 25 carries. He had eight totes go for more than 10 yards, four of which went for more than 20 yards.
His 22-yard run helped set the table for Gravine to find Luke Kopetchny on a back-shoulder fade for a 15-yard touchdown pass just before the half to get the Warriors within 22-19.
Ciampi had runs of 7, 42 and 8 yards before he got into the end zone from 2 yards out on the Warriors’ first drive of the second half for a 26-22 lead.
After a short punt and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Ciampi needed just one play to get into the end zone from 17 yards out to extend the Wyoming Area lead to 34-22. The Warriors’ offensive line continually gave Ciampi truck-sized holes off tackle, and the senior who is listed as a receiver on the roster, shot through the gap like a canon.
After never having run for 100 yards in his career prior to Week 7, Ciampi has 552 yards on 49 carries over the last four weeks. Not coincidentally, the Warriors are 4-0 in those games.
“Our offensive line is very physical, and not just on the interior,” Spencer said. “(Tight end) Josh Mruk is one of the best players in the state, and if you really focus on what he does on the edge as a tight end blocking, he was able to consistently open up space throughout the game.”
“It was just a numbers game, you know?” Russick said. “Luke Kopetchny commands a lot of attention and we didn’t want him to beat us. But credit to Nick Ciampi. He ran really hard. They wore us down in the second half.”
But Wyoming Area didn’t just pull away on offense it shut down a Pittston offense which had gained 201 yards on its first 12 snaps (16.75 yards per play) thanks in part to a trio of long runs. But over its final 39 plays, the Patriots gained just 132 yards (3.38 yards per play).
“You know, to be down by 15 early and then outscore them 41-7 the rest of the way, I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Spencer said. “This is a huge stage against an outstanding football team in Pittston Area, but the mental toughness we showed, and the grit and fight, I couldn’t be more proud.”
Wyoming Area 41, Pittston Area 22 Pittston Area`15`7`0`0 — 22 Wyoming Area`6`13`15`7 — 41 First quarter
PA – Brody Spindler 1 run (Spindler run), 8:52
PA – Lucas LoPresto 75 run (Cole Baldwin kick), 4:58
WA – Nick Ciampi 10 run (pass failed), 1:50 Second quarter
WA – Jack Gravine 15 run (Ava Musinski kick), 1:52
PA – Spindler 1 run (Baldwin kick), 9:52
WA – Luke Kopetchny 15 pass from Jack Gravine (kick failed), 0:42.3 Third quarter
WA – Ciampi 2 run (Musinski kick), 8:45
WA – Ciampi 17 run (Donavon Miller pass from Kopetchny), 4:13 Fourth quarter
WA – JGravine 1 run (Musinski kick), 4:02
Team Statistics`PA`WA
First downs`12`17
Rushes-yards`41-236`47-346
Passing yards`97`54
Total yards`333`400
Passing`3-7-1`3-9-0
Sacked-yards lost`4-29`1-9
Punts-avg.`3-30.7`3-21.0
Fumbles-lost`4-2`0-0
Penalties-yards`5-35`7-32 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING — PA, Spindler 20-155, LoPresto 7-75, Santino Capitano 7-22, Jude Ferentino 2-3, Deondre Miller 1-2, Kayden Bailey 1-1, Paulie Ferentino 3-minus 22. WA, Ciampi 25-228, Trustin Johnson 5-59, JGravine 14-52, Donavon Miller 2-8, Team 1-minus 1. PASSING — PA, Capitano 2-4-1-88, LoPresto 1-2-0-9, PFerentino 0-1-0-0. WA, JGravine 3-9-0-54. RECEIVING – PA, Billy Dessoye 1-45, LoPresto 1-43, Malkolm Blackshear 1-9. WA, Drew Mruk 1-26, Kopetchny 1-15, Johnson 1-13. INTERCEPTIONS — WA, Hudson Sharpe 1-19. MISSED FIELD GOALS – None.
Times Leader..Wyoming Area’s offense provided the big plays in the first quarter while the defense and special teams stepped up in the second quarter as the Warriors rode a complete game performance to a 60-7 defeat of Nanticoke Area Friday night at Frank Chicknosky stadium.
Wyoming Area moves to 8-1 on the season and continues its march into the District 2 playoffs and solidifying one of the top two seeds heading into next week’s showdown with Pittston Area.
“Our goals tonight were to come out and play a clean football game and execute at a high level and give our guys playmaking opportunities,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “Our momentum is important going into the last week of the regular season with a big rivalry game and also then going forward into the playoffs.”
If it was momentum the Warriors were looking for, it was certainly found early on in the contest.
Trustin Johnson punched home an early touchdown, turning Wyoming Area’s first drive into a 7-0 lead after just two plays. Starting at its own 49-yard line, quarterback Jack Gravine dropped a long pass into the hands of a streaking Luke Kopetchny, who was ruled down at Nanticoke Area’s 1-yard line. Kopetchny’s next catch would be for far less yardage, though with much more effect.
On the following possession, after Johnson picked up 50 yards on a pair of carries, the Warriors were again a yard away. Looking at first-and-goal, Gravine took the snap and lofted a ball toward the back of the end zone. Kopetchny, blanketed by a Trojan defender, reached up and over just enough to get one hand on the ball before falling backward and somehow completing the one-handed catch in bounds, holding the ball up and away from his defender for the 14-0 lead.
“He’s got a very special skill set and it’s always great to see when he’s able to put that on display,” Spencer said of Kopetchny. “At the same time, he’s one of those guys that’s a team-first guy and wants to do whatever he can to help his team be successful.”
Gravine connected with Kopetchny on the next drive on a quick-hitting pass that Kopetchny took into traffic and broke away from, weaving into the end zone for his second score. From there, Wyoming Area’s defense took over.
Johnson snared a wayward pass from position in the secondary and on the ensuing possession Nick Ciampi needed two carries before scoring from 28 yards away. Wyoming Area turned Ricky Rowles’ block of a punt and Hudson Sharpe’s two interceptions all into touchdowns before the half ended, effectively sealing the outcome.
The Warriors looked set to earn a fourth shutout on the year before Nanticoke Area’s Jonah Guzman broke free from any and every would-be tackler he could find on his way to a 61-yard run to paydirt early in the third quarter. Guzman led the Trojans (0-9) with 89 yards on 15 carries.
“I want to give a lot of credit to Nanticoke,” Spencer said. “That’s a young team that’s growing and developing and they played a full 48 minutes tonight. I want to give a lot of credit to them for the way they competed right through the game.”
Citizens Voice.. Wyoming Area was highly efficient on offense Friday.
The Warriors needed just 15 plays to score seven first-half touchdowns on their way to a 60-7 win over Nanticoke Area in a Wyoming Valley Conference game at Frank Cichanowski Stadium.
On the Warriors first play from scrimmage, Jack Gravine hit a streaking Luke Kopetchny with a 50-yard pass to set up the Warriors up at Trojans 1. From there, Trustin Johnson bulldozed his way into the end zone for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead just 23 seconds into the game.
Following a punt, Gravine hit Kopetchny with a 1-yard fade pattern in the corner of the end zone to cap a four-play drive and extended the Warriors lead to 14-0 with 7:59 left in the first quarter.
Josh Mruk ended the Trojans next drive with a fumble recovery and it was the Gravine-to-Kopetchny show again. This time, a swing pass covered 33 yards to the end zone for a 21-0 with 4:21 left in the first.
Trustin Johnson intercepted a Nanticoke Area pass on the next possession, and Nick Ciampi did the rest, rushing for 40 yards on two plays with the last 28 resulting in a Warriors touchdown and 28-0 lead with :37 left in the first.
Then, Wyoming Area’s special teams got in on the act. Ricky Rowles blocked a punt at the Trojans 5 and the Warriors took over. Two plays later, Gravine strolled in from 5 yards out for a 35-0 lead with 10:50 to play in the first half.
Another turnover on the Trojans next possession — this time a Hudson Sharp interception gave the Warriors possession at the Trojans 28.
Nick Kondrosky bulled his way into the end zone on a 2-yard run for a 42-0 lead.
Sharpe again ended the Trojans next drive with an interception, and Kondrosky turned the turnover into points when took a hand off, cut against the grain and outran the Nanticoke Area defense 57 yards for a touchdown and a 49-0 lead with 2:26 left in the first half.
Jonah Guzman got Nanticoke Area on the scoreboard early in the second half with a 61-yard run.
Wyoming Area answered quickly with Dominic Bartell’s 39-yard touchdown run.with 8:31 left in the third.
The Warriors Jamar Yates ended the scoring with a 45-yard run with 9:07 left in the game.
