HOMETOWN — Hunter Nause doesn’t get many touches, but he makes the most out of every one he gets.
Nause scored three touchdowns, one on a 90-yard kickoff return, to lead Marian to a 35-7 rout of Mahanoy Area in Friday’s Anthracite Football League contest at Men of Marian Stadium.
Nause finished with 67 yards on six carries, scoring touchdowns of 35 and 17 yards in the fourth quarter to put the game away.
“I take advantage of anytime I get the ball,” Nause said. “Anything to help the team.”
But no play was more important than Nause’s kickoff return following Mahanoy’s only scoring drive of the night, which tied the game at 7 with 5:26 until halftime.
Mason Ryan negated K.J. Snerr’s 18-yard touchdown run in the first quarter with a 32-yard quarterback keeper to get the Golden Bears on the board. The drive started on Matt Yedsena’s interception of Ethan Kuczynski.
So it appeared momentum was on Mahanoy’s side as the intermission neared.
Nause changed all that by scooping the ball up at his own 10 on the ensuing kickoff, cutting down the left sideline and going untouched into the end zone for a 14-7 lead the Colts would take into the locker room.
“He’s an athlete. He’s a big-play kid for us,” Marian coach Stan Dakosty said of Nause. “He’s a threat anytime he gets the ball in his hands. Him, K.J., Ethan, Aaron DeAngelo, we’ve got some guys that can do some things and spread you out a bit.”
After stopping the Bears’ first drive of the second half, Marian (5-3, 4-3 AFL) went back to work. Kuczynski kept the drive alive with two passes to 6-foot-3 receiver DeAngelo, who accounted for 40 of the Colts’ 61 receiving yards, before Kuczynski finished the drive on a 36-yard keeper around the left side for a 21-7 lead with 3:58 remaining in the quarter.
Ryan picked up one of Mahanoy’s three second-half first downs with a 20-yard run on the next possession, but the Bears (4-4, 4-4) turned the ball over on downs and never again got within scoring range.
“We came out at halftime, got the ball, moved it a little bit, but it just seemed like the whole night, except for obviously the touchdown drive, we couldn’t complete drives,” Mahanoy coach Dave Holman said. “Whether it was a fumble, whatever it was, we were just shooting ourselves in the foot, not finishing drives.”
Mahanoy managed 200 rushing yards on 55 carries and only completed four passes for 23 yards. Ryan compiled 112 yards on 21 carries, while Lenny Dulsky was held to just 46 yards on 13 touches.
Snerr led Marian’s attack with 97 yards and a score on 17 carries. Kuczynski picked the right times to use his legs, tallying 56 yards on just three runs.
Marian’s offense finished with 284 total yards, 223 of those coming on the ground.
“The offensive line the last two weeks has really come on strong for us,” Dakosty said. “They’re the guys that make it happen. We were sputtering there for a little bit, we were inconsistent. But we’ve got some kids stepping up and we’re building some depth there. I’m very pleased with how the offensive line is playing.”
They certainly opened big holes for Nause on his two touchdown runs. The first came on the opening play of the fourth quarter following a muffed punt attempt by the Bears. The second took Nause around the left end, down the sideline and easily into the end zone.
“That was the capper right there,” Nause said. “After that, it was over. We knew it was over. We had the momentum and we never went back down after that.”
After losing three straight games to North Schuylkill, Blue Mountain and Lehighton, the Colts find themselves back on the winning track. Friday’s win over neighboring rival Mahanoy gives Marian back-to-back wins with Shenandoah Valley and Tamaqua in the final two weeks of the season.
“It’s a huge rivalry and it’s the next step to that playoff run,” Nause said.
Game Summary
MA (4-4, 4-4) 0 7 0 0 — 7
Mar (5-3, 4-3) 7 7 7 14 — 35
Mar — Snerr 18 run (Buscher kick)
MA — Ryan 32 run (Bradley kick)
Mar — Nause 90 kickoff return (Buscher kick)
Mar — Kuczynski 36 run (Buscher kick)
Mar — Nause 35 run (Buscher kick)
Mar — Nause 17 run (Snerr kick)
MA Mar
First Downs 13 15
Rushes-Yards 55-200 29-223
Passes 4-11-0 6-11-1
Passing Yards 23 61
Total Yards 223 284
Fumbles-Lost 3-1 1-1
Penalties 3-20 3-25
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: Mahanoy Area — Ryan 21-112, Dulsky 13-46, Wronski 7-26, Clewell 5-14, Jones 3-10, Yedsena 2-6, Yanchuck 1-0, Loughlin 1-0, Team 2-(-14). Marian — Snerr 17-97, Nause 6-67, Kuczynski 3-56, Goldberg 2-4, Team 1-(-1).
PASSING: Mahanoy Area — Ryan 4-11-0, 23. Marian — Kuczynski 6-11-1, 61.
RECEIVING: Mahanoy Area — Yedsena 2-23, Wronski 1-0, Styka 1-0. Marian — DeAngelo 4-40, Snerr 1-20, Nause 1-1.
INTERCEPTIONS: Mahanoy Area — Yedsena.