Times Leader The early action in Friday night’s district title game was something of a clash of styles: Scranton Prep’s explosive chunk plays and long-gainers, vs. Wyoming Area’s more methodical ground game approach.
Prep’s style won out, as it has so many times before, and the Cavaliers rolled to a sixth straight district championship.
Braedon McPartland had 145 yards and four touchdowns on just eight carries, and Scranton Prep simply overmatched and overwhelmed Wyoming Area for a 50-7 win to capture the District 2 Class 3A championship at Scranton Memorial Stadium.
The Cavaliers had four touchdowns of over 40 yards and ran up and down the field all night despite only completing one pass — which went for 51 yards and an Owen McPartland score.
“They had big plays right off the bat offensively, a couple explosives,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “We had some competitive moments, but hats off to Scranton Prep, they’re an outstanding football team.”
After what appeared to be an onside kick attempt from Wyoming Area rolled out of bounds at midfield to start the game, the Cavaliers needed just two plays to score.
The first of Braedon McPartland’s four scores was a 47-yarder, one of the many explosive plays that had the Warriors’ defense reeling throughout the night.
He scored again from five yards out after Prep’s defense came up with a three-and-out, and it was 13-0 Prep less than four minutes into the game.
Wyoming Area’s next two offensive drives were its two most competitive of the night, and it was done entirely on the ground as the rain and wind pretty much took both teams’ passing games out of commission.
Both times, the Warriors leaned on Nicholas Kondrosky on some counter runs and Luke Kopetchny on straight-ahead quarterback sneaks, and the combination led the Warriors into Scranton Prep territory with the Cavaliers struggling to hold their ground.
But those two long drives resulted in zero Wyoming Area points: the first ended in a fumble lost inside the Scranton Prep red zone, and the second saw penalties back the Warriors way up and ultimately led to a punt.
“You have to make adjustments … (Wyoming Area) came out in a formation that we hadn’t seen them run, give them credit for doing it,” Scranton Prep head coach Terry Gallagher said. “It took us a bit longer than I’d have liked, that’s what happens with high school kids but they’re good kids, we’re fortunate to have them.”
In between those drives, McPartland scored his third touchdown on the ground to make it 20-0.
After the second stop, Owen Jeffers connected with Owen McPartland for a 51-yard touchdown to send the Cavaliers to halftime with a 27-0 lead.
A field goal, the last of Braedon McPartland’s four touchdown runs and a touchdown run for Brandon Farmer stretched the game into mercy rule territory and had the Cavaliers out in front 43-0 before the Warriors could get on the board.
Dominic Bartell’s second carry of the night was a 61-yarder to the house with 4:22 to play, helping Wyoming Area avoid the shutout.
The Cavaliers ran for 370 yards in total, with Braedon McPartland leading the way but with healthy doses of Jeffers, Farmer and Henry Barrett, too.
McPartland’s final touchdown, on his final carry of the night, came with plenty of room created by his line and ended with one emphatic broken tackle on his way across the goal line.
“It’s really my offensive line blocking for me, it’s them giving me the holes and I’m just hitting them,” McPartland said. “It’s not me making the plays, it’s them.”
Wyoming Area ends the season with a 9-3 record, their eight-game winning streak snapped with Friday night’s loss.
Scranton Prep will head to the PIAA Class 3A tournament, taking on the District 12 champ next week. Archbishop Wood and Bartram will play for the District 12 title on Saturday. |
Citizens Voice Braedon McPartland plays football with a purpose.
He is a punishing runner with deceptive speed. He is a relentless attacker on defense. He is the fiery heart of the Scranton Prep Cavaliers.
On a crisp autumn evening at Scranton Veterans Memorial Stadium, the powerful senior running back and linebacker led his team to an overwhelming 50-7 win over Wyoming Area. Scranton Prep won its 11th consecutive game, and more importantly, its sixth straight District 2 Class 3A championship.
The Cavaliers (11-1) advance to the PIAA first round to play the winner of Saturday’s District 12 championship game between Archbishop Wood and John Bartram.
“As a senior, we don’t have too many more games left, so we are going to use that as motivation to the best that we can,” said Braedon McPartland, who finished with 146 yards and four touchdowns on eight carries.
Braedon McPartland, a legacy athlete following in the footsteps of his father, Will, who played at the University of Miami, and his brother, William, last year’s Times-Tribune Male Athlete of the Year, pushed his rushing total to 1,054 yards with 15 touchdowns.
He wasted little time setting the tone, bulling through tackles for a 48-yard touchdown on his first carry in the first quarter, giving the Cavaliers a 7-0 lead.