Wyoming Area 60, Nanticoke Area 7
Wyoming Area `28`20`6`6 — 60
Nanticoke Area `0`0`7`0 — 7
First quarter
WA — Trustin Johnson 1 run (Ava Musinski kick) 11:37
WA — Luke Kopetchny 1 pass from Jack Gravine (Musinski kick) 7:59
WA — Kopetchny 33 pass from Gravine (Musinski kick) 4:23
WA — Nick Ciampi 28 run (Musinski kick) :37
Second quarter
WA — Gravine 6 run (Musinski kick) 10:50
WA — Nicholas Kondrosky 2 run (kick failed) 7:28
WA — Kondrosky 31 run (Teagan Meier kick) 2:26
Third quarter
NA — Jonah Guzman 61 run (Juanpablo Pastuizaca kick) 10:17
WA — Dominic Bartell 34 run (kick failed) 8:49
Fourth quarter
WA — Jamari Yates (kick failed) 9:30
Team statistics`WA`NA
First downs`8`11
Rushes-yards`19-285`31-136
Passing yards`87 `38
Total yards`372`174
Passing`4-5-0`6-20-3
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`0-0`2-24
Fumbles-lost`0-0`3-1
Penalties-yards`4-35`3-15 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA, Yates 6-89, Kondrosky 3-66, Johnson 3-51, Ciampi 2-40, Bartell 2-32, Gravine 1-6, Andrew Pechal 1-4, Bradyn Lynch 1-2, Jordan Rosario 1-(-5). NA, Guzman 15-89, Ian Walsh 8-43, Elaiph Denson 2-6, Max Leonard 3-3, David Jackson 1-0, Team 2-(-5).
PASSING — WA, Gravine 4-5-0-87. NA, Walsh 5-16-2-35, Leonard 1-4-1-3.
RECEIVING — WA, Kopetchny 4-87. NA, Justin Johnson 2-14, Ethan Vetiaque 1-12, Reagan Jackson 1-3, Denson 1-0.
INTERCEPTIONS — WA, Johnson 1-35, Hudson Sharpe 2-30.
MISSED FGs — NA, Pastuizaca 47 (short).
Week 8: October 10, 2025 WARRIORS Defeat Lake Lehman 28-0
Times Leader..The coin set the stage, but the execution told the story.
In both halves, each team receiving the opening kick dictated the tempo. Lake-Lehman opened with a physical, run-heavy approach, pounding the ball up the middle nearly every play. At halftime, Wyoming Area flipped the script: stretching the field and attacking spaces.
The difference? Wyoming Area finished drives – and stopped Lake-Lehman cold at the 30-yard line on every occasion.
The Warriors shut out Lake-Lehman 28-0 on Friday in a game defined by both teams forcing the other to play to their strengths.
“I thought our kids were resilient in the first half and pushed through,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “In the second half, we were able to get control up front, ran the ball effectively and made a timely throw there.”
Wyoming Area stopped three different Lake-Lehman first-half drives before they could enter the red zone. The Black Knights were forced to kick two 40-plus yard field goals – both just short.
A second miss at the halftime whistle kept Wyoming Area’s slim 7-0 lead intact.
“We’re a grind team,” Lake-Lehman coach Jerry Gilsky said. “That’s the way it is. We’re about possession. You can see it in the first quarter – they were on their heels. But if that grind team doesn’t punch it in inside the 30, you’re in trouble.”
Wyoming Area’s six-minute possession to begin the half led to the first of three second-half touchdowns. Jack Gravine found an open Josh Mruk in the back of the end zone for a 6-yard score that gave the Warriors a 14-0 lead.
On the next Lake-Lehman possession, the Warriors stopped a fourth-and-short opportunity that was the inevitable nail in the coffin. The Black Knights were stopped for a negative gain for the first time in 16 carries.
“We raised our physicality on both sides of the line of scrimmage,” Spencer said. “We needed to work through that, to respond. We were able to finish strong. We played 48 minutes of football.”
Wyoming Area’s Nick Ciampi closed out the game with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns on runs of 11 and 6 yards, finishing with 97 yards on 11 carries.
The Warriors’ Trustin Johnson finished with 100 rushing yards.
Jaydon Skipalis had a game-high 107 rushing yards on 20 carries, although the Warriors’ defense limited the Lake-Lehman running back to just 19 yards on his final 10 carries.
Citizens Voice..It was the kind of game Jerry Gilsky wanted.
His Lake-Lehman Black Knights were executing that tough, ground-and-pound gameplan, eating up yardage and chewing away clock.
Problem was Lehman couldn’t punch the ball into the end zone when it got inside the 30, barely missing on two longer field goals.
Wyoming Area, on the other hand, had no issues crossing the goal line.
Especially tailback Nick Ciampi.
The 6-foot, 180-pound senior got yards between the tackles, and showed his explosiveness around the corner, rushing for two scores and 108 yards as Wyoming Area scored 21 unanswered in the second half in a 28-0 victory in Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 play Friday at Edward Edwards Field.
Wyoming Area (7-1 overall, 3-1 WVC Division 2) and remains in contention for the spot in the District 2 Class 3A postseason. The Warriors are currently No. 2 in the power ratings standings (.727), trailing Berwick (8-0, .778). Lake-Lehman (4-4, 2-2) is currently the fifth team in the eight-team field. “We are 7-1 at this point, and right now, you want to be healthy. And I think we are as healthy as we could be at this point,” Wyoming Area head coach Randy Spencer said. “Now, you want to see the things you can improve on each day, and week to week, we have the opportunity to continue to get better. And when you look at the playoff landscape down the road, you hope you are ready to make a strong run.”
Gilsky couldn’t have asked for anything more in the first half.
Jayden Skipalis grounded out yards between the tackles, and Lake-Lehman methodically ate clock and moved down the field.
The problem was getting points.
Lehman’s first drive went 10 plays, and ended when a 41-yard field goal was just wide.
The second possession went even longer, 13 plays, but the Warrior defense buckled down on fourth down at its own 33 to stop the drive.
The Black Knights also had a chance right before the half, but a 47-yard field goal came up about a yard short. “We were inside the 30 three times, and we couldn’t score. And we feel good that Hunter (Palka) can hit those,” Gilsky said. “It’s tough. We are a grind team, and that’s the way it is. We are about possession, and we had eight minutes in the first quarter that went our way. We had them on their heels. If a grind team doesn’t punch it in inside the 30, you are in trouble and we had that three times in the first half.”
Wyoming Area chewed up a good part of the second quarter to get the game’s first score with 24 seconds left, driving 70 yards on the 14-play drive, including two fourth-down conversions. The latter, a successful Ciampi run on a fourth-and-2, pushed the Warriors into the red zone where Luke Kopetchny punched it home four plays later on a 1-yard quarterback sneak. “I think they did a good job of just playing to their strengths, controlling the ball and the time of possession,” Spencer said of Lake-Lehman’s offense. “The first half, they executed and we had mistakes that didn’t help our cause. Sometimes, you have to work through that, and I thought that our kids were resilient and pushed through it.”
It was all Wyoming Area in the second half, holding Lehman to one first down and punching in scores on three of its four possessions.
Ciampi capped off two of them, taking a sweep off the right side, and making a beautiful cut-back toward the middle of the field for an 11-yard score, and rushing for his second TD on a 6-yard dash as Wyoming Area led, 28-0, with 2:33 left. “Nick has been getting stronger and stronger, and it’s great to see that from him,” Spencer said. “I thought that Trustin (Johnson) ran hard as well. Again, it’s a combination of everyone. We have some talented players, but we need contributions from everyone, especially in games like this, and in games we have going forward.”
The Warrior front line – Brad Bohn, Logan O’Malley, Chase Krogulski, Aidan Allardyce and Max Getzie – exerted its physicality as Ciampi and Johnson both ran for more than 100 yards and Wyoming Area ended with 237 yards as a team.
Skipalis also hit the century mark with 107 yards on 22 carries. “They kind of took it to us in the second half with the 21 unanswered points, and we now have that loss in our palm,” Gilsky said.
Wyoming Area 28, Lake-Lehman 0
Wyoming Area`0`7`7`14 — 28
Lake-Lehman`0`0`0`0 — 0
Second quarter
WA — Luke Kopetchny 1 run (Ava Musinski kick), :24
Third quarter
WA — Josh Mruk 3 pass from Jack Gravine (Musinski kick), 6:12
Fourth quarter
WA — Nick Ciampi 11 run (Musinski kick), 10:56
WA — Ciampi 6 run (Musinski kick), 2:33
Team statistics`WA`LL
First downs`17`6
Rushes-yards`42-227`31-152
Passing yards`32`0
Total yards`259`152
Passing`3-6-1`1-2-0
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`1-56`1-23
Fumbles-lost`1-0`2-0
Penalties-yards`4-30`6-32 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA, Trustin Johnson 24-100, JGravine 3-24, Ciampi 11-97, Luke Kopetchny 2-6, Mruk 1-1, TEAM 1-(minus-1). LL, Jaydon Skipalis 20-107, Anthony Magnotta 4-7, Chris Yetter 7-39, TEAM 1-(minus-1)
PASSING — WA, JGravine 3-6-32-1. LL, Magnotta 1-2-0-0
RECEIVING — WA, Ben Gravine 1-11, Mruk 1-3, Kopetchny 1-18. LL, Yetter 1-0
INTERCEPTIONS — LL, Jake Evans 1-0 MISSED FGs — LL, Hunter Palka 2
Times Leader..In the aftermath of Wyoming Area’s first loss of the season, and first divisional defeat in three years, the Warriors made sure to finish their scoring drives Friday night.
When necessary, the Warriors did it over and over.
Wyoming Area had touchdowns called back on consecutive second-quarter plays only to score – and make it count – again two plays later on the way to a 49-14 romp over visiting Hanover Area in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 football game Friday night.
