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Areas of moderate to heavy traffic reported in the Wyoming Valley Friday morning

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New-look Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins ready to get season underway

<p>Lake-Lehman begins its football season at 7 p.m. Friday, hosting GAR in a game with divisional championship and postseason implications.</p><p>OK, the Black Knights don&#8217;t really begin their season Friday. That happened five weeks ago. But taking a 10-game regular season and playoff aspirations in one big gulp can be counterproductive. So Lehman coach Jerry Gilsky is looking at the game with GAR as not the midway point of the season but rather the start of another five-game season.</p><p>&#8220;Don&#8217;t tell a kid to go 10-0,&#8221; Gilsky said. &#8220;Say, &#8216;Our goal is 5-0.&#8217; You want little steps. You want to win your first one. You want to finish off your first half with a win. You want little milestones for your team, just don&#8217;t give a big one. You give little ones to get to that big goal.&#8221;</p><p>So far it&#8217;s been mission accomplished for Lehman, which is 5-0, atop the District 2 Class 2A and WVC Division 2 standings and off to its best start in Gilsky&#8217;s six years running the show.</p><p>The Black Knights have won every game by at least 21 points, including a 42-13 demolition of state-ranked Old Forge two weeks ago.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a battle,&#8221; said GAR coach Paul Wiedlich Jr., whose team brings a 3-2 record into the game. &#8220;But we&#8217;re going to get on the bus and play ball.&#8221;</p><p>The matchup came very close to a contest between two undefeated teams. GAR led Old Forge 18-16 late in the third quarter in its season opener. The game turned Old Forge&#8217;s way in a high-scoring fourth quarter, resulting in a 44-32 loss. The Grenadiers led Northwest 28-14 going into the fourth quarter two weeks ago. Again, things unraveled a bit as Northwest rallied for a 42-25 overtime victory.</p><p>&#8220;In my opinion, against Old Forge they had them on their heels for the most part,&#8221; Gilsky said. &#8220;It&#8217;s a good team to go against, especially to start the second half.&#8221;</p><p>The focus will be on three of the best running backs in the WVC &#8212; GAR&#8217;s Anthony Maurent and Lehman&#8217;s duo of Nick Eury and Joey Vigil.</p><p>Maurent is fourth in the WVC Division 2A with 629 rushing yards and is averaging 12.1 yards per carry. His 12 rushing TDs lead the entire WVC. Eury is second in the division in rushing with 779 yards, is averaging 11.6 per carry and has scored 10 rushing TDs. Vigil&#8217;s 17.4 yards-per-carry average is the best among any WVC back with at least 200 yards. He is fifth in the division in rushing with 612 yards and has 10 rushing TDs.</p><p>Both teams also have good fullbacks capable of picking up yardage between the tackles &#8212; Mike Drozda for GAR and Luke Hummel for Lehman.</p><p>Those preferring to watch the big guys need to look no further than Lehman center Connor McGovern, who is considered the best lineman in the WVC. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Penn State recruit is dominant in the trenches, but can&#8217;t block everybody. That&#8217;s where the other interior linemen &#8212; Nate Pavilchko, Mason Rios, Chris Traver and Cole Spencer &#8212; and tight end Zach Brucher come into play.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;re good up front,&#8221; Gilsky said, &#8220;but as a team as a whole everybody knows their responsibility. Everybody is a role player. Everybody knows what they have to contribute to the team for us to be successful. It absolutely starts up front.&#8221;</p><p>It has to because everyone knows Lehman is going to run the football. The Black Knights have run the ball 198 times this season compared to 12 passing attempts. They&#8217;ve thrown the ball once in the last two games.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve been doing it for the past six years, figure it out,&#8221; Gilsky said. &#8220;That&#8217;s the luxury. We&#8217;re able to do it. And the kids believe in it.&#8221;</p><p>GAR believes in a more balanced attack despite Maurent&#8217;s capability to score anytime he touches the ball. Quarterback Garry Kroll is having a solid season with 658 yards and seven touchdowns through the air. Dajon Rush, who is also a solid basketball player, has been his favorite target, although Maurent will line up in the slot on occasion.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;re trying to come with a balanced attack,&#8221; Wiedlich said. &#8220;We&#8217;re trying to keep them off kilter.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">GAR running back Anthony Maurent (4) will be among the breakaway threats on the field Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_gar_nw2_faa.jpg</photo0><caption0>GAR running back Anthony Maurent (4) will be among the breakaway threats on the field Friday. </caption0><photoCredit0>Fred Adams | Times Leader file photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_MAURENT.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Maurent </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_MAURENT.jpg</photo1><caption1>Maurent </caption1><photoCredit1>Fred Adams | Times Leader file photo </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_TTL-090315-HFS-Lehman-preview-2-spts-.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Eury </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_TTL-090315-HFS-Lehman-preview-2-spts-.jpg</photo2><caption2>Eury </caption2><photoCredit2>Fred Adams | Times Leader file photo </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_TTL-090315-HFS-Lehman-preview-7-spts-.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Vigil </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_TTL-090315-HFS-Lehman-preview-7-spts-.jpg</photo3><caption3>Vigil </caption3><photoCredit3>Fred Adams | Times Leader file photo </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By John Erzar</p><p>jerzar@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Week 6 Schedule</strong></p><p><strong>Friday&#8217;s Games</strong></p><p>(7 p.m.)</p><p>Berwick at Wyoming Area</p><p>Dallas at Wyoming Valley West</p><p>GAR at Lake-Lehman</p><p>Hazleton Area at Crestwood</p><p>Meyers at Hanover Area</p><p>Northwest at Nanticoke</p><p>Pittston Area at Tunkhannock</p><p>Williamsport at Coughlin</p><p>Wyoming Seminary at Poly Prep</p><p><strong>Saturday&#8217;s Game</strong></p><p>Holy Redeemer at Susquehanna, 2:15 p.m.</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach John Erzar at 570-991-6394 or on Twitter @TLJohnErzar</p></shirttailMeta></div>

GAR, Lehman showdown opens ‘new’ season