MAHANOY CITY — Mahanoy Area finally put an end to a four-game losing streak. Now the team is thinking about the playoffs.
The Golden Bears are in a position to qualify for the postseason after defeating Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech 28-0 in a non-league game Friday at Alumni Field.
The team is still in play for a District 11 Class A playoff berth, though an Eastern Conference spot is more likely with a win against rival Shenandoah Valley next week.
Either way, head coach Dave Holman was pleased with the win, especially with his defense holding the Rams to shutout.
“A win is a win. We shut them out. We’re 4-5 right now. And we’re pretty excited to play Shenandoah next week,” Holman said. “Columbia-Montour is a very tough team. They scrapped. They came to play. But we got the win.”
Mahanoy Area did not start off on the right foot as two first quarter fumbles stopped potential scoring drives. It wasn’t until early in the second quarter when the Golden Bears took the lead on Lenny Dulsky’s 72 yard touchdown run with less than 10 minutes remaining in the first half.
Dulsky, who rushed for 119 yards on 11 carries, caught the two-point conversion pass from quarterback Mason Ryan to give the Golden Bears an 8-0 lead.
Ryan had a big rushing night for the Golden Bears, too. He gained 141 yards on 14 carries, including a 40-yard touchdown run with 2:49 left in the second quarter to give Mahanoy Area a 15-0 lead at halftime.
“It was more mistakes than it was a slow start,” Holman said. “Dulsky and Ryan did a great job tonight. They both did well running the ball.”
Ryan scored another touchdown on a 21-yard run to up Mahanoy Area’s lead to 22-0 with 7:49 left in the third quarter. The Golden Bears capped the scoring with their first defensive touchdown of the season on a 30-yard interception return by Mike Wronski with 4:47 left in the game.
Col-Mon Vo-Tech coach Mark Varner thought his team hung tough with the Golden Bears despite the score differential. His team had three potential scoring drives turned away inside the 10-yard line that could have had an impact on the outcome.
The Rams’ Nick Kocan led his team with 117 yards rushing while Chris Zanolini gained 99 yards.
“It was some of the best football we played all season, even though we did not punch it in the times we got down there,” Varner said.
“When we can hang with a tough team like Mahanoy Area, than I can’t ask for anything more.”
Game Summary
CMVT (3-8) 0 0 0 0 — 0 Mah. Area (4-5) 0 15 7 6 — 28
MA —Dulsky 72 run (Dulsky pass from Ryan)
MA —Ryan 40 run (Bradley kick)
MA —Ryan 21 run (Bradley kick)
MA — Wronski 30 interception return (kick blocked)
CMVT Mah
First Downs 14 16
Rushes-Yards 51-204 41-317
Passes 1-7-2 2-10-1
Passing Yards 26 39
Total Yards 230 356
Fumbles-Lost 2-1 2-2
Penalties 3-25 7-50
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: Columbia Montour-Vo Tech — Kocan 23-117, Zanolini 25-99, King 1-(-2), Welsh 2-(-10). Mahanoy Area — Ryan 14-141, Dulsky 11-119, Evitts 9-23, Yedsena 2-19, Wronski 5-15.
PASSING: Columbia Montour-Vo Tech — Welsh 1-7-2, 26. Mahanoy Area — Yedsena 1-3-1, 22; Ryan 1-7-0, 17.
RECEIVING: Columbia Montour-Vo Tech — Binder 1-26. Mahanoy Area — Lewandowski 1-22, Evitts 1-17.
INTERCEPTIONS: Columbia Montour-Vo Tech — T. Longenberger. Mahanoy Area — Yedsena, Wronski.