AJ Sports

By Tom Robinson
Go Lackawanna sports correspondent

Dominic DeAntonio threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score when Carbondale broke a scoreless tie in the fourth quarter and knocked Mid Valley out of a share of the Lackawanna Football Conference Division 3 lead with a 13-0 victory.

Carm Carachilo caught the game-winning touchdown pass then made an interception to set up DeAntonio's clinching score.

The Chargers are 2-1 in the division and 4-4 overall. They have won four out of five with a one-point loss to unbeaten Old Forge since starting 0-3.

Mid Valley had a six-game winning streak broken while falling to 2-1 and 6-2.

UPDATED: 11:13 p.m.

Delaware Valley moved into a three-way tie for the Lackawanna Football Conference Division 1 lead Friday night when it rallied to a 28-24 victory over West Scranton.

The Invaders led, 18-14, at halftime with the help of two touchdown passes and a touchdown run by Tyler Hughes. West Scranton jumped to a 12-0 lead before Delaware Valley started its rally.

The Warriors improved to 3-1 in the division and 4-4 overall. They are tied for first with Abington Heights and North Pocono.

Abington Heights can move into sole possession of the lead Saturday when it plays at home against Scranton.

West  fell to 1-3 and 2-6.

In other games: Wallenpaupack defeated winless Honesdale, 48-6; North Pocono shut out Montrose, 42-0; and Western Wayne edged Riverside, 10-8.

Wallenpaupack improved to 2-2 in Division 1 and 6-2 overall.

North Pocono ran its record to 7-1 by opening a 35-0 halftime lead in the non-league game.

Western Wayne is at .500 in both the division (2-2) and overall (4-4).

UPDATED: 11:02 p.m.

DUNMORE -- Valley View stopped Dunmore five straight times, forcing punts before the Bucks could produce a single first down, drastically changing the outlook of Friday night's Lackawanna Football Conference Division 2 game.

The Bucks changed the look of their offense and regained control on the way to a 35-14 victory that clinched the division title.

After attempting just three passes and one run in the first half, quarterback David Olivetti assumed a more important role in the offense to help Dunmore break a 14-14 tie and pull away in the final 17 minutes.

During the time Dunmore went five drives without a first down, the Bucks let a 14-0 lead get away and missed a chance to further stretch their lead after taking over in Valley View territory.

Olivetti broke that dry spell by going 4-for-4 passing for 52 yards and running once for nine yards in the go-ahead drive. Dunmore's first four first downs since the opening 6:20 all came on Olivetti passes, the first three of which went to Brian Copeland, including two in third-down situations.

Olivetti's 13-yard pass to Frank Santarsiero was followed on the next play by a 2-yard Michael Perry touchdown run for a 21-14 lead with 4:14 left in the third quarter.

The touchdown run was the third of the game for Perry, who went over 6,000 yards rushing for his career. The Cougars, however held Perry without a gain longer than eight yards while limiting him to 85 yards on 25 carries.

Dunmore had to wait to take advantage of Valley View's concentration on Perry's running.

"In the first half, with the field position, we couldn't throw the football," Dunmore coach Jack Henzes said.

Olivetti had another nine-yard run in the fourth quarter before running 55 yards around left end for the game-breaking touchdown with 4:23 remaining.

Morgan Holmes, who had already intercepted two passes earlier, added a 29-yard interception return for a score with 56 seconds left.

"They kept running the same route," said Holmes, who stepped in front of an out pattern on fourth-and-10. "The receiver kept coming back and coming back."

Perry scored on runs of 3 and 1 yards in the first 6:20 when Dunmore took over at the Valley View 21 and 31 with the help of a fumble and a short punt.

Shane Gensiak's 8-yard pass to Brian Lalli cut the lead to 14-7 late in the third quarter. The touchdown was set up by a 47-yard Gensiak-to-Brian Kubilus pass.

Kelly Swift ran 8 yards to tie the game.

UPDATED: 10:20 p.m.

Brett Kuwick ran for four touchdowns Friday night to lead Lakeland to a 25-14 victory over Scranton Prep.

The win improved the Chiefs to 2-2 in Division 2 of the Lackawanna Football Conference and 5-3 overall while greatly improving Lakeland's chances of qualifying for one of four District 2 Class AA playoff berths.

Lakeland entered the weekend fifth, behind fourth-place Susquehanna, but will close the gap even if the Sabers win Saturday. Lakeland beat a Class AAA team with five wins while Susquehanna can only get the points that go with beating a Class A team with one win.

For more details on this game, read Don McGlynn's coverage in this week's Abington Journal sports section.

UPDATED: 10:07 p.m.

DUNMORE -- Michael Perry ran for three touchdowns and Morgan Holmes returned one of his three interceptions for a touchdown Friday night as Dunmore clinched its first Lackawanna Football Conference Division 2 championship with a 35-14 victory over Valley View.

The win, combined with a Scranton Prep loss, gave Dunmore the title outright. The Bucks are 5-0 in the division and 8-0 overall with two games, including one non-league to play.

Lakeland handed Scranton Prep a 25-14 loss while Dunmore was inflicting the second loss on Valley View. Every other Division 2 team already had at least two losses.

In other games: Old Forge emerged as the LFC Division 3 leader when it routed Lackawanna Trail, 53-6, while Carbondale was ending Mid Valley's six-game winning streak, 13-0.

UPDATED 8:22 p.m.

The Dunmore Bucks and Valley View Cougars are tied, 14-14, at halftime in their Lackawanna Football Conference Division 2 game.

Michael Perry ran for two touchdowns in the first 6:20 and Dunmore started its next possession at the Valley View 42. The Bucks did not get another first down in the half and the Cougars rallied to tie.

In other games:

Lakeland has a 13-7 halftime lead over Scranton Prep.

Mid Valley and Carbondale are in a scoreless tie in the second quarter of play.

Old Forge took a 28-0 lead on Lackawanna Trail after just one quarter.

POSTED 2:06 p.m.

Scranton Prep and Lakeland sit in third and fourth place in Division 2 of the Lackawanna Football Conference and each has already lost to first-place Dunmore.

The Cavaliers and Chiefs play in different enrollment classifications within the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association.

Still, when postseason hopes are the criteria, their meeting at Lakeland tonight is the most important on the LFC schedule this weekend.

Scranton Prep, in Class AAA, and Lakeland, in Class AA, each sit in fifth place in a playoff points race where the top four make the District 2 tournament.

The Cavaliers (5-2) are in between Berwick and Coughlin, who play each other tonight. After Coughlin, Berwick faces unbeaten Dallas and Class AAAA contender Hazleton Area. The Bulldogs could be within reach of the Cavaliers, who have challenges ahead with Valley View and Western Wayne in the final two weeks of the regular season.

Lakeland (4-3) is chasing Susquehanna, which is a big favorite Saturday at Holy Cross. The Sabers, however, still have games against Carbondale and unbeaten Old Forge. The Chiefs could gain ground this week by picking up extra points for beating a larger school with a winning record and have games ahead Western Wayne and last-place Montrose.

Old Forge has already clinched a spot in the District 2 Class A playoffs.

None of the LFC teams moved into or out of playoff position last week.

If the playoffs started today, the District 2 tournament would include: Abington Heights and North Pocono in Class AAA; Dunmore, Mid Valley and Susquehanna in AA; and Old Forge and Riverside in A. Wallenpaupack would be in the District 1-2-11 Class AAAA Subregional.

For updates throughout the eighth weekend of the high school football season, return to www.scrantonedition.com/sports. Tonight's coverage will concentrate on the Valley View-Dunmore game while including updates from around the league.