MILFORD – In an old-school slugfest between two of the Lackawanna Football Conference’s big boys, Scranton Prep used its physicality to power past Delaware Valley in a matchup of programs that have dominated their respective classifications for more than a decade.
Owen Jeffers muscled his way to a touchdown and ran for 90 yards, Brandon Farmer added a short scoring run, Braedon McPartland had 93 rushing yards, and the fourth-ranked Cavaliers earned a hard-fought 14-7 win over No. 6 Delaware Valley at Warrior Stadium on Saturday afternoon to wrap up Week 4.
Scranton Prep, the reigning District 2 Class 3A champion, won its third straight game to improve to 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the LFC Division I.
Delaware Valley, last season’s District 2 Class 5A champion, fell to 1-3 overall and 0-1 in Division I.
“We were physical, and they are a physical group of guys,” Jeffers said. “We got punched early, but we punched back. It was a fight. It was two physical teams, two rivals. This is a big win to kick off league play. I trusted our guys.”
This matchup was the antithesis of last year’s when Scranton Prep rallied from a 31-7 deficit for a 44-42 victory.
Scranton Prep’s defense made stops when needed and forced turnovers, intercepting three passes. Noah Krzywiec and Caden Whetsel each had picks in the second quarter, and Finn Mulligan sealed the win with one off a tipped pass on Delaware Valley’s final drive in the waning seconds.
All were important, but Krzywiec’s shifted momentum in a back-and-forth first half.
The teams were tied at 7 after Delaware Valley took a lead on a Devin Estevez 7-yard run on the first play of the second quarter, and Farmer’s 1-yard plunge tied it for Scranton Prep.
Delaware Valley had just forced a punt on a Thomas Zaucha sack to regain possession. Krzywiec tracked a high, arcing pass, hauled it in, and raced down to the Warriors 16-yard line.
On the first play, Jeffers rumbled through the defense, breaking tackles for the eventual deciding touchdown with 2:11 remaining in the first half.
“Our spirits were getting low,” Krzywiec said. “They were moving the ball. That play helped us flip a switch and let us know that we were capable of beating them and we got our heads in the right place.”
In the second half, the Delaware Valley defense rose to the challenge. Zaucha recovered a fumble on the Cavaliers’ first possession of the third quarter.
Scranton Prep stifled the Delaware Valley running game, which was also hamstrung by an injury to Estevez, who had 81 yards on 12 carries before exiting, and the absence of NCAA Division I tight end prospect James Dabney, out with an illness.
Elijah Myers helped Scranton Prep limit the Warriors to 31 rushing yards on 13 carries in the second half.
“We knew it would be a dogfight all around,” Myers said. “Delaware Valley is a great team. We had to play our technique and get off the ball and do whatever we had to do to win the game.”
Delaware Valley drove from the shadows of its end zone in the fourth quarter. Lucas Petersheim completed four passes, including a 37-yard strike to Joey Weidner. However, the drive stalled at the Scranton Prep 39 with Roman Lowe breaking up a pass on fourth down.
On its final drive, Delaware Valley started at its own 13 and moved back to the 6 on a holding call. Petersheim, who finished with 93 yards passing, hit Lucas Purdon, who contributed 67 rushing yards, and Jacob Wolak to surge out to the 21, but Mulligan extinguished the rally with an interception.