Zanolini A Hit 
With Cougars 
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File Photo 
Corey Zanolini 
Hazleton Areqa Lineman 
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Hush Hush Stuff 
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Photo 
Times Leader/don Carey 
The View From

Thursday, November 26, 1992 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1C/10C QUICK WORDS: POWLUS HIGH SCHOOL
FOOTBALL 





REMATCH -- Berwick QB Ron Powlus joined his Bulldog teammates in a bitter
22-21 loss to North Pocono in the EC title game last season. The two teams
will meet again for the EC title Saturday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ******************** &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; By BOB NOCEK &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Times Leader Sports Writer &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 BERWICK -- These Berwick Bulldogs aren't about to pass up a chance for
revenge. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 After all, it was North Pocono which smashed their Eastern Conference
dreams a year ago, with a late scoring drive and Ryan McGee's two-point
conversion in the Trojans' 22-21 victory. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Never forget. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We just showed them the last two minutes of that game," said Berwick coach
George Curry before Monday's practice. "It's a sick feeling. They remember it
clearly. I don't think a day went by when someone in our program didn't think
of that game." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Make no mistake about it, they'll remember it well Saturday, when the
'Dawgs (12-0) host North Pocono (7-3) at 1 p.m. for the Eastern Conference
Division III championship. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Trojans, however, say all is forgotten. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We've never talked about last year's game," said Trojan coach Nick Donato.
"We're just going out and playing as well as we can. Some weeks it works out,
and some years it works out." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 For Berwick, most years, it works out. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The 'Dawgs are making their sixth straight appearance in the Eastern
Conference playoffs and seeking their fourth Eastern Conference title in the
last five years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They're playing for the Class AAA Region I berth in the PIAA Football
Championships, which would give the 'Dawgs -- the 1988 Class AAA state
champions -- a record fourth appearance in the five-year-old tournament. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And they're looking to settle the score. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Hey, they're the defending champs," Curry said. "We've got to beat them." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It would fulfill Berwick's early Christmas list of goals that Curry passed
out at practice this week: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 1. Do you want to go to states? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 2. Do you want to avenge last year's heartbreaking loss? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 3. Do you want to win the Eastern Conference championship? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 4. Do you want to remain unbeaten? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The answer, of course, is yes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But when you're talking about Berwick, is there really any question? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It's currently the nation's top-ranked team, says USA Today 's weekly Super
25. The 'Dawgs -- who won USA Today 's national championship in 1983 -- have
been on top of that poll since the pre-season. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They're ranked No.1 in Class AAA in the Harrisburg Patriot-News poll as
well, ahead of some possible state playoff opponents, like Blackhawk, Lock
Haven, Sharon, Manheim Central and Knoch. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But, as Curry quickly points out, none of that means anything if they don't
get past North Pocono. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We can't worry about anything but North Pocono," said Curry. "We've got to
win this one to get to states." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So far, no one but Hazleton Area has even come close to beating Berwick,
and even the Cougars couldn't pull it off, losing 14-6. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They've won 12 straight games this season, outscoring their opponents
504-60. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 With the exception of Hazleton Area, the Bulldogs have beaten everyone by
at least 26 points. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 North Pocono hopes to avoid that. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "If we can hang in there, the better our chances go," Donato said. "We have
to hope Powlus isn't on fire, and that we can catch a couple of breaks. We're
not going to win a 40-35 game or anything like that. If it's in the 20s, we
might have a shot." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "North Pocono's a quality program," Curry said. "We know what we're up
against. It's not going to be any blowout. It's going to be a good game." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It has a thrilling predecessor in last year's EC final, when North Pocono
rallied late, scoring a touchdown on a B.J. Gallis pass that Keith Olsommer
caught in the end zone to close the Trojans to within 21-20. Then, with 36
seconds remaining, McGee carried the two-point conversion that lifted North
Pocono over Berwick, 22-21. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Expect another battle this time around. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They've got some athletes," Curry said. "I look for a pretty evenly
matched game." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Berwick hasn't seen many of those this season. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Quarterback Ron Powlus broke the state's career passing record this year,
and has 2,362 yards passing and 25 passing touchdowns this season. He's also
rushed for 484 yards and 16 touchdowns, and is the team's scoring leader with
134 points. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I thought Powlus was great last year, but this year he's been fantastic,"
Donato said. "His decision making ability, that quick release ... We've never
prepared for anything like this before." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jason Soboleski has accumulated 689 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns, while
Dan Pecorelli -- who's out with a broken collarbone -- leads the team with 34
receptions for 580 yards and seven touchdowns. Chris Orlando has 29 catches
for 503 yards and four touchdowns. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's seems like it's more complicated than last year," Donato said. "They
do so much more this year." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And they've done it with one of Berwick's best offensive lines ever, Curry
says, with guys like Jim Whitmire, Tony Saltasia, Bob Croop, Greg Michael and
John Stoker. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They're probably the most underrated part of our program," he said. "Our
offensive line has dominated everybody. They're as good as any line we've ever
had collectively." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Considering that the defense has given up just five points per game, the
'Dawgs really don't need all that offense. They've allowed only Bishop
McNamara to score more than one touchdown, and they've shut out three other
opponents. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Randy Weaver leads the defense with 51 tackles and eight sacks, while Dave
Beaupain has 49 tackles and four sacks, as well as four fumble recoveries. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bill Hetler also has 46 tackles and a pair of sacks. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As for the Trojans, they've certainly got some talent of their own. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Quarterback Gallis, who led the late drive that beat Berwick last year, is
back. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He's thrown for 901 yards this year, completing 70-of-130 passes with eight
interceptions and six touchdowns. He's carried for 286 yards and eight
touchdowns. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Also returning is McGee, who scored the two-point conversion that beat
Berwick. He's carried 173 times for 854 yards and 14 touchdowns. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They've got great skill people," Curry said. "Gallis makes things happen,
he's a good running quarterback. And that McGee boy's good." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Factor in Jeff Laboranti's 558 yards rushing and seven touchdowns, and John
McShafferey's 38 catches for 474 yards and three touchdowns, and this is a
potent offense. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The defense isn't bad either. It's given up just under nine points per game
this season. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We just want to come out and see what they give us," Curry said. "We're
going to try to get one touchdown a quarter. That's our goal. We've got to be
patient." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Talk about patient. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They've been waiting a year to get even. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Curry hopes they can. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I'm concerned about it," Curry said. "It should be a heck of a game. I saw
them earlier in the year, and I said back then that they're a team that could
give us problems." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We're just preparing as hard as we can," Donato said. "We're doing as much
work as we can. That's what we're trying to do right now."

Angry 'dawgs Ready To Bite North Pocono ******************** Times Leader File Photo