HS Football: Tri-Valley rolls past Panther Valley
Tri-Valley's Parker Hatter (25) turns the corner as teammate Cole Gemberling (9) makes a block during the Dawgs' game against Nativity on Sept. 12, 2025 (Photo by Jocelyn Barrett / Danie Mae Photography).
LANSFORD — Tri-Valley had only one thing on its mind going into its Schuylkill-Colonial Blue Division game at Panther Valley on Friday night.
The Bulldogs just needed to get back on track and forget about a close loss suffered the previous week to rival Williams Valley and not let it affect the rest of the season.
“It’s not that we played bad last week,” Tri-Valley coach Jeff Sampson said. “We just wanted to get back on the winning track and don’t let this be a trap game.”
The Bulldogs started out aggressively on offense and got results, scoring three first-quarter touchdowns on its first three possessions to take command with a 21-0 lead.
Tri-Valley marched 57 yards on eight plays to reach the end zone on its first possession, which culminated in a 6-yard scoring pass from Trey Porter to Cole Gemberling for a 7-0 lead with 8:26 left in the first quarter.
Tri-Valley’s next possession got the same results, with Parker Hatter running six yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead to cap a five-play, 70-yard drive.
Hatter made a big play on the team’s next possession, busting loose for a 46-yard touchdown run up the middle for a 21-0 lead with 2:58 remaining in the first half. Hatter ended the game with 112 yards rushing on 12 carries, while Tri-Valley produced 285 yards of total offense.
In the meantime, Tri-Valley’s defense also had a stellar night and held Panther Valley to three 3-and-outs on each of its first-quarter possessions.
Porter had his second touchdown pass of the game in the second quarter when he and Max Masser connected on a 28-yard scoring pass to give the Bulldogs a 27-0 lead going into the locker room at halftime.
The Bulldogs’ defense also came up big before the half as the Panthers had a potential scoring drive stall on the Tri-Valley 10-yard line.
Quarterback Brody Breiner was Panther Valley’s leading offensive player with 46 yards rushing and 83 yards passing on nine completions.
“Our defense has been doing the job all year,” Sampson said. “There was no reason to believe it would change tonight. They’re very quick to the ball. It feels good to put a goose egg on the scoreboard at the end of the game.”
Tri-Valley put the mercy rule into effect in the third quarter on a 6-yard scoring run by Lucas Schwartz and a two-point conversion pass from Porter to Masser.
The Bulldogs capped the scoring with a fourth-quarter touchdown on a 17-yard pass from Porter to Cooper Carl.
