Jim Thorpe gets set to run an offensive play during Thursday's win over Tamaqua (Photo by Eli Doyle).

JIM THORPE — Spencer Gothard’s breakout night came at the right time for Jim Thorpe.

The sophomore wide receiver/defensive back hauled in three touchdown receptions and had the game-clinching interception in the fourth quarter as the Olympians staved off Tamaqua 35-27 in a Schuylkill-Colonial Red Division game Thursday night at Jim Thorpe Area Stadium.

Jim Thorpe led the game 21-0 in the second quarter only to have Tamaqua surge back to tie it at 21-21 in the third quarter. Gothard hauled in a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter as the Olympians prevailed.

The victory came six days after Jim Thorpe was beaten up in a 47-0 loss at Blue Mountain and evens the Olympians’ overall record to 2-2.

“I’m proud of our kids,” Jim Thorpe coach Mark Rosenberger said. “When (Tamaqua) got back to 21-21 they had the momentum. Our kids figured out a way. They dug in deep.

“In the past … that didn’t happen the last couple of years. It’s the growth that we’ve shown with this team, the maturity that they have. The young kids just came through. Spencer Gothard had a big game.”

Gothard, a 5-foot-10, 148-pounder, entered Thursday’s game with three catches for 69 yards and no TDs. He became Cole Lazorick’s go-to guy in the red zone, scoring on touchdown passes of 11, 7 and 23 yards.

His second score capped an eight-play, 53-yard drive that broke a 21-21 tie with 10:32 remaining. His last touchdown was the dagger to Tamaqua’s comeback hopes, coming on a fourth-and-8 play from the Tamaqua 23 with 47.5 seconds left.

Tamaqua (1-3, 1-2 Red) completed two passes to get the ball to the Jim Thorpe 30-yard line in the final seconds, but Gothard picked off Chase Serfass’ pass on the game’s final play to ice it.

“I didn’t think they knew it was coming,” Gothard said of the last touchdown reception. “We went for the home run ball. It felt great to get open and make a play.”

Josh Louk was the star early on for Jim Thorpe, helping the Olympians race out to a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Louk opened the scoring with a 63-yard touchdown run on Jim Thorpe’s second possession. After a quick stop by the Olympians’ defense, Louk ripped off a 32-yard run two plays into the next drive that set up Bobby Levins’ 14-yard run.

Louk finished with 168 yards rushing on 17 carries.

“They were huge,” Louk said of his big runs. “It gets the whole team fired up. When you get the momentum rolling like that, it’s hard to stop our offense.”

Added Rosenberger: “Josh Louk had some big runs early on. His speed is pretty impressive when he gets that edge. He’s a heck of a runner for us.

“We felt that we could do some things with him in some different spots. Our line did a nice job early on.”

The game looked like it would be a blowout when Lazorick hit Gothard for an 11-yard score that made it 21-0 with 9:45 left in the second quarter.

Tamaqua had other ideas.

Behind its power running game and the legs of Terrence McDowell, the Blue Raiders dominated the game over the next 20 minutes to come all the way back and tie it.

McDowell finished the game with a whopping 42 carries for 273 yards, scoring on runs of 5, 7 and 4 yards. The Blue Raiders put together scoring drives of 62, 72 and 77 yards, the latter two coming in the third quarter.

During the stretch of the game from Gothard’s first touchdown to McDowell’s third score — from the 9:45 mark of the second quarter to the 2:16 mark of the third —Tamaqua outgained Jim Thorpe 223-12, ran 35 plays to Thorpe’s 13 and racked up 14 first downs to the Olympians’ none.

Tamaqua finished with 328 yards rushing.

“We got back into our power-I set, double-tight set,” Tamaqua coach Sam Bonner said. “We have some tough, physical, running backs … Terrence, Malachi Stewart. Those two guys definitely ran the ball well for us.

“Unfortunately, we can’t dig ourselves into a 21-0 hole. It’s frustrating. In the second half, I thought we really had it rolling. A couple of mistakes cost us. We’re not a good enough team to make those kind of mistakes.”

A key play in the game came on Jim Thorpe’s next possession. With the Olympians facing a second-and-15 at their own 42, Louk scampered 27 yards on a scissors play to the Tamaqua 31. The play breathed life into the Jim Thorpe offense, as Levins ran for 12 yards, Lazorick hit Nick Faust for 11 yards and then connected with Gothard for a 7-yard score that put Jim Thorpe back in front 28-21.

“It was really all the big boys blocking up front,” Louk said of his big run. “They had a big hole for me and I just ran right through it. That’s what it all comes down to.”

Tamaqua answered with an 11-play, 74-yard march that featured the running of McDowell. The Blue Raiders cut the deficit to 28-27 on Stewart’s 3-yard plunge with 5:28 left, but a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty for spiking the ball moved the conversion attempt back to the 18. Serfass was then sacked on the try.

Tamaqua still had plenty of time if the Blue Raiders could get a stop. Louk and the Olympians didn’t let them.

Louk rushed seven times for 46 yards on the ensuing possession, draining nearly 5 minutes off the clock. He had runs of 11 and 13 yards that gained first downs and eventually set up the big fourth-down TD pass to Gothard with 47.5 seconds left.

Jim Thorpe finished with 343 yards of total offense, including 229 on the ground.

“It shows what character the team has this year,” Louk said of the Olympians’ victory. “To bounce back from a loss like that and come out and give it our all on the field.”

Added Gothard: “It feels great. Last year, we might not have come back and just hung our heads. This year we changed that. We got better and finished the job.”

Game Summary

Jim Thorpe 35, Tamaqua 27

Tam (1-3, 1-2)            0          7          14        6  —    27

JT (2-2, 1-2)               14        7          0          14  — 35

JT — Louk 63 run (Flyzik kick)

JT — Levins 14 run (Flyzik kick)

JT — Gothard 11 pass from Lazorick (Flyzik kick)

Tam — McDowell 5 run (McCabe kick)

Tam — McDowell 7 run (kick failed)

Tam — McDowell 4 run (McDowell run)

JT — Gothard 7 pass from Lazorick (Flyzik kick)

Tam — Stewart 3 run (pass failed)

JT — Gothard 7 pass from Lazorick (Flyzik kick)

Team Statistics

                                       Tam       JT

First Downs                   22           12

Rushes-Yards                 52-328    28-229

Passes                             5-20-1    8-15-1

Passing Yards                58           114

Total Yards                    386         343

Fumbles/Lost                 0-0          0-0

Penalties                         7-55        7-50

Individual Statistics

RUSHING: Tamaqua — McDowell 42-273, Stewart 7-44, Walker 3-11. Jim Thorpe — Louk 17-168, Levins 3-31, Lazorick 7-26, Kiehl 1-4

PASSING: Tamaqua —- Serfass 5-19-1, 58; Team 0-1-0, 0. Jim Thorpe —- Lazorick 8-15-1, 114.

RECEIVING: Tamaqua — McCabe 4-52, Jazowski 1-5. Jim Thorpe — Zurawa 1-42, Gothard 3-41, Louk 1-14, Faust 1-11, Levins 2-6.

INTERCEPTIONS: Tamaqua — McCabe. Jim Thorpe — Gothard.