WEST PITTSTON — Just when Lake-Lehman finally worked its way back into Friday night’s District 2 Class 3A semifinal football game, Wyoming Area senior Dominic DeLuca struck like he has throughout his career.
When the ensuing kickoff got by everyone, DeLuca fetched it, turned and dashed down the left sideline for an 82-yard touchdown return.
And, just like that, Wyoming Area was back in control and on its way to a 48-12 victory, sending the Warriors to a district championship game for the first time since winning it all in 2012.
“We were very motivated coming into this week, coming off of last year’s disappointing loss in the semifinals,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “To get to the district championship and get the opportunity to play on our home field is a great opportunity for us.”
Lake-Lehman ended its season at 8-4.
Wyoming Area dominated from the onset, going on scoring drives of 52, 70 and 72 yards on its first three possessions.
Running back Darren Rodney, who finished with a game-high 154 yards on 23 carries, capped the Warriors’ first possession with a 2-yard run. Sam Solomon, a 295-pound senior, took a lateral 10 yards for a touchdown for the second time this season on a tackle-eligible play. DeLuca ran 1 yard for a 21-0 lead with 7:33 left until halftime.
Up to that point, Wyoming Area had run 29 plays to six by Lake-Lehman. The Black Knights, though, showed some life on their next possession.
Helped by 40 yards in Wyoming Area penalties, Lake-Lehman cut the deficit to 21-6 on a 1-yard plunge by quarterback Ethan Adams.
Lake-Lehman’s momentum ended 13 seconds later when DeLuca returned a kickoff for TD for the second time this season and the third time in his career.
“I wasn’t expecting any kicks at all to me today when I was back there,” DeLuca said. “But that one got to me on the squib kick and I took it to the house. We got great blocks up front. That’s what helped.”
Lake-Lehman coach Jerry Gilsky agreed the return drained the Black Knights’ momentum.
“It really deflated us,” Gilsky said.
The final play of the first half might have sapped it completely.
“I thought we had a score here at the end (of the half),” Gilsky continued. “I don’t know what the hell happened. We’ll see it on film. It really hurts you. You take that scenario and score at the end, it’s a different ball game. It is what it is.”
Adams survived four sacks on Lake-Lehman’s final possession of the first half, including three in a row where Drew Mruk, Caleb Graham and Solomon got to him to set up a fourth-and-22 from the Wyoming Area 32. Adams threw over the middle to tight end Danny Kutz, who fought to get into the end zone.
But after the officiating crew conferred, Kutz was ruled short of the goal line as the team went into the locker room.
Touchdown runs by Rodney and Leo Haros late in the third quarter put the game out of reach at 42-6.
Adams was 18-for-27 for 158 yards. Unlike the first meeting where he threw TD passes of 66 and 52 yards, he had to settle for short gains for the most part. He was also sacked six times compared to once when Wyoming Area defeated the Black Knights 35-30 in Week Two.
Lake-Lehman’s running game was shut down completely. The Black Knights finished with 68 yards on 26 carries, but most came when the game was turned over to the reserves. When the starters were on the field, they managed 13 yards on 16 rushes.
Viecenzo Giambra ran 76 yards for a touchdown for the Warriors with 6:26 remaining.
Lake-Lehman’s Jeremy Scouton scored from the 5 in the final two minutes.
