Jake Rafferty pictured above
Photo credits to Bpags photography
By: Edward Kiesendahl
The stage was set for Homecoming at Wallenpaupack last Friday night. After a week full of school spirit culminating by the Pep Rally, you could feel the excited energy for the game to come. Paupack would head into their Homecoming game riding high after a dominant win over Scranton (35-7) the prior week making their record 3-4. Abington was also coming in hot after a huge win over Scranton Prep 17-15, and they had done it without starting quarterback Nick Bradley. What would be the deciding factor in this game was if Wallenpaupack’s offense could sustain drives and put up points against a talented Abington defense.
The Buckhorns started with the ball and came out with their hair on fire. Eddie Kiesendahl finished a decisive eight-play drive for the Buckhorns by punching it into the endzone from nine-yards out.
Abington responded by their offensive weapons with a twenty-six-yard touchdown pass. The back-and-forth offensive action did not stop there as junior running back Eddie Kiesendahl broke loose on a fifty-one-yard touchdown run striking paydirt for the second time in the first quarter. Things continued to move in the Buckhorns’ favor when Senior Logan Caruso intercepted the ball at the fifty for an important turnover.
Nothing came easy for Paupack’s offense on their next drive as the net gain yielded a negative eighteen yards forcing a punt. The Comets slowly worked their way down to the Bucks’ goal line before being denied on fourth down, giving the ball back to Paupack. A false start penalty on Wallenpaupack would end their next drive early and open the door for Abington’s offense to come out on the field with great position leading to their second score of the night.
The offensive struggles continued with a quick three-and-out for the Buckhorns, giving Abington the ball back with a little under a minute left in the first half. Once again, the Comets took advantage, adding three to their total as the halftime horn sounded. This made the score 17-14 at the half.
Opening up the second half, Abington’s offensive drive was turned away by the Buckhorns tough defense. The Buckhorn drive that ensued began with promise with them working their way down to the Abington twenty-seven, but a bad snap that was batted all the way down the field to the Wallenpaupack thirty-seven completely changed the momentum of the game. With the short field, Abington quickly scored to extend their lead to 24-14. As the third quarter ended, it seemed so did Paupack’s offensive rebuttal to the score, but a roughing the kicker penalty gave them a second chance as the final quarter began. Paupack did not capitalize turning the ball over on downs only a few plays later. Abington started their drive searching for a score that would seemingly close up the game. However, Paupack did not give up. On the goal line senior Izael Rodriguez broke up a pass attempt that was then batted to Eddie Kiesendahl for an interception. This momentum was short lived as a sack by the Comets squandered any hope of the Buckhorns scoring. On their next drive, Abington would not be denied scoring their final touchdown of the evening, making the final score 31-14.
The game was much closer than the score indicated with a ton of back-and-forth action between the two teams. Wallenpaupack’s failure to convert on third and fourth down kept them from being able to check this game off in the win column. This drops the Buckhorns to 3-5 on the season and puts them one spot out of the district two playoffs.
Their next game is against Pittston Area who just won division one of the Wyoming Valley Conference. However, their competition has not been up to the caliber that the Buckhorns have faced. It will be a distinctly evenly matched game with the winner being decided by whichever team steps onto the field and executes in big play moments. The game is home tomorrow at 7:00 and it is senior night! Make sure to come out and support the Buckhorns for their final home game of the season.