With Nick Ciampi, Jack Gravine and Luke Kopetchny all producing in an attack that piled up 470 yards of total offense, Wyoming Area was forced to punt just once in each half. The Warriors also had possessions end when time ran out in each half, but they still had time to score seven touchdowns.
Ciampi scored on his first and last carries of the night while running for 186 yards on just 12 attempts.
“Nick is just getting stronger and stronger,” Warriors coach Randy Spencer said. “He’s staying healthy, which is important, and he’s giving us great play on both sides of the ball.
“His playmaking, coupled with Jack using both his arm and legs, and a Josh Mruk on the outside and Trustin Johnson, we’ve got weapons and it’s just great to see those guys playing at the high level that they are able to.”
Gravine turned four completions and 10 attempts passing into 137 yards and three touchdowns while also running for 102 yards and a score.
Kopetchny scored on both of his official receptions, caught a pass for a two-point conversion and also intercepted a pass to set up one of his own scores.
The Warriors, who lost to Berwick in last week’s meeting of unbeaten teams, are 2-1 in the division and 6-1 overall. The Hawkeyes, who had shut out three of their previous four opponents, fell to 1-2 and 3-4.
Wyoming Area needed just five plays and 2:21 to open the scoring.
Gravine hit Josh Mruk with a pass. When Hanover Area’s Dawin Downey poked the ball loose 43 yards down field, it did not create a turnover, instead it became a chance for Ciampi to scoop up the ball and advance it 11 more yards.
Ciampi then went around right end on third-and-12 for a 24-yard touchdown.
Kopetchny intercepted a pass late in the first quarter and the Warriors went 88 yards in six plays for a 14-0 lead in the second quarter. Kopetchny scored the first of two straight touchdowns on a 43-yard pass from Gravine.
Mruk intercepted two plays later.
Touchdown runs of 31 yards by Ciampi and 41 yards by Gravine were wiped out by penalty.
The Warriors went from third-and-24 to converting on fourth-and-four when Kopetchny took a short pass and maneuvered through the Hanover Area secondary for a 21-yard touchdown.
Trustin Johnson had three runs for 37 yards to lead to Gravine’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Mruk for a 28-0 lead three minutes before halftime.
Hanover Area answered, scoring on two outstanding catches by Deacon Eisenbach. The first went for just four yards and a first down when Eisenbach made a diving, one-handed grab. The Hawkeyes scored from the 33 when Eisenbach won a battle in the air near the goal line.
The teams combined for four touchdowns in less than five minutes of the third quarter, sending the final 16-plus minutes of the contest into Mercy Rule conditions.
Gravine ran 21 yards, Trustin Johnson ran 1 yard and Ciampi raced 55 yards for the Wyoming Area third-quarter touchdowns.
Eisenbach had another catch for 38 yards to convert a third down, one play before Dewayne Downey scored Hanover Area’s second touchdown covered the final 10 yards.
Citizens Voice..Wyoming Area quarterback Jack Gravine completed just four passes Friday night, but he made them all count.
Gravine’s four completions went for 128 yards and three touchdowns, and he added 94 rushing yards and a touchdown to help the Warriors defeat Hanover Area, 49-14, in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 football game at Jake Sobeski Stadium. “Jack is one of those guys who can hurt you with his arm and with his legs,” Wyoming Area head coach Randy Spencer said. “Tonight was all about our playmakers, and Jack is definitely a playmaker for us.”
Running back Nick Ciampi’s 171 rushing yards spearheaded a ground attack that gained 323 yards. He set the tone and put the Warriors (6-1 overall, 2-1 Division 2) on the board first with a 24-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the night.
The next three scores all came through the air.
Gravine threw three second-quarter touchdown passes. The first two were hauled in by receiver Jake Kopetchchny. The third was a 20-yard strike to Wyoming Area’s Swiss army knife, Josh Mruk. “He’s versatile,” Spencer said of Mruk. “There are so many things he can do to help our team. He’s got a lot of tools on his belt.”
Mruk and Kopetchny each added an interception on the defensive side of the ball as well.
Wyoming Area led, 28-0, before the Hawkeyes (2-5, 1-2) could get anything going. But Hanover Area receiver Deacon Eisenbach found a way to break the scoring drought in the final minutes of the first half.
Eisenbach made a diving one-handed catch in front of the Warriors bench that lit a spark in the Hawkeyes. Two plays later, Eisenbach made a leaping catch in the end zone on a pass from quarterback Logan Richardson to earn the Hawkeyes their first points of the night.
Eisenbach added a 44-yard catch in the third quarter, making three Wyoming Area defenders miss a tackle as he made his way down the field. But the big plays were few and far between for the Hawkeyes.
Hanover Area running back Dewayne Downey contributed a 10-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and ran hard all night, but the Warrior defense was more than the Hawkeyes could handle.
Linebacker Donovan Miller was all over the field for the Warriors. He recorded two tackles in the backfield, broke up a pass and was around the ball all night. Trustin Johnson contributed to the defensive effort with two pass break-ups, including a devastating hit to dislodge the ball from a Hawkeye receiver on what would have been a sure completion.
Gravine, Ciampi and Johnson all had rushing touchdowns in the third quarter. Ciampi’s 55-yard touchdown run at the end of the third quarter was the biggest play of the night, and the final trip to the endzone for the Warriors. “We needed that kind of game, Spencer said. “It was great to see our key guys make key plays tonight.”
Wyoming Area 49, Hanover Area 14
Hanover Area`0`7`7`0 — 14
Wyoming Area`7`21`21`0 — 49
First quarter
WA – Nick Ciampi 24 run (Gavin Feeney kick), 9:39
Second quarter
WA – Luke Kopetchny 43 pass from Jack Gravine (Ava Musinski kick), 10:43
WA – Kopetchny 21 pass from Gravine (Musinski kick), 7:31
WA – Mruk 19 pass from Gravine (Musinski kick), 3:00
HA – Deacon Eisenbach 33 pass from Logan Richardson (Chance Hall), 1:10
Third quarter
WA – Gravine 21 run (Musinski kick), 8:50
HA – Dewayne Downey 10 run (Hall kick), 6:59
WA – Trustin Johnson 1 run (kick blocked), 6:10
WA – Ciampi 55 run (Kopetchny pass from Gravine), 4:09
Team Statistics`HA`WA
First downs`7`18
Rushes-yards`20-61`35-353
Passing yards`118`137
Total yards`179`490
Passing`8-25-2`4-11-0
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`2-38.0`2-28.5
Fumbles-lost`0-0`3-0
Penalties-yards`6-52`7-76 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — HA, DeDowney 18-60, Dawin Downey 1-1, Brody Richardson 1-0. WA, Ciampi 12-186, Gravine 8-102, Johnson 9-40, Dominic Bartell 2-27, Hudson Sharpe 1-0, Jordan Rosario 1-0, Nicholas Kondrosky 2-minus 2.
PASSING — HA, LRichardson 8-25-2-118. WA, Gravine 4-11-0-137.
RECEIVING – HA, Eisenbach 3-75, Conor Richardson 3-24, Aiden Safriwe 1-13, DaDowney 1-6. WA, Kopetchny 2-64, Mruk 2-62, Ciampi 0-11.
INTERCEPTIONS — HA, None. WA, Koptechny 1-8, Mruk 1-0.
MISSED FIELD GOAL S– None.
Week 6: September 26, 2025 WARRIORS Fall to Berwick 35-13
Times Leader..Wyoming Area was the last team to hold Berwick’s Ty’Meere Wilkerson to under 100 yards rushing in a regular season game.
The Wyoming Valley Conference rushing leader reached the century mark on his last carry of the first half and kept on going.
Wilkerson rushed for 206 yards and put the game out of reach with a 49-yard TD run in the fourth quarter as the Dawgs defeated Wyoming Area 35-13 Friday night in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 game.
Berwick (3-0 Div. 2, 6-0 overall) became the only WVC team still undefeated. The Dawgs joined North Pocono as the only unbeatens in District 2.
Berwick rushed for 349 yards and 7.6 per carry against a Wyoming Area defense that was surrendering 64.2 yards on the ground and 2.4 per rush. Wilkerson went over the 200-yard mark for the fifth consecutive game.
“It’s just being physical,” Berwick coach CJ Curry said. “That’s a very physical team. We felt like we had the horses to run with them.”
Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer concurred as his team fell to 1-1 in the division and 5-1 overall.
“That was the main aspect of the game for sure,” Spencer said.
Berwick used Wilkerson’s running to set up scores by quarterback Brady Cleaver on its first two possessions. Wilkerson carried four consecutive times followed by a 51-yard TD dash up the middle by Cleaver.
It was more of Wilkerson on Berwick’s second possession, which ended with a 13-yard touchdown run by Cleaver for a 14-0 lead after one quarter.
Wyoming Area moved within 14-6 with 5:02 until halftime. Quarterback Jack Gravine launched a pass down the left sideline that receiver Luke Kopetchny speared over his head around midfield. He sprinted the rest of the way to the end zone for an 89-yard touchdown.
The touchdown accounted for over half of the Warriors’ first-half yardage. They got inside the Berwick 10-yard line on their second drive of the game, but turned over the ball on downs. The same thing occurred about midway through the fourth quarter.
