WRITTEN BY: JERIC YURKANIN
THROOP PENNSYLVANIA– When it rains, it pours.”
It’s an old saying, but for people across Northeastern Pennsylvania over the last few days, it has felt pretty close to reality.
A steady stretch of wet weather rolled through NEPA over the weekend. Rain fell Saturday evening, continued throughout much of Sunday, and even lingered into Monday. By Sunday afternoon at the Mid Valley Sports Complex, the kind of misty, damp rain that seems to soak into everything hung over the field.
Sitting up in the booth, I looked across the bleachers and saw parents on both sides doing whatever they could to stay dry. Umbrellas were scattered throughout the stands. Pop-up tents covered small sections of bleachers. Jackets were zipped up, hoods were pulled over heads, and families stood through the uncomfortable weather for one simple reason — to support their kids.
There is something special about parents willing to sit through a cold, wet Sunday just to watch their son play football.
But let’s be honest — standing in the rain becomes a whole lot more uncomfortable when the team you came to cheer for is losing.
The rain feels a little colder.
The afternoon seems a little longer.
And when the opponent keeps finding the end zone, that umbrella doesn’t provide nearly as much comfort.
That has become a familiar feeling for many of North Pocono’s opponents this season.
The Trojans’ B-Team has developed a habit of jumping on teams early, controlling games and making an already uncomfortable Sunday afternoon feel even longer for the other sideline.
And on this rainy Sunday afternoon at the Mid Valley Sports Complex, the story wasn’t much different.
North Pocono may have arrived as the visiting team, but the Trojans certainly didn’t act like guests.
As the steady mist continued falling, players became soaked, parents remained tucked underneath umbrellas, and North Pocono went to work.
The Trojans weren’t interested in showing much hospitality.
Instead, they once again showed everyone in attendance why this North Pocono B-Team has established itself as one of the stronger youth football teams in the area this season.
From the opening possessions, North Pocono played with the confidence of a team accustomed to controlling games. The Trojans attacked the line of scrimmage, moved the football and quickly put Mid Valley in a position where it had to respond.
Every successful North Pocono run brought another cheer from the visiting sideline, while across the field Mid Valley supporters watched from underneath their umbrellas hoping the Spartans could come up with a stop.
But North Pocono kept coming.
The slick field, wet football and steady mist weren’t going to slow the Trojans down. If anything, the conditions seemed to fit the kind of game North Pocono wanted to play.
This was going to be physical.
And very early, the Trojans made it clear which team planned on setting the tone.
The game couldn’t have started much worse for the Junior Spartans.
Mid Valley received the opening kickoff, but after just two offensive plays, the Spartans put the ball on the ground. Against a North Pocono team capable of turning mistakes into points in a hurry, that was the last thing Mid Valley needed.
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North Pocono recovered the fumble at the Mid Valley 44-yard line and immediately went to work.
On the first play of the possession, Ricky Romanko took the handoff, but the Mid Valley defense met him in the backfield for a three-yard loss. Forrest Semsick followed with a three-yard run and then picked up six more yards on the next play.
That set up fourth-and-6, and North Pocono put the ball in the hands of quarterback Dalton Powell. Powell kept it on a quarterback sneak and powered forward for eight yards and a first down to keep the drive alive.
Romanko followed with a three-yard gain before attempting a pass toward Landon Ragin in the end zone that fell incomplete.
Once again, the Trojans faced fourth-and-6.
With the drive hanging in the balance, Powell dropped back, rolled to his left and looked downfield.
His target?
Ragin.
This time, they connected.
Ragin hauled in Powell’s pass and took it the rest of the way for a 22-yard touchdown catch-and-run, giving North Pocono the early advantage with 2:59 remaining in the first quarter.
Mid Valley’s next possession went nowhere.
The North Pocono defense allowed just three total yards on four plays, quickly getting the football back into the hands of its offense.
Then, with only 16 seconds remaining in the opening quarter, Semsick provided one of the biggest plays of the afternoon.
