WEST PITTSTON — Wyoming Area running back Aaron Crossley was effective with and without the football in his hands Friday night.
With the ball, Crossley ran 39 times for 310 yards and three touchdowns. Without it, Scranton’s concern over the Lehigh University recruit led to two more touchdowns as Wyoming Area defeated the Knights, 35-19, in a non-conference game at Anthony “Jake” Sobeski Stadium.
Wyoming Area improved to 6-0. Scranton fell to 4-2.
“What you saw tonight was an outstanding team effort led by number 5 Aaron Crossley,” Warriors coach Randy Spencer said. “He truly showed tonight why he’s one of the best players in Pennsylvania.”
Scranton scored on the first drive of the game, using a 19-yard run by Chris Chandler on a fake punt to keep the 11-play drive going. Memphis Shotto scored from one yard away as the Knights took a 7-0 lead.
Crossley then embarked on his fifth 300-yard rushing game of his career. He scored from 54 yards out on the Warriors’ second play from scrimmage. He then added a 1-yard run after a fumble gave the Warriors a short field which with to work.
“I couldn’t do it without my O-line,” Crossley said. “The O-line is the real MVP.”
The offensive line of seniors Jacob Gustitus, Jacob Krulick and Anthony VanAuken and juniors Chase Desanto and Andrew Steinberger allowed Crossley to reach the second level continuously. There, he bashed, carried and battered anyone willing to tackle him.
However, the turning point came in the third quarter when Wyoming Area scored twice without giving the ball to Crossley to take a 28-13 lead into the fourth quarter.
The first touchdown came after Crossley carried the football on eight of the first nine plays. Quarterback Anthony DeLucca’s fake to Crossley allowed him to find Josh Mruk down the middle for a 17-yard touchdown on a play-action pass.
The next touchdown came after Scranton converged on Crossley on a third-and-5 play. Instead, DeLucca ran a bootleg for an 8-yard gain to the right. Three plays later, DeLucca plowed in from the 1-yard line.
“Situationally, he’s really effective,” Spencer said of DeLucca, a junior who last played in junior high. “I don’t know how the QBRs (quarterback ratings) are calculated, but his is probably pretty high because he’s been so efficient and effective.”
Wyoming Area’s main concern defensively was Billy Maloney, a dual-threat quarterback. He had just 29 yards on nine carries in the first half, but busted runs of 50 and 46 yards in the second half. He finished with 134 yards and two touchdowns on 15 rushes while hitting on 19 of 31 passes for 182 yards.
The Warriors, though, stopped Maloney at a crucial juncture. Down 28-19 early in the fourth quarter, Maloney tried to run for a first down on fourth-and-1 at the Scranton 38-yard line. Crossley raced in from his linebacker spot and stonewalled him for a 2-yard loss.
“I play both sides of the ball,” Crossley said. “I’m not really focused on one side, I’m focused on being a football player for this team. Next year (at Lehigh), maybe just running back, but this year I’m a football player.”
Wyoming Area pretty much iced the game as Crossley carried three times to cover all 36 yards for the Warriors’ final score after stopping Scranton on fourth down.
BY THE NUMBERS
Wyoming Area produced 20 first downs, 334 yards rushing and 402 yards of total offense. Scranton had 14 first downs, 152 yards rushing, 193 passing and 345 total. … Wyoming Area’s Josh Mruk caught three passes for 45 yards, batted down three passes and broke up another. … Jacob Morgan and Kevin Wiedl each had six tackles and two assists for the Warriors. Aaron Crossley had a sack and two other tackles for losses. … The Warriors, who have scored at least 29 points in every game, are averaging 40.3 points while allowing 11.0.
UP NEXT
Unbeaten Wyoming Area plays Holy Redeemer, which was winless going into Saturday, in a Saturday 5 p.m. game next week at Wyoming Valley West’s Spartan Stadium. The Warriors are the only team without a loss in Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 at 3-0. Holy Redeemer was 0-2 in the division and 0-5 overall going into the Saturday game against Hanover Area, the other team that was winless within the division. The Royals allowed 44.2 points per game in their first five games.