Berwick used the same Cleaver-Wilkerson formula to score in the third quarter, with Wilkerson running six consecutive times before scoring. The Dawgs had a scary moment the next time they had the ball as Wilkerson left the field after being twisted down in the backfield. Gavin Galutia replaced him and raced 43 yard for a touchdown on the next play.
Wyoming Area pulled within 28-13 with 10:16 remaining on a 31-yard pass from Jack Gravine to Josh Mruk
Citizens Voice..The siren was blaring and the fireworks were lighting up the night sky high above Crispin Field. There was an excitement in the air as Berwick was hosting its biggest regular-season game in quite some time.
The hometown Bulldogs didn’t disappoint.
Using its physical style of play, Berwick came out and established the offensive line, created enough havoc up front to make things extremely difficult on the defensive side of the ball and used its running game to set an early tone in a 35-13 victory over Wyoming Area in a Wyoming Valley Conference football game Friday night.
Berwick is off to its first 6-0 start since 2013, while Wyoming Area is 5-1.
Early on, it was the legs of freshman quarterback Brady Cleaver that gave the Bulldogs a quick 14-0 first-quarter lead.
Then it was running back Ty’Meere Wilkerson who rushed for 206 yards who proved to be the biggest difference maker. “Just being physical,” Berwick head coach CJ Curry said. “Wyoming Area is a very physical team, we felt we had the horses to run with them.”
Despite trailing by two touchdowns, the Warriors had their chances.
After Wyoming Area came up short on a fourth down play at the Berwick 11, the Bulldogs marched down the field and got to the Wyoming Area 9. However, Donovan Miller recovered a fumble and on the next play.
Then, Wyoming Area quarterback Jack Gravine hooked up with Luke Kopetchny on an 89-yard touchdown play to cut the lead to 14-6 going into halftime. “I don’t think it was so much the early scores,” Wyoming Area head coach Randy Spencer said. “We had a chance to stick it in there. We were down, 14-6. Over the course of the game there were certain times we were able to come back and meet their level of physicality. Not matching their physicality throughout the course of the game was the difference.”
Berwick came up with another fourth-down stop on Wyoming Area’s first drive of the second half.
Wilkerson capped a 50-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.
After recovering a Wyoming Area fumble, Gavin Galutia, filling in for Wilkerson, scored on a 43-yard touchdown run to make it 28-6. “We can count on our defensive front in big moments,” Curry said. “We were talking about it all week, being built for the moment. We’re going to enjoy this one tonight. Next week is the biggest game because it’s the next one. If you want to be Wyoming Valley Conference champions you have to take care of business. We can’t get complacent.”
Berwick 35, Wyoming Area 13
Wyoming Area`6`0`0`7 — 13
Berwick`14`0`14`7 — 35
First quarter
BER — Brady Cleaver 51 run (Caleb Yost kick), 9:24
BER — Cleaver 13 run (Yost kick), 3:56
Second quarter
WA — Luke Kopetchny 89 pass from Jack Gravine (kick failed), 5:02
Third quarter
BER — Ty’Meere Wilkerson 2 run (Yost kick), 7:31
BER — Gavin Galutia 43 run (Yost kick), 4:03
Fourth quarter
WA — Josh Mruk 31 pass from Gravine (Gavin Feeney kick), 10:16
BER — Wilkerson 49 run (Yost kick), 8:30
Team statistics`WA`BER
First downs`10`18
Rushes-yards`33-106`46-349
Passing yards`197`31
Total yards`303`380
Passing`6-15-0`1-3-0
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`3-33.6`2-38
Fumbles-lost`2-1`2-1
Penalties-yards`6-28`3-35
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Wyoming Area, Trustin Johnson 8-18, Gravine 10-23, Nick Ciampi 13-62, Donovan Miller 1-4, Mruk 1-(minus-1). Berwick, Wilkerson 29-206, Cleaver 10-85, Caleb May 1-4, Galutia 4-45. Everett Snyder 2-8.
PASSING — Wyoming Area, Gravine 6-14-0-197, Ciampi 0-1-0-0. Berwick, Cleaver 1-3-0-31.
RECEIVING — Wyoming Area, Kopetchny 3-150, Mruk 2-35, Ciampi 1-12. Berwick, Alex Estrella 1-31.
INTERCEPTIONS — none
MISSED FGs — none
Week 5: September 19, 2025 WARRIORS Defeat Tunkhannock: 42-0
Times Leader..After the final seconds of Friday night’s contest between Tunkhannock and Wyoming Area ticked off the clock, fans in attendance were treated to a small fireworks display courtesy of the hosts, a fitting ending to a game full of explosive plays from the victorious Warriors.
Wyoming Area rode an early wave of turnovers and big plays on it’s way to a 42-0 victory against Tunkhannock at Jake Sobeski Stadium, staying undefeated and improving to 5-0. Tunkhannock fell to 2-3 on the season.
The Warriors wasted little time before starting off with a bang.
Nick Ciampi took the first punt of the game near midfield and wove his way deep into Tiger territory, setting up Trustin Johnson for a short plunge into the end zone on the next play.
Tunkhannock would fumble away the ensuing possession while attempting to punt only to see Wyoming Area hand off to Johnson again for his second score of the quarter and a 13-0 lead just five minutes into the game.
“I think we’ve played very solid defensively, especially against the run throughout the first four games, so I think getting some takeaways was the one aspect we were really looking for,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “To get some takeaways and have that kind of production on special teams was one of the big points tonight.”
The production continued into the second quarter as Luke Kopetchny provided his own personal pyrotechnics.
The junior snared his first interception from his cornerback slot before turning right around and playing wide receiver. Quarterback Jack Gravine found Kopetchny just two plays later, left streaking down the sideline for a pass placed just over the hands of Tunkhannock’s secondary and a 46-yard touchdown.
Kopetchny would end the following Tigers possession early when he stepped in front of an errant pass and raced 30-yards to the end zone for his second score of the game and a 28-0 lead.
“Three interceptions, a pick-six, two fumble recoveries, that’s the best we’ve been from a takeaway standpoint this year,” Spencer said.
Not to be outdone, Ciampi decided to light up the scoreboard in nearly the exact same fashion.
After reeling in an interception of his own, Ciampi took the handoff on the first play of the next drive and swept around the right end of his line before darting back up into the middle of the field and sprinting past would-be tacklers for a 33-yard touchdown and a 35-0 halftime lead.
With the win, Wyoming Area moves on to what will likely be the toughest challenge of the season so far when the Warriors travel to Crispin Field next week to take on the also undefeated Berwick Bulldogs.
“That’s one you really don’t have to say much to get ready for,” Spencer said. “It’s a big game in our division and also in terms of District 2, Triple-A standings. Potentially both of us could see each other down the road, so that’s one you play hard for and I think both teams will be motivated.”
Citizens Voice..Football coaches preach about creating big plays and takeaways. Wyoming Area produced a lot of both Friday night.
The Warriors defense forced five turnovers and its offense more than took advantage in a 42-0 victory over Tunkhannock in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division II football game Friday night at Jake Sobeski Stadium.
Luke Kopetchny continued to shine for Wyoming Area (5-0 overall, 1-0 Division 1) on both sides of the ball. The junior intercepted two passe , including taking one back 35 yards for a touchdown, and caught a 46-yard touchdown from quarterback Jack Gravine. “We spent a lot of defensive film study focusing on what type of routes they run. Getting two picks on the day is a really awesome feeling,” Kopetchny said. “We were able to get off to a good start and get momentum early, which is something we’ve kind of struggled with this year so that was really good for us.”
In last week’s win over Lakeland, the Warriors had to come back from a 13-0 deficit. No such comeback effort was needed this week.
After getting a three-and-out to start the game, Nick Ciampi returned a punt 35 yards, setting up first-and-goal at the Tunkhannock (2-3, 1-1) 4. Trustin Johnson scored on the first play of the drive to give the Warriors a 7-0 lead.
On its next drive, Wyoming Area took advantage of another short field after Ricky Rowles recovered an errant snap on a Tunkhannock punt at the Tigers 10.
Three plays later, Johnson scored his second touchdown for a 13-0 lead after one quarter.
Kopetchny took over on the next drive.
Tunkhannock moved the ball to midfield after a 41-yard run by Lucas Ciprich. Kopetchny intercepted Zach Latwinski’s pass to squash the Tigers scoring opportunity.
He was far from done however as Gravine found him in stride down the right sideline for a 46-yard touchdown pass.
On Tunkhannock’s next drive, Kopetchny stepped in front of another Latwinski pass, this time taking 35 yards to the house to give the Warriors a 28-0 lead. “Me and Jack (Gravine) have really been working on connecting lately, and I felt like we got into more of a rhythm as the night went along,” Kopetchny said. “It’s nice to get catches and yards, but in the end all that matters is the team win and we were able to accomplish that tonight.”
Seeing what his teammate Kopetchny was doing, Ciampi wanted to get in on the act as well.
On Tunkhannock’s next drive, he got a diving interception, and on the first offensive play for the Warriors scored on a 35-yard touchdown to give Wyoming Area a 35-0 lead heading into halftime. “We were playing zone coverage, so I was just in my zone and I saw the ball coming for me, Ciampi said. “So I dove for it and was able to come up with the pick. Then taking it to the house the next play was such an awesome feeling. I was happy with all the guys. I thought we put together a really great performance.”
