On Friday, September 5th, the West Branch Warriors took on the Bulldogs of Claysburg.
To start the game, the Warriors got the ball. Coby Kephart ran the ball hard, but ultimately the Warriors ended up punting. To start the drive for Claysburg, they threw one deep for a touchdown on the first play of their opening series. The Warriors responded with a good drive, pushing deep into Bulldog territory, but they ended up turning the ball over on downs. They didn’t back down as they stopped the Bulldogs and forced them to punt.
A few plays later, the Warriors faked a punt and senior Coby Kephart hit junior Justin Esposti for a first down. Three plays later, junior Quarterback Conner Danko hit senior receiver Easton Emigh in stride for a 33-yard touchdown pass.
Tied up 7-7, the Warriors and Bulldogs kept delivering blows to each other, then Claysburg finally punched a score in after the Warriors kept denying them.
The Warriors tried putting a drive together before half, but stalled out. Claysburg tried a field goal before the clock struck 0, but missed. The Bulldogs went into the half up 13-7.
The Bulldogs got the ball to start the half and went down the field quickly, and punched in a score. They attempted a 2-point conversion and converted, making the score 21-7.
The Warriors didn’t back down from that challenge despite being down 14 points. The Warriors got the ball on their own 36-yard line. Coby Kephart, Easton Emigh, and Conner Danko took charge of the drive as Danko and Emigh started the drive with a 7-yard pass completion. Then Kephart burst out with a 20-yard rush, followed by Danko hitting Kephart with a pass down the seam for a 32-yard gain. A few plays later, the Warriors found themselves in a 4th and 13. Danko found Emigh in the back of the endzone for a 25-yard passing touchdown, which would make it their 2nd touchdown together that game. The Warriors cut the score down to 21 – 14.
The Bulldogs responded quickly with a 3-play touchdown drive, making the score 28 – 14. Down by 2 touchdowns again, the Warriors showed no signs of giving in.
The Warriors got the ball on the 50-yard line, and Danko found Brayden Williamson over the middle for a 17-yard pass. A few hard runs from Danko put the Warriors on the Bulldogs 3 3-yard line. That’s when the Warriors’ offensive line imposed their will, and Danko followed behind them, punching in a touchdown, making the score 28 – 21.
The Bulldogs got the ball back and drove down the field quickly, but that’s when the Warriors’ defense had enough and forced them to try a field goal on 4th down. The Bulldogs ended up making the field goal, tacking on 3 more points, making the score 31 – 21.
The Warriors got the ball back, and Kephart took matters into his own hands. He ran all over the Bulldogs’ defense, stringing a 30 + yard run, then bulldozing his way through Bulldog defenders running in a touchdown 17 yards away, making the score 31 – 28.
The Warriors fought hard, but that’s when the Bulldogs put the nail in the coffin, punching in another touchdown, making the score 38 – 28. The Warriors had no choice but to try to score as fast as they could, but unfortunately, they couldn’t find the end zone. Claysburg put another score on the board with minutes left in the game.
The Warriors tried to find the end zone but ended up running out of time, making the final score 45 – 28. “We played well tonight. The scoreboard obviously doesn’t show how well we really played. We still have some things to clean up, but we rallied together as a team. Despite the loss, I’m proud of this game. Claysburg is a good opponent, and we battled until the very end with them. We can all do better, but this is a huge stepping stone game for us,” stated middle linebacker/ tight end Hansen Lannen.
The Warriors take on the Trojans of Mount Union tonight at home.
Coby Kephart finished with 76 rushing yards, 32 receiving yards, and 1 touchdown
Easton Emigh finished with 3 catches for 65 yards and 2 touchdowns
Brayden Williamson also added 56 receiving yards
Conner Danko finished with 171 passing yards and 72 rushing yards with 3 total touchdowns
Xavier Fackler went 4-4 with extra points.
Tags – Coby Kephart, Easton Emigh, Conner Danko, Brayden Willamson, Hansen Lannen.
