Wildcat Homecoming clash with Millionaires set for Friday
By John Lipez
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP, PA – Friday night will be special at Malinak Stadium: Homecoming 2022 and its trappings: selection of the Homecoming queen and king, an alumni band performance and much more. The Central Mountain football team hopes to do its part, pick up win number one over longtime downriver foe Williamsport.
Both the Wildcats and the Millionaires have struggled so far this season. Central Mountain dropped to 0-5 with last Friday’s 47-28 loss at Shamokin. Billtown meanwhile struggled on both sides of the ball, falling at Crestwood (4-1) by a 51-13 score.
Williamsport is now 1-4 through the first half of the season, the lone win by a 29-12 score in week two over Pittston. The Millionaires are in a rebuild mode. 6-6 a year ago, Williamsport lost most of its linemen and its coach, Charles Crews stepping down at the end of the season. Mike Pearson is the new head coach after coaching stints at a number of area schools, most recently as an assistant at Lycoming College.
The Millionaires do have veteran backfield mates in quarterback George Whaley and running back Nasir Hennigan. In the loss at Crestwood, the Comets held Williamsport to 121 yards of offense, 44 rushing and 77 passing. Whaley did connect on a 61-yard touchdown pass to Jakilhe Kline; that brought the score to 14-7 for Crestwood, but by halftime the Comets led 44-7.
Meanwhile last Friday Central Mountain put up a season-high 28 points Friday night at Kemp Stadium in Coal Township. But that wasn’t enough as home-standing Shamokin, bolstered by the return of standout quarterback Brett Nye, put up scores in every quarter for a 47-28 win.
Shamokin, now 2-3, welcomed back their veteran quarterback in Nye (6-2, 212), but it was the play of the Artis-Jones boys, Knowledge and Wisdom, that caused the most problem for the Wildcats; the two senior speedsters accounted for five Indian touchdowns.
Central Mountain did have some big touchdown plays as they tried to match Shamokin’s scores. The Indians led 7-0 after one but the Wildcats pulled into a 7-7 tie early in period two, off a 1-yard Rocco Serafini touchdown run and a Peyton Jones extra point. That 61-yard drive was set up by a long Brady Myers to Serafini screen pass.
Shamokin answered back with a Nye to Chase Pensyl 12-yard scoring pass to make it 14-7. The Indians added another seven off an 8-yard touchdown run from Knowledge Artis-Johns, the score 21-7 for the home team as halftime approached. The Wildcats answered back in a hurry: Connor Foltz took the ball on a reverse from Serafini on the ensuing kickoff and went 80 yards to paydirt. Jones’ extra point cut the Shamokin lead to 21-14.
The game turned on the second half kickoff, the Indian kick bouncing off a Wildcat deep man. Shamokin took over on the Wildcat 26 and Artis-Jones immediately scored to make it 28-14. A short while later Nye connected with Artis-Jones on a 22-yard scoring strike, pushing the score to 34-14.
Central Mountain put up a third quarter touchdown when backup quarterback Tom Sprague hit Dominic Longworth for a perfectly executed 57-yard touchdown strike; the extra point was good, the score 34-21.
Early in the final period, Artis-Jones went 61 yards for the score; the extra point was good, the score 41-21. Later Artis-Jones would intercept a Wildcat pass and shortly thereafter scoring the final points for the Indians, the score 47-21 with 8:38 remaining.
Central Mountain did mount one final scoring drive, Serafini in from two yards out, Jones’ EP setting the final at 47-28.
The Wildcats struggled to find success running the ball, but Serafini caught two passes for 104 and finished with two touchdowns. Longworth caught one pass for 57 yards and a score.