Ciampi ended the scoring in the third quarter with a his second touchdown run of the game from 28 yards.
Gravine finished with 127 yards passing for the Warriors. Ciprich led Tunkhannock’s offense with 113 yards rushing.
The win sets up a battle of two 5-0 opponents next week as Wyoming Area will travel to Crispin Field to take on Berwick in a game that could decide the WVC Division 2 title. “We have to mentally and physically lock in,” Ciampi said. “It’s going to be a huge game. They’re (Berwick) is really good. We have to bring our A-game all week at practice to get ready and show what we can accomplish.”
Wyoming Area 42, Tunkhannock 0
Tunkhannock `0`0`0`0 — 0
Wyoming Area `13`22`7`0— 42
First quarter
WA — Trustin Thompson 1 run (Gavin Feeney kick) 9:40
WA — Thompson 1 run (kick failed) 7:03
Second quarter
WA — Luke Kopetchny 46 pass from Jack Gravine (Josh Mruk 2 pass from Gravine) 8:08
WA — Kopetchny 30 interception return (Feeney kick) 4:37
WA — Nick Champi 33 run (Ava Musinski kick) 2:31
Third quarter
WA — Champi 28 run (Teagan Meier kick) 2:10
Times LeaderTwo-touchdown deficit and all the momentum residing with a quality opponent on its home field?
Apparently, that’s no problem for the Wyoming Area football team.
Jack Gravine provided the offensive spark and Donavon Miller led the defensive turnaround Friday night as the unbeaten Warriors put together their second come-from-behind victory in three weeks with a 38-14 win at Lakeland.
Two weeks ago, Wyoming Area scored the game’s last 20 points in a 27-20 victory over two-time defending Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 champion Dallas.
Friday night, it was the final 38 points in the only game of the night matching a pair of 3-0 District 2 teams.
Lakeland looked like it was clearly the better team when it took a 14-0 lead in the first 13½ minutes. “We were able to stem the tide with the big play, then cleaned it up a little bit and started to play better,” Warriors coach Randy Spencer said. “ … Credit to Lakeland for coming out. There was great energy tonight with the crowd and their Salute to Service and military appreciation. “ … Defensively, we were able to make a lot of stops in the second quarter and it carried through to the second half.”
Lakeland had the game’s first seven first downs when Wyoming Area faced third-and-three early in the second quarter.
Gravine found Drew Keating for nine yards and the initial Wyoming Area first down, then took off on a 45-yard touchdown run on the next play.
The pass completion launched a sequence of 19 plays that produced 247 yards, 10 first downs and Wyoming Area’s first 41 points.
Lakeland drove to the Wyoming Area 9, looking to restore its two-touchdown lead, but Miller’s fourth-down pass coverage turned away that threat.
The plays that ended the drive also began a stretch of 18 snaps through the end of third quarter during which the Chiefs produced a net of minus-22 yards offense. “None of us hang our heads,” said Miller, who had seven tackles, including a sack, along with five assists, a pass rush and two broken-up passes. “We talk to each other and we fix things.”
Gravine kept the offense moving with his legs on a night when the Wyoming Area passing game could not beat the Lakeland secondary. He ran for 175 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries and produced the game’s longest play with a 72-yard run to get the Warriors out of a hole and set up the go-ahead score. “They were similar plays,” Gravine said of the 72-yarder and the two touchdowns straight-ahead runs out of shot-gun formation. “… Coach told me it was there on the inside and I hit the hole.”
Gravine broke to the outside on the long run to the 14 and Nick Ciampi scored from there on the next play.
Luke Kopetchny took a low extra-point snap and threw the go-ahead, two-pointer to Josh Mruk with 2:22 left in the half.
The Warriors held, took over in Chiefs territory and stretched their lead to 22-14 on the last play of the half when Kopetchny then started out as holder and threw a pass. The throw on the fake field goal went to Miller, who got to the corner and stretched the ball past the pylon for a 9-yard touchdown as time expired.
Gravine ran 23 yards for a third-quarter score and Mruk turned his only carry into a 50-yard, fourth-quarter touchdown.
Citizens VoiceIt was a risky call. A go-big-or-go-home moment.
With the way Gavin Feeney was booting the ball, a 26-yard field goal seemed like a sure thing right before half.
Never pass up points, right? Especially before halftime to take momentum into the locker room.
Randy Spencer had other ideas. The Wyoming Area head coach rolled the dice. For Lakeland, it turned into snake eyes.
Donavon Miller took the floating pass from Luke Kopetchny on the fake field goal, and outran a Chiefs player to the pylon where the senior dove and broke the plane of the goal line for the score with no time left in the first half.
It was all about special teams for the Warriors, while quarterback Jack Gravine put on a show with 179 yards rushing and two scores as Wyoming Area rallied past Lakeland, 38-14, in a nonconference football game. “It was scheduled to go the other way, but we flipped it out and it was wide open. It was right there,” Miller said. “I knew I was going to get there. The team’s energy, it just carries me. We all carry each other. Coming into this, some people were doubting us. We knew it was going to be a big game.”
The victory vaults Wyoming Area to a 4-0 mark as the Warriors head into conference play next week against Tunkhannock.
It was the Chiefs’ first loss of the year. “We are starting to get to where we want to be,” Gravine said. “Starting off 4-0 is always good, but we have to pick up the way we start games, though, because the further you make it in the postseason, it could come back to hurt you. But we are finishing games off good. I am happy with where we are at. We just have to keep working in practice.”
Special teams. Coaches preach the importance of winning that facet of the game.
No doubt, the Warriors won it Friday night.
It wasn’t just the fake field goal, which definitely gave Wyoming Area clear momentum heading into halftime.
It was about a safety where Lakeland snapped the ball past the punter as David Naniewicz was forced to run backward 29 yards to recover it in the end zone to give Wyoming Area a 10-point lead early in the third quarter.
On the next Warriors series following the safety, Wyoming Area strung together a six-play, 63-yard drive — all on the ground — capped off by a Gravine touchdown where he busted through the middle of the line and went nearly untouched for a 23-yard score and a 31-14 lead.
Lakeland had a similar decision early in the second quarter. Instead of trying its own 26-yard field goal, which would have increased the lead to 17-7, head coach David Piwowarczyk opted to go for the fourth-and-8 at the Wyoming Area 9, only to see the Warriors force a turnover-on-downs after an incomplete pass. “Hats off to Wyoming Area. They played well, and didn’t give up,” the Lakeland coach said. “We made a ton of mistakes. That’s why we are disappointed. We are not leaving this game tonight saying that Wyoming Area physically beat us. We feel that we beat ourselves tonight. You can’t give your opponent free points and expect to come away with a victory.”
Lakeland came out firing, scoring on two of its first three possessions — including a beautiful diving catch by Chase Rosenkrans in the back of the end zone for the 14-7 lead two minutes into the second quarter.
Wyoming Area never panicked. Similar to the Dallas game where the Warriors were down two scores, Spencer’s boys fought back.
It was powered by Gravine’s legs, as the quarterback had four runs that spanned more than 20 yards each.
His first touchdown was a 45-yard dart off the right side to start the Warriors scoring.
He was just getting started. His biggest jaunt was a 73-yard sprint right after Lakeland elected not to attempt the 26-yard field goal. It led to a Nick Ciampi 14-yard run, and the ensuring two-point conversion gave the Warriors a 15-14 lead.
Wyoming Area scored on all three of its second-quarter possessions, and its first drive of the third as 11 of the team’s rushes Friday went for more than 10 yards. “We’ve been starting out slow these past few games, but I knew that we could flip the switch,” Gravine said. “I wasn’t worried at all because I was confident in my teammates. You can’t dwell on the plays that you mess up. You just have to bring the intensity up, and keep focusing on the next play.”
Josh Mruk’s 50-yarder midway through the fourth quarter sealed the Warriors scoring. “The defense is playing well, but we still have a little bit to work on,” said Miller as the Warriors held Lakeland to fewer than 50 yards on the ground. “It’s just some simple things that we have to fix. For us, we just always want to play harder than we did the quarter prior.”
Wyoming Area 38, Lakeland 14
Wyoming Area`0`22`9`7 — 38
Lakeland`7`7`0`0 — 14
First quarter
LAKE – David Naniewicz 1 run (Nicholas Jankosky kick), 2:02
Second quarter
LAKE – Chase Rosenkrans 21 pass from Naniewicz (Jankosky kick), 10:30
WA – Jack Gravine 45 run (Gavin Feeney kick), 8:20
WA – Nick Ciampi 14 run (Josh Mruk pass from Luke Kopetchny), 2:22
WA – Donavon Miller 9 pass from Kopetchny (Feeney kick), 0:00
Third quarter
WA – Safety (punter kneel down in end zone following bad snap), 10:52
WA – Gravine 23 run (Feeney kick), 7:03
Fourth quarter
WA – Mruk 50 run (Feeney kick), 7:43
Team Statistics`WA`LAKE
First downs`13`14
Rushes-yards`36-385`32-32
Passing yards`18`163
Total yards`403`195
Passing`2-9-0`13-25-1
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`1-7
Punts-avg.`5-27.6`3-30.7
Fumbles-lost`2-0`2-0
Penalties-yards`8-70`7-50
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA – Gravine 14-175, Nicholas Kondrosky 5-58, Ciampi 7-53, Mruk 1-50, Trustin Johnson 7-32, Jordan Rosario 2-17. LAKE – Naniewicz 13-38, Gavin Roberts 5-10, Evan Lonzinski 5-7, Caden Cuozzo 5-6, Rosenkrans 1-1, Mason Mushel 1-1, Jackson Pochas 1-minus 1.
