The West Branch football team kicked off their pre-season with a home scrimmage against Northern Bedford on August 17th. Over the following two weeks, the Warriors faced Everett away on August 23rd and hosted Cameron County on August 30th.

The Warriors had a devastating loss against Everett with a score of 0-42. The Warriors’ defense struggled to stop Everett’s running game with Everett having 253 total yards on 16 carries, compared to the Warriors’ 135 total yards. 

Senior Owen Koleno had 3 catches with a total of 17 yards. Junior Coby Kephart had 10 carries with a total of 37 rushing yards. Senior Craig Fluck made a phenomenal catch, from sophomore Connor Danko that totaled 35 yards. Unfortunately, the Warriors’ drive from the long catch from Fluck did not lead the Warriors to a touchdown.

The following week, the Warriors played their home opener against Cameron County but lost 6-35 to the Raiders. The Warriors started strong in the first quarter with sophomore Frankie Leskovasnky having a 70-yard catch, running it into the endzone for the Warriors’ only touchdown of the night, making the score 6-0.  The Warriors were unsuccessful in their extra-point attempt.  

Then the Warriors’ defense secured their lead until the 2nd quarter with the Raiders scoring two touchdowns to make the score 6-14, with the Raiders in the lead. Senior Troy Mentzer had an interception, but the Warriors’ drive unfortunately did not lead to their second touchdown. Koleno had three catches with a total of 23 yards. Koleno stated, “We were the better team. We punched them in the mouth early but couldn’t build on it. It was a much better first half than week one, so I believe that it will help us as the season goes on.”

The Warriors’ next matchup is on September 6th, against the Claysburg-Kimmel Bulldogs at home.