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WVC football: Turnovers haunt Hanover Area in loss to Lackawanna Trail

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WVC football: Fast start propels Lakeland past Nanticoke Area

MOOSIC &#8212; In a season of up-and-downs, Hazleton Area did not let the change of venue disrupt its hopes of the playoffs.The Cougars defeated Scranton on the Knights&#8217; homecoming night at PNC Field 38-14.Hazleton Area improved to 3-6, while Scranton fell to 1-7.Scranton started the game with the ball on its own 35-yard line. It only took the Knights 13 seconds to score after running back Jerrod Brown took a direct snap from the center for a a 65-yard rushing touchdown.Brown rushed for a team-high 146 yards.Hazleton Area return man Jacob Hunsinger ran a 65-yard kick back to the end zone to tie the game at 7-7.&#8220;My teammates made great blocks,&#8221; said Hunsinger. &#8220;I saw the hole they opened up for me and I ran through it as fast as I could.&#8221;Both scores took a total of 30 seconds off the game clock.After stopping Scranton, Hazleton Area quarterback Sparky Wolk connected with wideout Nolan Schneider for a 65-yard strike in the end zone to extend the Cougars lead 14-7.Hunsinger continued his big first quarter as a recipient of a wide-open 34-yard strike from Wolk as he ran a wheel route to extend the Cougars&#8217; lead 21-7.Hazleton Area coach Mike Brennan even noted Hunsinger&#8217;s great play on Friday night.&#8220;Jacob was lights out,&#8221; Brennan said. &#8220;He&#8217;s having an all-state caliber type season.&#8221;Hazleton Area looked poised to continue its offensive onslaught, but Scranton&#8217;s defense tightened up and made some adjustments, shutting the Cougars out until halftime.&#8220;We weren&#8217;t satisfied at halftime with not finishing some of our offensive drives,&#8221; Brennan said. &#8220;Our kids answered, and a lot of guys stepped up tonight.&#8221;The Knights scored their final points of the evening on Caleb Sherman&#8217;s 85-yard touchdown run after being pinned at their own 15 yard line.For the second time on the night, Hazleton Area immediately answered Scranton&#8217;s score. Dallas Solomon scored his first touchdown of the season on a 39-yard rush. He ran for 21 yards to set up his touchdown score.&#8220;A lot of big guys made some big plays. It was a good solid overall win,&#8221; Brennan said. &#8220;We need to continue to get better and continue to develop our depth.&#8221;Hunsinger capped off his big day by running back a 24-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.&#8220;We needed this win because we&#8217;ve done a lot of great things despite what our record says,&#8221; Brennan said. &#8220;Our track record shows that we&#8217;ve gotten better around this time of year, and we really feel like tonight was a right step in the right direction.&#8221;Lance Johnson led the Cougars on the ground with 92 yards on 15 carries.Next week Hazleton Area will face off against Coughlin in the two team&#8217;s final all-time meeting.<ins>Hazleton Area 38, Scranton 14 </ins><ins>Hazleton Area`24`0`7`7 &#8212; 38 </ins><ins>Scranton`7`0`7`0 &#8212; 14 </ins><ins>First quarter </ins><ins>SCR &#8212; Jerrod Brown 65 run (Mike Slavinski kick) 11:43 </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Jacob Hunsinger 65 return (Will Rodriguez kick) 11:31 </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Nolan Schneider 65 pass from Sparky Wolk (Rodriguez kick) 7:03 </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Hunsinger 34 pass from Wolk (Rodriguez kick) 6:08 </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Rodriguez 22 kick 0:27 </ins><ins>Second quarter </ins><ins>No scoring. </ins><ins>Third quarter </ins><ins>SCR &#8212; Caleb Sherman 85 run (Slavinski kick) 7:14 </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Dallas Solomon 39 run (Rodriguez kick) 6:29 </ins><ins>Fourth quarter </ins><ins>HA &#8212; Hunsinger 24 fumble recovery (Rodriguez kick) 1:33 </ins><ins>Team statistics`HA`SCR </ins><ins>First downs`15`12 </ins><ins>Rushes-yards`27-169`33-278 </ins><ins>Passing yards`193`49 </ins><ins>Total yards`362`327 </ins><ins>Passing`9-18-0`6-14-1 </ins><ins>Sacked-yards lost`2-8`2-30 </ins><ins>Punts-avg.`2-39.5`4-36 </ins><ins>Fumbles-lost`0-0`3-2 </ins><ins>Penalties-yards`2-15`5-35 </ins><ins>INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS </ins><ins>RUSHING &#8212; HA, Johnson 15-92, Solomon 5-50, Horton 4-19, Wolk 3-8. SCR, Brown 14-146, Sherman 5-83, A. White 3-27, T. White 3-9, Salazar 2-6, Crusen 1-5. </ins> <ins>PASSING &#8212; HA, Wolk 9-18-0-193. SCR, White 4-12-1-49, Murphy 2-2-0-1. </ins><ins>RECEIVING &#8212; HA, Schneider 4-73, Hunsinger 4-61, Fisher 3-37, Matayas 1-23. SCR, Russell 1-13, Brown 1-12, T. White 1-10, Terry 1-6. </ins><ins>INTERCEPTIONS &#8212; SCR, White 1-60. </ins><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Dan Stokesdstokes@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Dan Stokes at 570-991-6389 or on Twitter @ByDanStokes</shirttailMeta></div>

WVC football: Hazleton Area outslugs Scranton at PNC Field