PASSING — WA, Gravine 1-8-0-9, Kopetchny 1-1-0-9. LAKE, Naniewicz 13-24-1-163, Mushel 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING – WA, Drew Keating 1-9, Miller 1-9. LAKE, Rosenkrans 6-118, Pochas 3-21, Rocco Spataro 2-13, Roberts 1-4, Nathan Boyarsky 1-4.
INTERCEPTIONS — WA, Max Getzie 1-1. LAKE, none.
MISSED FIELD GOALS – None.
Wyoming Area dominated the second half last Friday against Dallas.
That domination carried over to the Warriors’ third game of the season.
The first-team offense scored on four consecutive possessions and the first-team defense didn’t allow a first down as Wyoming Area shut out Western Wayne 50-0 Friday night in a non-conference game.
Even when things went awry on special teams — like on a bad snap on an extra point — the Warriors (3-0) were able to turn the mistake into a two-point conversion pass.
It was that kind of night.
“We made some big plays, explosive plays which was great to see,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “But again, some of the mental errors and the things that are self-inflicted, we still aren’t playing as clean as we’d like to play, especially in the beginning of the game.”
The game was a rematch of last year’s District 2 Class 3A semifinal game won by Wyoming Area in overtime. While both teams lost significant talent to graduation, Western Wayne (1-2) was hit particularly hard. The Wildcats lost their entire starting lineup and it showed.
Wyoming Area’s first-unit defense surrendered no rushing yards on 16 attempts and just 16 yards through the air. Western Wayne’s only first down before the game was handed over to the reserves came on a fake punt.
“I was very impressed and happy with the defensive effort,” Spencer said. “Initially some things on the back end with our corners gave them a little space, but then we tightened it up. I thought we did a good job with our pressure. We got situational pressure and were able to make plays.”
As for the offense, quarterback Jack Gravine had his hand in four touchdowns as he passed for 120 yards and two TDs and ran for 127 more and two scores.
Gravine sandwiched TD passes of 30 and 8 yards to Luke Kopetchny around his 28-yard scoring run as Wyoming Area took control with a 21-point second quarter.
Gravine’s 53-yard touchdown run at 8:15 of the third quarter brought about the 35-point mercy rule. Nick Ciampi added a 36-yard TD run and the ad-lib two-point pass gave the Warriors a 43-0 lead going into the fourth quarter.
With fireworks lighting up the sky at Jake Sobeski Stadium, and his teammates gathered in the end zone ringing the victory bell, Caden Reynolds soaked in the moment.
The Wyoming Area senior lineman just finished off a 50-0 victory over Western Wayne, and was greeting friends and family with a huge smile on his face.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. He greeted Wildcat ball carriers in the backfield all night.
Wyoming Area’s defense was suffocating. Quarterback Jack Gravine provided the offensive punch.
Gravine accounted for four scores and more than 200 yards of combined offense, and Wyoming Area’s defense was unstoppable as the team rolled to the victory in Week 3 nonleague football.
“Honestly, I was really happy with how we played tonight,” Reynolds said. “Myself and my brothers on that D-line, we were just flying around and making tackles. Everyone was just doing what we had to do.”
It was an impressive effort for the Warriors, improving to 3-0, as a 21-0 second quarter put Wyoming Area up four scores at halftime.
“I think we made some big plays, explosive plays, which was good to see,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “Again, I still don’t think we are playing as clean as I would like to see us play. … But we really have to focus on cleaning some things up.”
The defense stole the show Friday night, allowing little space for the Wildcats to operate.
RJ Walton took the handoff in the Western Wayne backfield, and had no where to turn. As soon as the Wildcat was handed the ball, he was immediately swarmed by Reynolds and Ben Gravine.
“That momentum from last week’s win over Dallas, it 100% carried over,” Reynolds said. “I like where we are at as a team, but we can always get better, be better and do better.”
A few plays later, quarterback Jake Grodack rolled out and was immediately sandwiched between Gravine and Chase Krogulski.
“I was very happy and impressed with the defense,” Spencer said. “I thought we did a good job with our pressure, getting some good situational pressure. A lot of guys are playing well defensively, and I think it was momentum from last week’s win over Dallas.”
The Warriors held Western Wayne to just 19 yards in the first half and one first down, which came on a fake punt in the second quarter.
It didn’t get better for the young Wildcats in the second half, again, held to just one first down and a total of 38 yards.
“We are a young team, and we are still trying to figure some things out,” Western Wayne coach Shane Grodack said. “We put it together for a quarter-and-a-half defensively, and had some stops. Offensively, we just got to get off the ball. For us, we have to flip the page and get better next week. That’s the focus. We replaced 11 starters on offense, and nine on defense, so we just have to focus on getting better each week.”
Western Wayne (1-2) held Wyoming Area in check for the first quarter, allowing just a Trustin Johnson 1-yard run early in the period.
The big-play punch hit in the second quarter.
Jack Gravine found a wide-open Luke Kopetchny about 10 yards behind the secondary on the first play of the second quarter for the walk-in 30-yard touchdown.
On Wyoming Area’s third possession of the second, it was another chunk play as the quarterback took the snap, went option off the right side, side-stepped and split two defenders on his way to a 28-yard score.
Jack Gravine wasn’t done, hooking up with Kopetchny for the second time in the half, this time an 8-yard score on a curl route at the front pylon with 54 seconds left for the 28-0 lead at the break.
The junior quarterback had a huge night, scoring four times (two passing, two rushing) and racking up 238 yards of total offense. He completed 5 of 7 for 115 yards, and added another 126 yards on nine carries.
Wyoming Area pushed the game into the mercy rule when Spencer went for it on a fourth-and-7 near midfield as his quarterback again hit the right side, rounded the edge and sprinted untouched down the right sideline for the score.
The Warriors added another long run – this one a 36-yard dart through the middle on a quarterback keeper by Nick Ciampi, and ended the scoring in the fourth when Nick Kondrosky broke a 41-yard run and was rewarded with the 1-yard plunge through the goal line.
Wyoming Area 50, Western Wayne 0
Western Wayne`0`0`0`0 — 0
Wyoming Area`7`21`15`7 — 50
First quarter
WA — Trustin Johnson 1 run (Gavin Feeney kick), 9:07
Second quarter
WA — Luke Koptechny 30 pass from Jack Gravine (Feeney kick), 11:53
WA — Jack Gravine 28 run (Feeney kick), 1:58
WA — Kopetchny 8 pass from J.Gravine (Feeney kick), 0:54
Third quarter
WA — J.Gravine 53 run (Ava Musinski kick), 8:15
WA — Nick Ciampi 36 run (Josh Mruk from Kopetchny), 2:54
Fourth quarter
WA — Nicholas Kondrosky 1 run (Teegan Meier kick), 3:04
Team statistics`WW`WA
First downs`2`16
Rushes-yards`26-16`36-294
Passing yards`16`120
Total yards`32`414
Passing`3-10-0`6-7-0
Sacked-yards lost`1-8`1-11
Punts-avg.`8-32`2-35.5
Fumbles-lost`1-0`0-0
Penalties-yards`7-52`9-60
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Western Wayne, Quinn Swartz 9-2, Jake Grodack 4-(minus-3), Ashton James 1-5, RJ Walton 4-3, Gavin Ortiz 6-5, Hunter Rodgers 2-4. Wyoming Area, Johnson 13-45, J.Gravine 9-127, Ciampi 3-36, Josh Mruk 4-17, Jordan Rosario 1-7, Hudson Sharpe 2-19, Jamari Yates 1-2, Kondrosky 2-42, team 1-(minus-1).
PASSING — Western Wayne, Grodack 3-10-0-16. Wyoming Area, J.Gravine 6-7-0-120.
RECEIVING — Western Wayne, Patrick Donahue 1-8, Ashan Stookey 1-11, Swartz 1-(minus-2). Wyoming Area, Kopetchny 3-50, Ciampi 2-33, Drew Keating 1-37.
INTERCEPTIONS — none
MISSED FGs — none
Week 2: August 29, 2025 WARRIORS COME BACK TO DEFEAT DALLAS 27-20
Times Leader Wyoming Area appeared to be in significant trouble Friday night when Dallas needed just 95 seconds to take the second-half kickoff and march down the field to open a two-touchdown lead.
As the Warriors reminded, looks can be deceiving.
Wyoming Area scored the game’s final 20 points to leave Dallas with a 27-20 victory in the non-league matchup of two-time, defending Wyoming Valley Conference divisional football champions.
Any appearance that the first 25½ minutes and the next 21 minutes were part of the same game were hard to find.
The Warriors put anything and everything that happened through the opening drive of the second half behind them. They closed with a dominance that would have seemed inconceivable up to that point.
