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West Shamokin rolls past Leechburg
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By D.j. Vasil
Published: Friday, October 19, 2012, 11:56 p.m.
Updated: Wednesday, January 9, 2013
West Shamokin used a strong running attack to rush by host Leechburg, 33-6, in a Class A Eastern Conference game.
Sophomore running back Andrew Wingard slashed and powered his way to 120 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries for West Shamokin (2-6, 2-5).
The Wolves, despite dressing only 13 players, racked up 235 yards on the ground. Leechburg (1-7, 1-6), meantime, dropped its seventh straight.
“We jumped into that I-formation last week, and (Wingard) runs the ball hard,” West Shamokin coach Josh Gilliland said. “There were a lot of situations where he was gaining extra yards after contact. He's a heck of an athlete.”
In the second quarter, Leechburg broke a scoreless tie with a 13-play, 70-yard drive capped by junior Alex Kalmar's 4-yard touchdown run.
West Shamokin answered quickly, scoring 12 points on its next two possessions. Touchdown runs of 2 and 32 yards from Wingard gave the Wolves a 12-6 edge into halftime.
The Wolves continued to dominate the line of scrimmage in the second half, marching 50 yards on 10 plays in 5:21 to open the third quarter. Wingard capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.
“When we kicked off, we wanted to try and hold them,” Leechburg coach Mark George said. “We thought it was very important to keep ourselves mentally and emotionally in the game by holding them. They ate up a lot of clock and scored. At that point, it was tough for the kids to come back.”
With the score 27-6 early in the fourth quarter and Leechburg clinging to slim hope of a comeback, West Shamokin junior defensive back Brady Cornman intercepted a pass by senior Tyler Dubovi. Then, West Shamokin sophomore running back Zac Horner raced 41 yards for a touchdown to complete the scoring.
D.J. Vasil is a freelance writer.
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