Valley Sports ReportTOWANDA — Playing on his home field one last time, Towanda’s Riley Vanderpool patiently waited to put his mark on the UPMC District IV Senior All-star Game here Friday. That finally came with 4:21 left to play as Vanderpool scrambled 12 yards to paydirt to push the North to a 20-14 win over the South.
“It feels great,” Vanderpool said about ending his high school with a win on his home field. “I never thought I’d play here again. I just laid on the field for five minutes to soak it in. It’s going to suck going away, but playing with these guys is definitely an amazing time.”
It was a defensive battle throughout as the North bent but didn’t break, giving up just one touchdown and three field goals in the back-and-forth effort.
Leading the charge were the guys in the trenches as NTL players Varrius Farrell and Tristan Conklin of Towanda, Caleb Nason and Keegan Congdon of Athens, and Nick Johnson and Ayden Hunsinger of Wyalusing teamed with several down district players to hold the South to just 88 yards rushing, and hounded their quarterbacks all night long.
“You never expect these all-star games to be defensive games, but when you’ve got all this talent coming together, all these defensive talents, it’s going to happen,” Farrell said. “People are going to have to fight, people are going to scrap, it’s going to be a dog fight, and I’m glad that, when we came out here, we showed them that we’re the bigger dogs.”
Farrell was named the North Defensive Player of the Game with three tackles and a sack from the defensive tackle spot.
“I’m blessed that everyone saw the hard work I was putting out there through the hard stamina problems,” he said. “I’m glad everyone could see.”
For Hunsinger, it was a full-circle moment, as they had him as an edge rusher on the South’s final two drives.
“That took me back to my seventh-grade year when I started there,” he said. “But it’s all fun. Any position out on the football field, especially with a team like that, it’s a great experience.”
Jersey Shore’s Elijah Jordan was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Game for the North. He was just 2-for-12 for 94 yards but both completions were touchdowns. On the ground he ran for 77 yards on 16 carries.
The Williamsport duo of Kahyear Whaley (10 carries, 53 yards) and Jamel Bailey (five carries, 44 yards) did yeomen’s work, while Vanderpool finished with two touches for 13 yards and the score.
Samir Williams had the 74-yard receiving touchdown in the third quarter, while Kyreek Bradshaw hauled in the 20-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
Defensively, Wellsboro’s Ryder Bowen had a game-high nine tackles as he was every where all night long.
“Both sides were working so hard, and you could tell,” Bowen said. “But, at the end of the day, we got them. It just feels great to be able to go out one last time in my high school career, and really show out for the crowd.”
Bailey had seven tackles, while Vanderpool finished with five and a pass break-up. Congdon added three tackles, and a pass break-up as he used his long arms to disrupt a few throws.
“The last few years playing at Athens we’ve had our struggles, but we pulled through a lot of times,” said Congdon. “But, just to go out on a high note after so many years of playing football, it’s a dream come true.”
For the South, Warrior Run’s Samuel Hall had himself a day with 159 yards and a touchdown on nine receptions as part of a South passing attack that finished with 232 yards through the air.
Danville’s Madden Patrick was 12-for-25 for 207 yards and the touchdown to lead the South.
“He was fast,” Congdon said about Patrick. “I got to him a few times where he should have been dead to rights, but he was able to make something happen. He’s a very good quarterback.”
The South struggled on the ground with just 88 yards on 32 carries. Lewisburg’s Jeremiah Davis led the effort with 54 yards on 13 attempts.
After a scoreless first quarter, the North broke through as Jordan found Bradshaw behind the defense for a 20-yard strike with 7:48 left in the first half. Jersey Shore’s Evan Snyder made the point after for a 7-0 lead.
The South struck back 25 seconds later as Patrick hit Hall for a 24-yard scoring strike in the back corner of the end zone. Warrior Run’s Gavin Hunter hit the point after to tie things up.
Hunter would give the South the lead at the half by hitting a 32-yard field goal with no time left for a 10-7 score.
Hunter added another field goal, this time from 27 yards out, for a 13-7 game with 6:06 on the clock in the third.
The North struck back as Jordan hit Williams for a 74-yard catch-and-run. Snyder hit the point-after, and it was 13-13 with 5:15 left in the third.
Hunter hit his third straight field goal with 7:05 left to play in the game, this time from 25 yards out, for a 16-13 South lead.
With 4:21 left Vanderpool made two tacklers miss as he scampered 12-yards to pay dirt with 4:21 left in the game. Snyder made the kick for the 20-16 contest.
“That was awesome,” Vanderpool said about scoring the game-winning touchdown. “I sat there all game waiting for my turn, waiting for my opportunity. I had one at the beginning of the game on the first play, but it wasn’t it. So I just sat there waiting for my opportunity; coach gave me it, and look what happened.”
The South had two drives to try to take the lead, the first ending in a lost fumble to Montoursville’s Landon Morehart, the second ended on Morehart’s sack as time expired.
“It’s just pure joy,” Bowen said about getting the win.
The North enjoyed playing with fellow rivals, and even other players they don’t get the chance to meet during their careers.
“They’re awesome people,” Congdon said. “They’re joking around, there was no tension between any of us, even the closest of rivals. We all came together as brothers.”
As for the Towanda three on the North team, they couldn’t have been happier with how it played out.
“I thought I was done playing on this field,” Farrell said. “When I heard it was in Towanda I was so happy. This is my hometown, I’m glad I can play for these fans, these lights, that logo, one more time.”
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IN PHOTO 1: Athens' Keegan Congdon (44) leaps to knock down a pass. IN TOP PHOTO: Athens' Caleb Nason (72) pursue's the South's QB. PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING.
