The West Branch Warriors took on the 4-1 Juniata Valley Hornets on September 19 and fell 55-14 on Friday night. They fought hard in a tough matchup, but their defense was not enough to stop the Hornets’ offense. West Branch payer, Julian Panebianco, said, “We started off playing pretty good, but once they scored we dropped our heads and made ourselves believe that we were out of the game when we still had it in us.”

In the first quarter, Juniata Valley scored a quick touchdown on a 28-yard pass, making the score 0-7. West Branch’s offense responded when wide receiver Frankie Leskovansky returned a kickoff for an 85-yard touchdown, but the kick was missed, making the score 6-7. The Hornets scored again with eight minutes left in the first quarter on a run play to the Warriors’ end zone. West Branch played solid defense for the rest of the quarter, finishing the first with a score of 14-6.

In the second quarter, Juniata Valley added three more touchdowns on a variety of plays. They opened with a 13-yard touchdown pass, extending their lead to 21-6. The Hornets then scored on a 14-yard run to the end zone, making the score 6-28. They closed the second quarter with a fumble recovery for a 72-yard touchdown, bringing the score to 34-6 after the kick failed. Even though the Warriors were behind, the West Branch Band gave the crowd something to cheer about with a strong halftime show. Keegan Dobo and Haley Woodling were announced as Homecoming king and queen, while Coby Kephart and Natalie Yingling were announced as runners-up.

The Warriors came back out after halftime, and in the third quarter, West Branch scored again thanks to Coby Kephart intercepting a pass and returning it 86 yards for a touchdown, making the score 34-14. The Hornets responded with a 35-yard run, making the score 41-14.

In the fourth quarter, the Warriors kept fighting but gave up two touchdowns on two run plays by the Hornets and ended up falling in a hard-fought battle with a final score of 55-14.

West Branch’s next game is away against Curwensville on September 26 at 7 p.m.