Lackawanna Trail at Berwick

Recap

BERWICK 33, LACKAWANNA TRAIL 12

At Berwick’s Crispin Field, the Bulldogs rode the fierce running of tailback Ty’meere Wilkerson and utilized a stingy second-half run defense to bounce previously undefeated Lackawanna Trail 33-12. Wilkerson carried 25 times for an incredible 231 yards and three touchdowns as Berwick remained unblemished.

The Bulldogs opened the festivities on their very first drive, parlaying 8 consecutive runs to move the ball from their own 33 to the Trail 32. At that point, freshman quarterback Brady Cleaver used play action to dupe the Lion defense and found Alex Estrella alone behind the Trail defenders for the touchdown. Caleb Yost’s extra point made it 7-0 Berwick with 6:27 left in the opening stanza.

It didn’t take long for the Lions to answer. Running out of the Delaware Wing-T, the Lions got a big play from their standout back, Isaac Ryon. Ryon broke a tackle and outraced the entire Berwick secondary to the goal line to complete a 67-yard scoring scamper. The extra point was blocked and the Bulldogs held a 7-6 advantage with 3:38 remaining in the first quarter.

The teams then traded punts, but Berwick gained a huge advantage after the change of possession. Yost’s initial punt went out of bounds at the Lions’ 3-yard line. Punting from their own 4, Trail saw Cleaver return a short punt to the 22-yard line of the Lions. 5 plays later, Wilkerson bulled over from the 2, making it 14-6 with 6:44 remaining before halftime.

After a Trail punt, the Bulldogs drove to the Trail 40-yard line before seeing a Cleaver desperation pass fall just beyond the outstretched arms of Estrella as the half expired.

The second half, to put it simply, was all Berwick. After forcing the Lions to punt on their first possession, Berwick took over on the Trail 44, a common theme all night long as the Bulldogs benefited from outstanding field position as a result of great special teams play. After gaining 6 yards on first down, Wilkerson took the handoff on second down and rambled for a 38-yard touchdown. A bad snap on the extra point kept the score at 20-6 in favor of Berwick with 9:05 left in the third quarter.

Neither team was able to muster any sustained drives through the remainder of the third frame, but Berwick had taken over at the Trail 38 after just a 20-yard Lion punt. Following three short runs, Cleaver skirted the Trail end and sprinted 27-yards for the score. The kick was unsuccessful, and Berwick had extended their lead to 26-6 with 11:20 remaining in the football game.

A short kick gave Trail the ball at midfield and their best field position of the evening. A 27-yard run by Ryon put the Lions in business inside the Berwick 20. Ryon fumbled, however, and Trail took over at their own 16. Two plays later, Wilkerson was in the end zone again, this time racing 81 yards to paydirt. Yost’s extra point made it 33-6 with 8:44 to play.

Trail was able to manage a touchdown on their final possession of the evening. The key play on the 65-yard scoring drive was a 29-yard strike from quarterback Tyler Jervis to Ryon that put the ball on the Berwick 21. Four plays later, Jervis carried it in from 2 yards away. The kick was missed, making the final score 33-12.

The Bulldogs will travel to Hazleton next weekend in the hopes of extending their unbeaten streak to 4 games to begin the season. Lackawanna Trail hosts Dunmore in a matchup of 2-1 teams in Week 4.

SCORING SUMMARY

1ST QUARTER

BER – Alex Estrella 33-yd pass from Brady Cleaver (Caleb Yost kick) – Berwick 7-0

LT – Isaac Ryon 67-yd run (Kick failed) – Berwick 7-6

2ND QUARTER

BER – Ty’Meere Wilkerson 2-yd run (Yost kick) – Berwick 14-6

3RD QUARTER

BER – Wilkerson 38-yd run (Pass failed) – Berwick 20-6

4TH QUARTER

BER – Cleaver 27-yd run (Kick failed) – Berwick 26-6

BER – Wilkerson 81-yd run (Yost kick) – Berwick 33-6

LT – Tyler Jervis 3-yd run (Kick failed) – Berwick 33-12