When Hunter Pitcavage waltzed into the end zone from the 3 after having been stopped twice on a run off left tackle, Dallas had a 20-7 lead and apparent control of the game. To that point, despite Wyoming Area having two-thirds of the possession time in the first half, Dallas held statistical advantages of 107-37 in rushing yards, 214-117 in passing yards and 7-6 in first downs.
The Warriors started at the 20 following a touchback for the third time in the game and found themselves facing third-and-six.
Josh Mruk’s spinning, back-pedaling catch on the sideline for 26 yards got Wyoming Area to midfield and started an impressive push.
“It’s one play at a time and then on to the next play,” Warriors coach Randy Spencer said. “You can’t talk about being process-oriented and then not genuinely, authentically do that.
“I’m just so proud of the guys when that’s the message and that’s what you talk about. It’s one thing to talk about it, Monday through Thursday and in the offseason and then to come out under the lights on a Friday night and face adversity against a high-level football team and then put it into practice. That’s really what it’s all about: staying in there together.”
Between the last Dallas touchdown and Wyoming Area’s three kneeldowns to end the game, the Warriors pounded the Mountaineers. Wyoming Area’s numerical edge in that time was staggering – 14-3 in first downs, 175-21 in rushing yards and 281-45 in total offense.
Jack Gravine was 4-for-5 passing for 106 yards and two of his three touchdowns during the rally.
Gravine lofted the ball over a defender on a deep fade and Luke Kopetchny went up and got it for a 30-yard touchdown.
The defense did its part, getting the ball back quickly by holding Dallas without a first down on three of its remaining four possessions.
Mruk batted down a third-down Dallas pass then pulled in a 45-yard Gravine pass. Nick Ciampi burst up the middle for a 40-yard touchdown on the next play and the game was tied with 5:06 still remaining in the third quarter.
The game-winner came less than three minutes into the fourth when the Gravine brothers connected on play action with Ben catching the 5-yard touchdown pass on second-and-goal.
“That felt great,” said Ben Gravine, who was also in on four defensive plays when Dallas put together is last threat on the ensuing possession. “I saw the ball in the air and time froze. I saw only that ball. I didn’t hear anything.
“I knew I had to catch that ball and I did.”
Dallas (0-2) got to the 6, but Kopetchny broke up a third-down pass in the end zone. On fourth down, Chase Krogulski’s rush forced a pass that Drew Keating was able to bat down.
Trustin Johnson wound up as the game’s leading rusher with runs of 19, 11 and 12 yards as Wyoming Area (2-0) ran out the final 4:57.
Logan Geskey took a Talan Geskey pass 62 yards for a touchdown and the 13-7 Dallas halftime lead.
Citizens Voice Wyoming Area quarterback Jack Gravine faked a handoff with his back to the Dallas defense.
When he twisted back around, he saw a familiar face: his older brother, Ben, all alone in the back of the end zone.
The two connected on the play-action pass for a five-yard touchdown, the deciding score in the Warriors’ 27-20 comeback victory Friday night over the Mountaineers.
Wyoming Area (2-0) tallied 20 unanswered second-half points to retake the lead at Mountaineer Stadium. Following nine straight run plays, the Gravines linked up on the second-down pitch-and-catch to break a 20-20 tie with 9:09 left. “I saw that ball in the air and time froze,” senior tight end Ben Gravine said. “I just saw only that ball, I didn’t hear anything. I just knew I had to catch that ball.”
That was one of three touchdown passes by Jack Gravine, who was 9 for 16 for 186 yards.
Dallas (0-2) built a 20-7 advantage after an explosive six-play drive to open the second half.
Tyce Mason, who flashed several times as a kick returner, caught a 37-yard deep ball from quarterback Talan Geskey (6 for 20, 153 yards) to set up the Mountaineers at the Warriors’ 3-yard line, and Hunter Pitcavage punched in the rushing score just 1:35 into the half.
Momentum swung right back in Wyoming Area’s favor as the Warriors embarked on their comeback.
On the ensuing seven-play, 80-yard drive, Jack Gravine completed a 26-yard pass to Josh Mruk (two catches, 71 yards) and capped the series with a 30-yard passing touchdown to Luke Kopetchny (five catches, 100 yards) to slice the deficit to 20-14 midway through the third.
After a Dallas three-and-out, the Warriors traveled 85 yards in two plays to tie the game. Gravine hit Mruk on a nearly identical corner route as the previous drive for 45 yards, and then Nick Ciampi burst through the Mountaineers defense for a 40-yard rushing score.
The extra point sailed wide right to keep the game at 20-all with 5:06 left in the third period. “Dallas did a good job starting fast,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “We did what good teams have to do. Sometimes you have to find ways to get back into a game. … Just can’t tell you how proud I am of our kids’ response and our finish.”
Wyoming Area’s defense clamped down on Dallas in the second half. Aside from three explosive pass plays, the Warriors allowed just 59 yards and held the Mountaineers’ no-huddle offense scoreless over the final 22 minutes.
Dallas got as far as the Warriors 6, but on 4th-and-goal, Chase Krogulski applied pressure on Geskey. Drew Keating batted down the desperation pass toward the end zone, forcing a turnover on downs with 4:57 left and a seven-point Warriors lead.
Trustin Johnson (18 rushes, 92 yards) broke carries of 19, 11 and 12 yards as Wyoming Area chewed up the final minutes. A third-down defensive pass interference call sealed the Warriors’ triumph with 2:06 to play. “That’s really all it’s about is staying in there together and getting tighter when things don’t go your way, and then one play at a time, if it’s not a good play you get on to the next,” Spencer said. “I thought our guys did an incredible job of that tonight.”
Dallas got out to an early 6-0 lead after Pitcavage forced a fumble that landed directly in Alex Seymour’s hands in Warriors territory. Pitcavage (15 rushes, 49 yards) then scored on the next play, a 17-yard sweep less than a minute into the game.
The Warriors converted a turnover into points, too. Ciampi nabbed an interception, and eight plays later, Gravine hit Kopetchny on a 46-yard bomb for his first of two receiving touchdowns, giving Wyoming Area a 7-6 lead at the first quarter’s 4:22 mark.
Dallas made it 13-7 on the final play of the first quarter, a rocket screen from Talan Geskey to Logan Geskey that turned into a 62-yard catch-and-run toward the left pylon.
The loss drops Class 4A Dallas to 0-2 for the second consecutive year, something that hasn’t happened since 2012-13, before head coach Rich Mannello’s decade-long tenure. Last year, Dallas started 0-3, but rebounded for eight straight wins.
Wyoming Area won nine straight regular-season games dating back to Week 4 last year.
Additionally, Class 3A Wyoming Area hasn’t lost a game against a higher classification since 2022 (Class 5A Pittston’s 35-0 win over the 4A Warriors).
Wyoming Area 27, Dallas 20
Wyoming Area`7`0`13`7 — 27
Dallas`13`0`7`0 — 20
First quarter
DAL – Hunter Pitcavage 17 run (kick failed), 11:11
WA – Luke Kopetchny 46 pass from Jack Gravine (Gavin Feeney kick), 4:22
DAL – Logan Geskey 62 pass from Logan Geskey (Brandon Miller kick), 0:00
Third quarter
DAL – Pitcavage 3 run (Miller kick), 10:25
WA – Kopetchny 30 pass from JGravine (Feeney kick), 6:44
WA – Nick Ciampi 40 run (kick failed), 5:06
Fourth quarter
WA – Ben Gravine 5 pass from JGravine (Feeney kick), 9:09
Team Statistics`WA`DAL
First downs`20`10
Rushes-yards`45-208`30-128
Passing yards`186`152
Total yards`394`280
Passing`9-16-1`6-20-1
Sacked-yards lost`2-16`0-0
Punts-avg.`3-31.3`3-27.7
Fumbles-lost`2-1`0-0
Penalties-yards`4-25`5-49
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA – Trustin Johnson 17-87, Ciampi 10-79, Josh Mruk 5-34, JGravine 10-12, Team 3-minus 4. DAL – TGeskey 14-79, Pitcavage 15-49, Trevor Slavinski 1-0.
PASSING — WA, JGravine 9-16-1-186. DAL, TGeskey 6-20-1-152.
RECEIVING – WA, Kopetchny 5-100, Mruk 2-71, Ciampi 1-10, BGravine 1-5 DAL, Tyce Mason 3-71, LGeskey 2-73, Sam Kelley 1-8.
INTERCEPTIONS — WA, Ciampi 1-0. DAL, Brady McCann 1-0.
MISSED FIELD GOALS – None.
Nepafootball.com - DALLAS TWP. – Wyoming Area scored the game’s final 20 points, in a span of less than 10 minutes of the third and fourth quarters, Friday night to rally past host Dallas, 27-20.
The Gravine brothers combined on the winning score with Jack passing to Ben off play action for a 5-yard score to break a tie with 9:09 remaining.
Dallas scored in 49 seconds to begin the game and in the first 1:35 of the second half of the meeting of two-time, defending Wyoming Valley Conference divisional champions. Hunter Pitcavage scored those touchdowns on a 17-yard run on the first Dallas offensive play and a 3-yard run to cap the opening drive of the second half.
Jack Gravine passed for 186 yards and three touchdowns. He was 4-for-5 for 106 yards and two of those touchdowns during the comeback.