On the first play of the possession, Semsick exploded through the defense for a 40-yard run, racing all the way down to the Mid Valley 3-yard line before being tripped up just short of the end zone.
Semsick didn’t have to wait long to finish the job.
On the very next play, he powered in from three yards out for the touchdown. The conversion attempt failed, but North Pocono had extended its lead to 12-0.
Mid Valley finally started showing some life on its next possession.
Beginning at its own 44-yard line, Andrew D’Annunzio picked up two yards and followed with another seven-yard run. Tristan Smallwood then showed his quickness, using his speed and fast feet to break loose for seven more yards.
The Spartans were beginning to build some momentum, but three plays later the drive came to an abrupt end when quarterback Colin Hiller was intercepted by Joseph Kelly at the 34-yard line.
North Pocono gave the football right back three plays later with an interception of its own.
Mid Valley tried to take advantage.
On the third play of the ensuing series, Smallwood ripped off the Spartans’ biggest run of the game, sprinting 28 yards and moving the ball to the North Pocono 32-yard line.
For a moment, it looked like Mid Valley might finally have something going.
But the Trojans defense tightened up.
The Spartans were unable to turn the drive into points, and North Pocono carried its 12-0 advantage into halftime.
The break didn’t cool the Trojans down.
North Pocono wasted absolutely no time making another statement to begin the second half.
On the Trojans’ very first offensive play after halftime, Romanko found daylight, broke loose and took the ball all the way to the house for another North Pocono touchdown.
Just like that, with 7:43 remaining in the third quarter, the Trojans had struck again.
The successful conversion pushed the lead to 19-0.
Mid Valley’s following possession produced very little.
The Spartans managed only one total yard on four plays before being forced to punt the ball back to North Pocono.
And the Trojans went right back on the attack.
Romanko was dropped for a one-yard loss on the first play, but Semsick responded with a six-yard run. A Mid Valley offsides penalty added another five yards and moved the ball to the North Pocono 42-yard line.
Romanko then broke free for 16 yards.
On the next snap, he appeared to have another huge play, racing 40 yards, but the run was wiped out by a holding penalty.
For a team without North Pocono’s confidence, a penalty like that might have stalled the drive.
It didn’t.
The Trojans simply went back to work.
Powell answered with a 20-yard run. Romanko followed with another 12 yards.
Then, on the very next play, Romanko finished the drive himself, carrying the ball into the end zone for another North Pocono touchdown.
The conversion attempt was unsuccessful, but with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter, the Trojans had opened up a commanding 25-0 lead.
From there, North Pocono’s defense took care of the rest.
Mid Valley continued trying to find something offensively, but the Spartans struggled to create consistent movement against a Trojans defense that had been in control throughout the afternoon.
And eventually, all that remained was the sound of the rain, the final few snaps and the clock working its way toward zero.
When the final whistle sounded, North Pocono walked away with a convincing 25-0 victory.
The Trojans used explosive runs, clutch fourth-down conversions, defensive pressure and timely takeaways to control the game from beginning to end.
Mid Valley had a few moments when it appeared momentum might begin to shift, particularly behind some strong runs from Smallwood, but every time the Spartans started to build something, North Pocono found a way to shut the door.
That may have been the story of the afternoon.
North Pocono came into Mid Valley as the visiting team, but by the end of the game, the Trojans looked completely at home.
They handled the rain.
They handled the field conditions.
And most importantly, they handled their opponent.
On a Sunday when everyone inside the Mid Valley Sports Complex was searching for some way to stay comfortable and dry, North Pocono’s players and fans had at least one thing to make the miserable weather feel a little easier to deal with — another victory.
For the Mid Valley side, the rain probably felt a little colder.
The afternoon probably felt a little longer.
And by the time the Trojans headed home with a 25-0 win, North Pocono had once again made an uncomfortable Sunday even more uncomfortable for its opponent.
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