Dunmore’s Jacob Costanzo returns the ball for a touchdown against Wyoming Area to start the second half at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium Friday, August 28, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Dunmore’s Weston Yannone (9) celebrates his interception against Wyoming Area at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium Friday, August 28, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Wyoming Area’s Semaj Morris runs against Dunmore at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium Friday, August 28, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Dunmore’s Jacob Costanzo returns the ball for a touchdown against Wyoming Area to start the second half at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium Friday, August 28, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
DUNMORE — This was the reason Weston Yannone set that alarm for 5:30 a.m. in the offseason.
That sweat dripping off his forehead while pumping iron, the miles ran throughout the Dunmore community, mentally preparing for his senior season before the sun came over the horizon.
Yannone showed everyone he’s going to be a menace in his final year at Dunmore. Wyoming Area saw it firsthand from the opposite sideline.
Rotating between tailback and wide receiver, Yannone’s blazing speed was a huge difference-maker in the opening week of the high school football season as he broke the end zone on two long strikes from Brady McCormick as the Bucks rolled past Wyoming Area, 42-0, on Friday night.
“You just have to tuck your chin, keep your head down and keep putting in the work,” said Yannone, who had 118 yards receiving, 62 yards on the ground and scored three times. “We were up at 5:30 a.m. most days this summer, and in the spring, too. I would do a lift, get in a run, go to school and then went to track practice. It’s about that grind and putting in the work. But it shows when you come out in Week 1 and put together a performance like that.”
It was almost a perfect game for the Bucks in terms of openers.
The offense scored five times with perfect balance — three on the ground and two through the air — and Jacob Costanzo scored on a 90-yard kickoff return to open the second half ina enact the mercy rule. Oh, and the Buck defense forced five Wyoming Area turnovers.
“A game where you have five turnovers, it’s tough to be successful in that type of game,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “Give Dunmore credit because I thought they were aggressive in every spot. They are senior heavy and experienced, and they set the level of physicality. Credit to them in that respect. Some lessons are hard ones to learn, but it’s an opportunity for our young team to learn that lesson tonight. We’ll come back and attack next week, and learn from this game.”
Coming into Friday, it was billed as one of the marquee matchups, not only in District 2, but around the state. Dunmore, a state-title contender in Class 2A against a Wyoming Area squad that’s expected to push toward that district championship in Class 3A.
It was a heavyweight fight in the first quarter with both sides feeling each other out.
Dunmore landed the knockout punch in the second, scoring three times in a seven-minute span. Josef Wolff broke through on a 29-yard inside handoff, and following a Warrior fumble, Yannone capped off a five-play series on the short field with a 19-yard burst off the right side.
Two minutes later, Yannone got back in the end zone as he beat the secondary, and McCormick laid a perfect pass in stride over the defense for the 50-yard strike for the 28-0 lead at the break.
“I got to shout out Brady because he’s been putting in the work day in and day out,” Yannone said. “All winter, he’s been throwing amazing balls. He stays in the pocket, took a good hit today, and still threw an amazing ball. I can’t do anything without him throwing those great passes.”
Enter Costanzo.
Taking the opening second-half kickoff at the 10-yard line, the 6-foot-3 senior hit a ginormous hole in the middle of the field and went untouched 90 yards.
Thirteen seconds into the second half, Costanzo called ballgame.
“I can’t thank my team enough. I just caught the ball, and no one even touched me. It was such a great hole to run through,” Costanzo said. “All credit to everyone who blocked for me. We knew, in the first half, that we couldn’t take our foot off the gas. Starting that second half off with a spark, it really carried our momentum through the rest of the game.”
The Bucks’ defense did the rest, recovering three fumbles as Yannone and Jackson Harding both picked off passes.
Wyoming Area didn’t record a first down until three minutes left in the second quarter, and was held to just 63 yards in the first half, and 158 for the game.
“The community was big for us. Such a great crowd tonight, and it really was a big-game atmosphere,” Costanzo said. “There are high expectations for us, and we know it. I think we proved ourselves tonight.”