Luke Kopetchny had 100 receiving yards and two scores, a 46-yarder in the second quarter and a 30-yarder to start the comeback.
Nick Ciampi broke a 40-yard run up the middle to tie the game going into the fourth quarter.
The game’s longest play was a 62-yard touchdown pass from Talan Geskey to Logan Geskey on the final play of the first quarter for a 13-7 Dallas lead that held up through halftime.
Dallas drove to the Wyoming Area 6 with a chance to tie midway through the fourth quarter.
Luke Kopetchny broke up a pass in the end zone on third down. Chase Krogulski then rushed the passer into a weak throw that Drew Keating was able to knock down to end the threat.
Trustin Johnson had runs of 19, 11 and 12 yards to help Wyoming Area run out the last 4:57.
“I’m just so proud of the guys,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said.
The Warriors (2-0) host Western Wayne (1-1) Friday night. The teams split two games at Western Wayne last year with Wyoming Area winning the District 2 Class 3A semifinal in overtime.
Dallas (0-2) goes to Abington Heights (2-0) Saturday afternoon.
Times Leader Wyoming Area’s offense did its job in the fourth quarter in Friday night’s opener against Crestwood.
Now it was the defense’s turn and, despite surrendering a touchdown, it came up big when needed.
Linebacker Ben Gravine forced an errant pass on third down with a hit on Crestwood quarterback Jaden Shedlock and defensive end Josh Mruk wrapped up the victory with a fourth-down sack as Wyoming Area held on for a 24-21 victory.
“Ben and Josh throughout the game and especially at the end,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “I think Donovan Miller had a heck of a game from an effort standpoint all over the field.
“Certainly timely plays when we needed them, especially at the end of the game to close it out.”
The win was the fifth time in the last seven meetings the game finished a one-score game.
Wyoming Area took a 24-14 lead with 5:35 to play when quarterback Jack Gravine threw a short dart to Nick Ciampi, who turned it into a 42-yard catch-and-run TD.
Crestwood answered right back. Shedlock hit wideout Giovanni Barna for 45 yards and tight end Logan Lawson for 13 more on the Comets’ two plays after the Wyoming Area score.
Shedlock eventually plunged in from one yard out to move Crestwood within 24-21 with 3:28 remaining.
Wyoming Area went three-and-out, giving the ball to Crestwood at its 48-yard line with 1:18 to play.
A holding penalty backed up the Comets, but Shedlock found Barna for a 17-yard gain for a second-and-3. An incompletion followed by Ben Gravine and Mruk making defensive plays ended Crestwood’s hopes.
Shedlock, known more for his running, had a strong game throwing the ball. He finished 13-of-21 for 237 and threw a 48-yard TD pass to an incredibly wide open Jack Rodgers to give Crestwood its on lead, 14-10 at 4:33 of the third quarter.
“I’m really proud of him maturing as a passer for sure,” Crestwood coach Ryan Arcangeli said. “We just haven’t been able to get a surrounding cast around him in a while.
“We had great players around him. They are even going to make him better like Jack and Gio and our running backs like Jeckell, (Nate) Walsh and Amias (Ocasio) and Logan Lawson.”
Jack Gravine and running back Trustin Johnson had solid starting debuts replacing two key graduation losses.
Jack Gravine rushed for 106 yards on 12 carries, including a 53-yard touchdown run for the first score of the game. Johnson finished with 24 rushing for 138 yards, with most of it coming in the second half.
Johnson also fought his way into the end zone on a 5-yard run to give the Warriors a 17-14 lead with three second left in the third quarter.
Citizens Voice Nick Ciampi took a shove to the back. It was a last-ditch effort from the Crestwood defensive back covering him to prevent the Wyoming Area senior from making a big play in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s season opener.
Ciampi tried to turn upfield in front of his own sideline. He tiptoed along the white line like a member of the Wallenda family putting on a show for a crowd of onlookers. As Ciampi gathered his balance, he darted to the middle of the field. There was nobody there.
Ciampi raised an arm in the air as he crossed the goal line, giving the Warriors a 10-point lead with less than half a quarter to play.
And when Josh Mruk infiltrated the Crestwood backfield on a critical fourth-down play minutes later, Ciampi’s tight-rope walk down the sideline proved to be enough.
Wyoming Area opened the season with a 24-21 win over Crestwood at Jake Sobeski Field. It was the third consecutive one-score game these teams have played on opening night.
Wyoming Area got production from a bevy of new stars on offense, Ciampi included. The Comets fell despite a strong effort from quarterback Jaden Shedlock, who threw for 261 yards and a touchdown in his first game back after tearing his ACL a year ago.
The game was everything it was supposed to be. The Warriors found a way to make one more play.
“The reality is nobody is a good football team Week 1,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “You’re growing and developing no matter what. But it’s always important early in the season to get these kinds of wins. And when you do it against high level competition like Crestwood, it’s a big plus.”
Ciampi was one of the new faces Spencer felt had the potential to pose a problem for defenses. He mustered just 24 yards of total offense a year ago. And he nearly doubled that with one spectacular catch-and-run in the fourth quarter.
It couldn’t have come at a better time as the Warriors were facing third-and-8 from the Crestwood 42, nursing a 17-14 lead with just under 6 minutes to go. But first-year starting quarterback Jack Gravine, who had completed just 3 of his previous 11 passes, hit Ciampi on an out route which was more than enough for a first down.
Ciampi wasn’t satisfied. He absorbed the shove from the defender, kept his feet in bounds even as his upper body hovered over the sideline, then quickly cut to open space in the middle of the field. A first down there would have been ideal for an offense just looking to run some clock. A touchdown proved decisive.
“We’re very excited for Nick Ciampi,” Spencer said. “We knew he had some talent that not everybody was aware of. But that’s the kind of play that builds competitive confidence, and we’re excited about him. And we’re excited about the other guys as we roll through the season, and hopefully they’re growing the same way.”
It was a good start for a Warriors offense, which had plenty of questions. Tailback Trustin Johnson, who has the unenviable task of replacing more than 4,000 yards worth of rushing over the last two seasons from Aaron Crossley and Lidge Kellum, ran for 137 yards and a touchdown in his first start. Gravine threw for 107 yards and a touchdown in his first start, but also ran for 112 yards and a touchdown.
That trio provided the offense to a defense that found a way to make one last impactful play to close out the win.
Crestwood cut the Warriors’ lead to 24-21 with a Shedlock 1-yard scoring run, and the Comets’ defense got a key three-and-out to give Shedlock the ball at midfield with 1:18 to play.
The Comets faced third-and-3 with 54 seconds to go, and that’s when Wyoming Area came up with its best two plays of the night. The Warriors brought pressure up the middle, first forcing an incompletion on third down. Then recording a sack on fourth down to end the game.
“They really had kind of stayed back and stayed home all game,” Crestwood coach Ryan Arcangeli said. “They went all out there and got to us. The guy made a play.”
Despite the loss, Arcangeli was encouraged by the play of Shedlock coming off the ACL tear. He didn’t run the fleet-footed signal-caller as he has in the past, instead allowing Shedlock to play point guard and get the ball in the hands of his playmakers. Shedlock completed passes to five receivers and had three completions of 40 or more yards, including a 48-yard touchdown to Jack Rodgers when Rodgers was left uncovered down the sideline.
“He threw the ball great,” Arcangeli said. “It’s nice to have him upright and leading his guys. I think we’ll have a more traditional quarterback approach this year, but we can do that because we have great guys around him. So it doesn’t have to be his show.”
Wyoming Area 24, Crestwood 21
Crestwood`0`7`7`7 — 21
Wyoming Area`7`3`7`7 — 24
First quarter
WA — Jack Gravine 53 run (Gavin Feeney kick), 9:45
Second quarter
CRE — Jacob Jeckel 1 run (Cooper Laubach kick), 3:11
WA — Feeney 27 FG, 0:14
Third quarter
CRE — Jack Rodgers 48 pass from Jaden Shedlock (Laubach kick), 4:33
WA — Trustin Johnson 5 run (Feeney kick), 0:03
Fourth quarter
WA — Nick Ciampi 42 pass from J.Gravine (Feeney kick), 5:35
CRE — Shedlock 1 run (Laubach kick), 3:28
Team statistics`CRE`WA
First downs`11`18
Rushes-yards`23-37`42-271
Passing yards`237`90
Total yards`274`361
Passing`13-21-0`7-17-0
Sacked-yards lost`3-24`1-8
Punts-avg.`4-33.3`4-26.3
Fumbles-lost`2-0`2-0
Penalties-yards`10-65`8-51
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Crestwood, Shedlock 10-(minus-8), Jeckell 7-10, Nate Walsh 5-38, team 1-(minus-3). Wyoming Area, Johnson 24-138, J.Gravine 12-106, Ciampi 5-28, team 1-(minus-1).
PASSING — Crestwood, Shedlock 13-22-0-237. Wyoming Area, J.Gravine 7-17-0-90, team 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING —Crestwood, Logan Lawson 4-55, Walsh 1-1, Amias Ocasio 1-11, Giovanni Barna 5-116, Rodgers 2-54. Wyoming Area, Luke Kopetchny 3-29, Johnson 1-8, Josh Mruk 2-11, Ciampi 1-42.
INTERCEPTIONS — none
MISSED FGs none
