HEGINS — There is only one thing better than winning a championship. Repeating as champions.
The Williams Valley Pee Wee and Pony division squads did that Saturday in their respective Anthracite Midget Football League championship games at Tri-Valley High School’s Bulldog Stadium.
Williams Valley’s Pee Wee squad defeated Tri-Valley 14-0 to win its third consecutive AMFL title. In the Pony Division, the Vikings completed an undefeated season and successfully defended their championship with a 6-0 win over Shikellamy Maroon.
In the final game of the tripleheader, Schuylkill Haven avenged a loss in last year’s title game to down previously unbeaten Lykens 26-14 and capture the Midget Division championship.
“This feels pretty good, as usual,” Williams Valley Pee Wee coach Don Shutt said. “After three championships, the only thing that changes are the faces.”
Braxton Schwartz led Williams Valley’s Pee Wee team with 113 yards and two touchdowns.
Schwartz scored on a 26-yard run in the second quarter, and followed it up with a 20-yard rushing TD in the fourth to seal the Vikings’ win.
“He’s a player,” Shutt said of Schwartz. “He’s a tank, and he’s been doing it all year long.”
Isaac Whiteash came up with a key interception in the fourth quarter for Williams Valley to stop a late rally by the Bulldogs.
Whiteash also scored on an extra-point after Schwartz’ second touchdown.
“You can never count Tri-Valley out of these games,” Shutt said. “Isaac is a good kid in his third year, and he’s also a good quarterback.”
Tri-Valley’s biggest play of the game came on an interception by Layne Yoder.
“Layne was in the right place at the right time,” Tri-Valley Pee Wee coach Cliff Troutman said. “A lot of these kids are in their first year, so they’ll be back next year. Everyone should know they played their hearts out.”
Pee Wee Championship
WV (9-1) 0 7 0 7 — 14 TV (7-3) 0 0 0 0 — 0
WV —Schwartz 26 run (Schwartz run)
WV —Schwartz 20 run (Whiteash run)
Pony championship
Williams Valley 6
Shikellamy Maroon 0
Jesse Engle ran for 66 yards and the game’s only touchdown as the Vikings beat Shikellamy Maroon.
Williams Valley’s offense tallied 106 total yards, and its defense allowed the Braves only 77 yards.
“Jesse is the heart of this team,” Williams Valley Pony coach Kenny Keim said. “But it takes 11 kids to win a game: one running and 10 blocking.
“All the credit goes to these kids. The whole team plays with heart, and it feels good to get two in a row.”
Shikellamy Maroon head coach Larry Wary was happy with the progress his team made during its season, particularly with his defense.
Wary singled out Mason Dietrich’s third-quarter interception as one of the game’s highlights.
“Mason was playing in a back-up role, so he just happened to be in there at the right time,” Wary said. “Our team was put together just this year, and we didn’t know what to expect.
“But we stepped up for Shikellamy, and we hate for the season to end.”
WV (10-0) 0 6 0 0 — 6 Maroon (7-3) 0 0 0 0 — 0
WV —Engle 1 run (kick failed)
Midget championship
Schuylkill Haven 26
Lykens 14
Lykens started strong in the Midget championship, with Mason Wiest returning the opening kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown to get his team up 8-0.
The Tigers’ defense then recovered a fumble on Haven’s first possession.
“We thought the game was going exactly the way we wanted it to,” Lykens Midget coach Kerry Wiest said. “We had all the momentum.”
The Hurricanes stopped the Tigers’ offensive threat, and then answered with an 11-yard touchdown run by Kobe Brish in the second quarter.
Schuylkill Haven went into its locker room at halftime down by two points. Lykens beat Haven 38-6 in their regular-season meeting.
“We knew we were still in it,” Haven Midget coach Charlie Foster said. “I told them to keep their heads up and be ready to win.”
Schuylkill Haven opened the third quarter with a 27-yard touchdown run by Brish. Josh Yoder converted the two-point conversion kick to give his team its first lead of the night at 14-6.
Lykens tied the game on its next possession with a 46-yard rushing touchdown by Wiest, who finished with 81 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
The Hurricanes then put together a three-play touchdown drive that saw Brish score from 44 yards out.
Brish finished with 159 yards rushing and three touchdowns.
“He’s a really good, natural athlete,” Foster said of Brish. “He gives 110 percent all the time.”
With the score 20-14 at the start of the fourth quarter, Schuylkill Haven sealed its championship victory with one more touchdown as quarterback Mason Ulsh threw to a wide-open Jake Luckenbill for a 35-yard TD.
“This whole team is skilled, and these kids are some of the best I’ve ever coached,” Foster said. “They have talent and heart.”
Lykens (9-1) 8 0 6 0 — 14 Haven (8-2) 0 6 14 6 — 26
L —Wiest 80 kickoff return (Jury kick)
SH —Brish 11 run (kick failed)
SH —Brish 27 run (Yoder kick)
L — Wiest 46 run (kick failed)
SH —Brish 44 run (kick failed)
SH —Luckenbill pass from Ulsh (kick blocked)