WRIGHT TWP. — A week after taking multi-year defending state champ Southern Columbia to the limit, Wyoming Area showed no signs of physical or mental fatigue on Friday night, rolling through Crestwood 27-0 at Crestwood High School.
The Warriors rode the strength of their defense all night, holding the Comets scoreless and picking off a pair of passes, one for a touchdown.
“I’m very proud of this defense,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said after his team’s win. “When the ball came out, we were in the right places.”
Of the Comets’ 148 yards of total offense, almost half of them came on a long Noah Schultz run before halftime, trying to put his team in position to get points on the board.
That drive was halted by the halftime whistle, and Crestwood really didn’t put together any scoring chances after that.
The Warriors’ first score of the came from the defense, with Leo Haros picking off an overthrown pass from Crestwood quarterback Jason Swank and taking it 16 yards untouched for the score.
Haros, who has been asked to do a little bit of everything for this Warrior team, was also at the center of the Wyoming Area run game. The senior ran for 59 yards and a touchdown and kept the chains moving all night long.
The strength of the Warriors rushing attack this year has been the ability to rotate a number of different guys into the backfield who can produce.
Wyoming Area was without Drew Mruk on Friday night, but Haros was complemented by Aaron Crossley (52 yards) and Nico Sciandra, who had a touchdown run and a successful two-point conversion for the Warriors.
“Throughout the year, Nico Sciandra has stepped up and stepped in when we need him,” Spencer said. “He’s in that stable of backs now.”
Sciandra’s score and conversion made it a 20-0 Warrior lead heading into the final quarter. The defense promptly went and turned Crestwood over courtesy of an interception from Usamah Alansari, and one late Warrior touchdown — a great catch falling to the turf from Rocco Pizano despite great coverage from the Comets defensive back guarding him — made it a 27-0 final.
It was business as usual for the Warriors after a tough loss last week.
“That was an emotional game; we were so close,” Spencer said. “That experience is invaluable, it gives you a chance to reach and stretch for your potential.”
Wyoming Area improved to 4-1 with the win, and will look ahead to next week’s matchup on the road against Lakeland.
Crestwood (1-4) will also be on the road next week, with a trip up north to take on Valley View.
Wyoming Area 27, Crestwood 0
Wyoming Area`6`6`8`7 — 27
Crestwood`0`0`0`0 — 0
First quarter
WA — Leo Haros 16 interception return (kick failed) 2:12
Second quarter
WA — Haros 1 run (conversion failed), 0:19
Third quarter
WA — Nico Sciandra 2 run (Sciandra run) 0:31
Fourth quarter
WA — Rocco Pizano 20 pass from Blaise Sokach-Minnick (Halle Kranson kick) 1:57
Team statistics`WA`CRE
First downs`12`4
Rushes-yards`42-188`29-148
Passing yards`98`26
Total yards`286`174
Passing`7-16-0`4-10-2
Sacked-yards lost`0-0`0-0
Punts-avg.`5-37`6-33
Fumbles-lost`0-0`0-0
Penalties-yards`5-35`7-60
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WA, Haros 14-59, Sokach-Minnick 8-14, Pizano 4-30, Aaron Crossley 8-52, Sciandra 9-33. CRE, Noah Schultz 12-98, Chase Pugh 2-5, Robert Knight 1-(-2), Jason Swank 4-6, Ethan Shudak 9-41.
PASSING — WA, Sokach-Minnick 7-14-98-0, Pizano 0-2-0-0. CRE, Swank 4-10-26-2.
RECEIVING — WA, Usamah Alansari 1-16, John Morgan 2-6, Pizano 2-39, Haros 1-4, Sciandra 1-33. CRE, Schultz 2-11, Shudak 1-10, Pugh 1-5.
INTERCEPTIONS — WA, Haros, Alansari.
