Scranton Prep’s Sean McCormack (19) reacts after a penalty is called on his teammate during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Braedon McPartland (14) dives for extra yards during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game against Northwestern Lehigh in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) makes a pass during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Northwestern Lehigh celebrates after scoring during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) makes a pass during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) sheds a tackle during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) scrambles during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Braedon McPartland (14) fights for extra yards during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Charlie Speicher runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland (12) hands the ball off to Braedon McPartland (14) during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Northwestern Lehigh celebrates after scoring during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Scranton Prep’s Noah Krzywiec (2) runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Northwestern Lehigh celebrates after scoring during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Northwestern Lehigh’s Brady Zimmerman (8) runs the ball during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Scranton Prep’s Sean McCormack (19) reacts after a penalty is called on his teammate during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game in Berwick on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (JASON ARDAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
BERWICK — Facing a third-and-11 and trailing by four touchdowns midway through the third quarter, Scranton Prep’s Will McPartland dug deep to keep the drive alive.
The senior quarterback rolled right, avoided two pass rushers and reversed field.
AJ Croom never gave up on the play, either.
McPartland found him, and threw across his body to his sliding senior receiver for an 18-yard gain and a first down.
“We’re late in the game and not in the position we should be, and just trying to make a play, trying to do everything we can,” McPartland said.
The drive lasted 16 plays and 8:30, as the Cavaliers traveled 78 yards to the end zone.
The touchdown didn’t matter, as District 11 champion Northwestern Lehigh defeated the District 2 champion, 42-14, on Friday night at Crispin Field, ending the Cavaliers’ season in the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals for the third straight season.
However, that play and that drive proved a microcosm of their season, as the Cavaliers (8-6) never gave up against any adversity all season.
Scranton Prep started the season 0-3, playing without its star quarterback McPartland as he worked his way back from a torn ACL he suffered in the state quarterfinal loss last season. The Cavaliers lost to Valley View, 14-10, in the season opener, and then dropped games against tough nonconference opponents Loyola Blakefield, 45-13, and Canisius, 41-28.
They looked headed for an 0-4 start when they trailed eventual District 2 Class 5A champion Delaware Valley, 31-7, in the third quarter. However, McPartland’s stellar return, which included seven touchdowns and more than 400 yards of offense, propelled Scranton Prep to a 49-44 victory.
“I’m super proud. We’ve been through thick and thin together,” McPartland said. “It says a lot about who we are as people. I’m just really proud of the way we fought, even until the end. Just going down with a fight, it shows who we really are and how much we care about the game.”
From their, the Cavaliers won six of their next eight games, including a 42-7 rout of undefeated Berwick in the District 2 Class 3A title game.
Once again, Scranton Prep found itself down, 14-0, against District 4 champion Mifflinburg in the first round of states, but again rallied for a 28-21 victory, holding the Wildcats scoreless in the second half.
“It shows how good our coaches are, it shows what they’ve been through and how they coach us,” Croom said. “We’ve been through a lot all season and our coaches have just been on us, saying you’re gonna go through adversity. You’ve just got to keep pushing and we believe it, we all bought in, we trust that and we play to the final whistle regardless of win or loss.”
The Cavaliers fell behind less than three minutes into Friday’s game, when Braxton Lakatosh intercepted a McPartland pass and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown.
However, Scranton Prep answered with Will and Braedon McPartland. Braedon secured two first downs with runs of 15 and seven yards, while Will’s 33-yard run set up his two-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7 with 6:07 left in the first.
When the Northwestern Lehigh offense stepped on the field, quarterback Shane Leh put the pedal to the medal. The Marist commit was 5 for 5 on the up-tempo drive, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to Brady Zimmerman to give the defending state champion Tigers, who are on a 30-game win streak, a 14-7 lead with 3:57 left in the first quarter.
Scranton Prep moved the ball into Northwestern Lehigh territory on the ensuing possession, but two penalties stalled the drive. Then, the ball was snapped over the head of punter Owen Jeffers, who did a nice job recovering the ball and getting the punt off.
“Obviously, they have a great group of kids, but you can’t make mistakes like that against really good football teams,” Scranton Prep coach Terry Gallagher said. “If you make mistakes like that, it’s gonna cost you, and I thought we made a ton of self-inflicted mistakes that cost us.”
Leh went back to work, going 4 for 4 on the drive including an 11-yard touchdown pass to Shane Hulmes for a 21-7 lead with 8:10 left in the second quarter.
After a Scranton Prep punt, Croom forced a turnover on downs, breaking up a pass on fourth-and-5 — Leh’s first incompletion with 3:57 left in the second quarter after completing 10 straight passes.
However, the Cavaliers turned the ball over on downs, and Leh hit Michael Lagowy down the middle for a 19-yard touchdown to give the Tigers a 28-7 advantage with 18 seconds left in the half.
“The run game wasn’t working as well as we wanted it to, but the pass game was on fire tonight, and you’ve got to give props to the linemen blocking and giving me time back there,” said Leh, who finished the game 17 of 19 for 225 yards passing and five touchdowns.
Leh added a six-yard touchdown pass to Zimmerman to start the third quarter before Scranton Prep’s final touchdown drive of the season, with Will McPartland’s 18-yard pass to Croom sparking the score.
“All year we’ve had a connection, Will and I and Will and all the receivers, and I was just able to get open and able to make a play,” Croom said. “I knew he had my back, I knew he knew where I was gonna be and we just made it happen.”
Will McPartland then secured two first downs on runs of four and 12 yards before Noah Krzywiec set the Cavaliers up on the five-yard line with a 12-yard run. On third-and-4, Will McPartland hit Sean McCormack in the corner of the end zone to cut the deficit to 35-14 with 11:20 left in the fourth.
“It says a lot about the seniors, the leadership, just not going down without a fight, and just showing kind of who we are,” Will McPartland said.
Kaleb Pagnotti and Braedon McPartland had back-to-back tackles for no-yard and one-yard gains, respectively, and forced a three-and-out. However, Northwestern Lehigh answered by also forcing a three-and-out. On the ensuing possession, Leh hit Zimmerman for a 40-yard touchdown on fourth-and-7 for the 42-14 lead with 4:37 left in the game.
The Cavaliers never stopped fighting, driving into Northwestern Lehigh territory two more times, but couldn’t find the end zone again. Their senior leader Will McPartland finished with 79 yards rushing and a touchdown on 16 carries and was 9 for 22 for 95 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception.
“I wouldn’t rather do it with any other guys,” said Croom, who finished with three catches for 40 yards. “The guys in this locker room, the guys I play for, we all put on the same jersey. I wouldn’t trade them for anyone else. We’ve done a lot, we’ve been through a lot, we took some lumps together, we‘ve had some highs together and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Northwestern Lehigh (14-0) will face District 3 champion Trinity next weekend in the semifinals.