MILFORD — Delaware Valley had all the momentum.
A blocked field goal followed by a lengthy scoring drive early in the fourth quarter put the Warriors right back in their Lackawanna Football Conference Division I game with North Pocono.
The Trojans needed a response and they got one. Cole West’s 22-yard touchdown run with 5:17 remaining enabled No. 3 North Pocono to subdue Delaware Valley, 21-7, on Friday night at Warrior Stadium.
“Credit DV. They do a great job and they had a great drive,” North Pocono head coach Greg Dolhon said. “But our kids are so resilient, I’m so proud of them. Things didn’t look good, 14-7. But that was a big answer drive, it really was.”
Delaware Valley head coach Keith Olsommer said North Pocono did what good teams do.
“Good teams don’t make mistakes. They catch passes and when they face adversity, they answer,” Olsommer said. “And when you have Chase (Zimmerman) and Cole in your backfield, you’re going to have a lot of answers.”
West finished with 81 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries, while Henry Wolff added 98 yards and a score on 15 carries. The Trojans (7-1 overall, 4-1 Division I) had 273 rushing yards (321 total) as they bounced back from last week’s tough triple-overtime loss to Scranton Prep.
“We have a great group of guys. We had some injuries; one of our best linemen Z-Bell (Zach Bell) went down,” West said. “But that’s what great teams do. They fight through the pains and get the job done.
“We took that (Scranton Prep loss) hard. It was a tough week coming back from that. But we had to forget about it. All week we were preaching that we had to get after them (Delaware Valley). That’s a good team. That’s a heck of a win we had.”
Leading, 14-0, at halftime, North Pocono looked to extend its advantage after Max LaFave deflected a Delaware Valley pass into the arms of teammate Jayden Taylor and he returned it eight yards to the Delaware Valley 32. The Trojans moved to the 5 and when the drive stalled, they attempted a 22-yard field goal on fourth-and-goal. But Shane Youngblood’s kick was blocked by Lucas Purdon and the score remained 14-0.
Buoyed by the blocked kick, Delaware Valley (2-6, 1-4) then marched 80 yards in 19 plays, consuming 9:15 off the clock. Devon Estevez did most of the work, carrying 12 times on the drive for 57 yards, including a pair of fourth-down conversions. Estevez finished with 115 yards on 23 carries.
Dylan Bannon capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run and Matt Marotta’s kick cut the deficit to 14-7 with 9:25 to play.
However, North Pocono answered with an eight-play, 65-yard scoring drive. Runs of 10 yards by Wolff and 17 yards by Taylor put the Trojans at the Delaware Valley 37. West had a pair of 4-yard runs and Chase Zimmerman was held to one yard on third down, setting up fourth-and-1 from the 28. West gained six yards for the first down, then went 22 yards for the touchdown. Youngblood’s third extra point made it 21-7.
“We felt our line was getting pushed up front and we know we’re better than that,” West said. “Our guys are awesome and they came through at the end. That’s what we needed them to do.
“They gave me a hole and I found a crease. But it starts up front with the line.”
Again, Delaware Valley tried to rally. It drove from its 20 to the North Pocono 14, but an incompletion on fourth-and-5 ended the threat with 2:07 left. Wolff then ran 53 yards and Taylor followed with a 14-yard run to seal the victory for North Pocono.
“You know what was smart, Henry slid. And then JT had that run and he got down and slid,” Dolhon said. “Those two kids weren’t looking for touchdowns, they were looking for wins. I’m so proud of them that they made the right decision.”
Following a scoreless first quarter, LaFave intercepted a pass on the second play of the second quarter and returned it 13 yards to the Delaware Valley 43. Eight plays later, on fourth-and-inches from the 13, West broke through the line to not only pick up the first down, but the touchdown to make it 7-0 with 7:18 left.
After the next three possessions ended in punts, North Pocono took over at the Warriors 40 with 1:31 left, no timeouts and perfectly executed a two-minute drill. Zimmerman hit Wolff for six yards on a screen pass. Wolff ran for seven on the next play, getting out of bounds to stop the clock. Next, Zimmerman flipped the ball to Wolff for a 15-yard gain, then hit him for nine yards. Wolff might have had a touchdown, but stumbled and fell down at the 5.
No matter. He scored on the next play to give the Trojans a 14-0 lead with 35 seconds left before halftime.
“It was flawless,” Wolff said. “Wish I could have stayed on my feet on the first one, but I got sniped by the turf monster. I was a great momentum builder going into halftime.”
Dolhon credited Zimmerman for engineering the drive.
“That was our senior quarterback,” Dolhon said. “We made some good plays in some open spaces, but we have great players. It’s our job to put them in the right situations.”
Not only was he a factor with his running and receiving (3 catches, 30 yards), Wolff averaged 39.5 yards on two punts and had touchbacks on all four of his kickoffs.
“That’s just a talent I have and I’m grateful for it,” Wolff said. “Any way I can help this team, I love to do so.”
Olsommer said Wolff definitely was a difference-maker.
“All around, he was tough on defense, ran the ball well and he’s kicking the ball,” Olsommer said. “It pins you. And when you’re struggling offensively like we were, that’s a long, long field you’re looking down at. He was able to pin us all night.”