“Every run, I have the mentality that I want to score,” Braedon McPartland said. “That is the mentality you have to have, and that really helps drive me.”
Noah Krzywiec contributed to the team’s strong start with a 29-yard punt return, securing a first down on the Wyoming Area 26. Three runs by Braedon McPartland resulted in another touchdown and a 13-0 advantage with 8:57 remaining in the opening quarter.
“We knew this was going to be a tough game,” Krzywiec said. “That return helped us set the tone early, and we had a spark. That kind of took the wind out of their sails a little bit early in the game.”
Wyoming Area’s best drive reached the Scranton Prep 19. Luke Kopetchny had seven carries for 31 yards, and Nicolas Kondrosky added 11 rushing yards. However, Scranton Prep halted the surge when Chris Paris recovered a fumble.
A series of penalties crippled Wyoming Area’s next drive. Scranton Prep, pinned at the 11 after a punt, flipped the field when quarterback Owen Jeffers broke into the open field and raced 80 yards to the 9.
Once again, Braedon McPartland finished the drive with a physical 2-yard plunge for his third score and a 20-0 lead.
Scranton Prep forced another punt. On the second play, Jeffers pumped and then launched a pass to Owen McPatland, Braedon’s brother, and after a quick shuffle, faked out, a tackler raced for a 51-yard touchdown and a 27-0 lead at the break.
Scranton Prep controlled the trenches. The Cavaliers pounded out 370 rushing yards, and in the second half, they limited Wyoming Area to 13 rushing yards on its first nine carries while the lead swelled to 43-0.
“The game plan was great, and we executed it very well,” said Paris, a two-way lineman for the Cavaliers. “Tato (Braedon) ran the ball really tough. That is our identity. We had to get the run game going to get the passing game going.
“We did a good job in the second half against the run and got it done.”
Tyler Bianchi, who made 5 of 7 extra points, added a 26-yard field goal in the third quarter. Braedon McPlartland finished with an explosive run through the center of the Wyoming Area defense for a 65-yard third-quarter touchdown that made it 36-0.
Brandon Farmer capped another Scranton Prep drive with an 11-yard touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
Wyoming Area sophomore running back Dominic Bartell had a 61-yard touchdown to avoid the shutout.
Scranton Prep sophomore Charlie Dennebaum finished the scoring on a 65-yard run.
Scranton Prep now has 10 District 2 Class 3A championships since 2015. The Cavaliers have outscored Wyoming Valley Conference opponents, 185-26, in the last two postseasons.
“This feels great to get these coaches their sixth straight championship,” Braedon McPartland said. “I think it is exciting for them, too.” |
District 2 Class 3A Championship
Scranton Prep 50, Wyoming Area 7
Wyoming Area`0`0`0`7 — 7
Scranton Prep`13`14`9`14 — 50
First quarter
SP — Braedon McPartland 47 run (Tyler Bianchi kick) 11:06
SP — B. McPartland 5 run (kick failed) 8:37
Second quarter
SP — B. McPartland 2 run (Bianchi kick) 3:08
SP — Owen McPartland 51 pass from Owen Jeffers (Bianchi kick) 1:30
Third quarter
SP — Bianchi 26 field goal 5:48
SP — B. McPartland 65 run (kick failed) 3:22
Fourth quarter
SP — Brandon Farmer 11 run (Bianchi kick) 6:31
WA — Dominic Bartell 61 run (Ava Musinski kick) 4:22
SP — Charlie Dennebaum 65 run (Bianchi kick) 2:41 |
Team statistics`WA`SP
First downs`10`14
Rushes-yards`41-199`23-370
Passing yards`11`51
Total yards`210`421
Passing`2-8-0`1-4-0
Sacked-yards lost`1-7`0-0
Punts-avg.`6-29`1-43
Fumbles-lost`4-1`1-0
Penalties-yards`6-45`5-40
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA, Nicholas Kondrosky 12-59, Jordan Rosario 1-3, Luke Kopetchny 20-63, Team 2-0, Bartell 3-73, Connor Grochal 1-1, Adrian Cruz 1-3. SP, B. McPartland 8-145, Jeffers 4-97, Farmer 4-47, Henry Barrett 1-13, Team 1-(minus-7), Dennebaum 2-67, Carter Kowalski 1-8.
PASSING — WA, Kopetchny 2-8-0-11. SP, Jeffers 1-4-0-51.
RECEIVING — WA, Drew Keating 1-7, Lavell Brock 1-4. SP, O. McPartland 1-51.
INTERCEPTIONS — none.
MISSED FGs — none. |
