HS Football: Big 2nd quarter lifts Lehighton past Bangor

Lehighton's Jayse Lawrence (Photo by Leroy Boyer)

BANGOR — After a slow start that netted just a field goal, Lehighton unleashed a barrage of big plays and quick scoring that completely overwhelmed Bangor 38-7 in a Schuylkill-Colonial Red Division contest Thursday at Bangor Park.

The Indians turned defensive dominance into offensive explosion in the first half, using two massive fourth-and-short stops to seize any Slater momentum while erupting for 29 second-quarter points.

It’s the exact effort Indians’ head coach Tom McCarroll wanted to see after a disappointing Week 1 loss to Northern Lehigh.

Lehighton was the more physical team and bullied the Slaters on both sides of the trenches, as the program moved to 1-1 overall this season.

“We challenged our guys,” McCarroll said. “I think the kids answered the bell. We got off to a little bit of a slow start offensively, and so I thought our defense really kind of had our back.”

After the defense came through with its initial critical fourth-down stop in the first half, the Indians turned to their up-tempo offense.

“I thought we needed to. We didn’t get the execution with the kind of cleanness that we really wanted early in the game,” McCarroll explained.

“I just felt that after we had the one big play down the middle, I felt like it gave us some momentum. I know our kids are in shape – that I know. And so I figured, let’s put that to the test – and let’s test them (Bangor).”

The up-tempo approach worked to perfection.

Senior quarterback Jayse Lawrence connected with sophomore tight end Ty Nansteel for a 16-yard touchdown early in the second quarter to make it 11-0. The Slaters simply couldn’t handle the pace after that early second-quarter drive took only about two minutes off the clock.

“The guys up front were looking good, and we wanted to keep pushing that ball downfield as fast as possible to keep the defense off center,” Lawrence said.

On Bangor’s ensuing possession, the Indians’ defense came up clutch with their second fourth-down stop around midfield. Hunter Kintz and company swarmed the ball, and Lehighton took over.

Equan Warner then punched it in from 5 yards out to cap off a nine-play drive that made it 18-0 Indians.

Lehighton’s offense ended up totally clicking after a sluggish start. Lawrence played like a veteran all night, making high-IQ decisions and confident throws while creating plays with his legs.

“He did a great job last week, but the way that game was going, our margin for error was slim,” McCarroll said. “Tonight, he was absolutely great. And that was one of our messages last week, it was, ‘Hey, if you don’t like what you have, let’s get rid of the ball and let’s just line up and play again.’ And he did that tonight.”

Lawrence’s favorite target was the 6-foot sophomore Nansteel, who ran like a gazelle all game long. He hauled in a hat trick of touchdowns and tallied over 100 receiving yards.

“We just picked apart the defense — but those (big plays) are what were open,” Nansteel said. “It was big bouncing back on offense because we couldn’t punch it in on the first drive.”

When Bangor made one final push in the third quarter, sophomore defensive lineman Zayden Martinez was there to slam the door.

Martinez made two impressive back-to-back defensive plays, first blowing up a third-down play for a tackle-for-loss, then corralling the Slaters on the ensuing fourth-down attempt to essentially seal the deal.

Croizier, Croizier, Croizier… Junior running back Lucas Croizier racked up over 150 yards on the ground, including a near 70-yard scamper in the second half, but his defensive performance at linebacker might have been even more impressive. His name was most frequently said over the PA loudspeaker, making what seemed like almost every tackle.

“And that’s what we were looking for from him last week,” McCarroll said. “I thought he played a little bit hesitant last week – and I know that’s not really in his vocabulary, but what you saw tonight is the way he plays, and that’s when he has an impact on the game. And you saw how he played on both sides of the ball.”

Showing Flashes …  Bangor played sophomore QB Eziah Cartagena in the first half and turned to freshman Lincoln Rehrig in the second. Both youngsters made some plays and showed that the future quarterback room will be bright in Bangor.

Scoring Summary

Lehigh (1-1, 1-0)        3          29        6       0       —     38

Bangor (0-2, 0-1)       0          0          0       7       —     7

Leh — FG Ebbert 29

Leh — Nansteel 16 pass from Lawrence (2-pt pass good)

Leh — Warner 5 run (Ebbert kick)

Leh — Nansteel 55 pass from Lawrence (Ebbert kick)

Leh — Nansteel 19 pass from Lawrence (Ebbert kick)

Leh — L. Croizier 3 run (kick failed)

Ban — Crockett 43 pass from Rehrig (Mueller kick)