Joby Fawcett
MOSCOW - After two years of walking off the field disappointed, and one year of hard work and determination, North Pocono football players can call themselves champions.
Playing with an unmatched intensity on a frigid Friday night, the No. 2 Trojans rolled to a 35-0 win over West Scranton, supplying the exclamation point to a regular season that ends with at least a share of the Lackawanna Football Conference Division I title.
A celebration that included dousing coach Jason Sepkowski with water more than made up for two seasons where North Pocono won a total of four games.
"As soon as we walked off the field last year, the juniors felt that we had to be leaders and we knew that we had to work in the offseason and right through the season," said Smith, as North Pocono won its first division title since 2001. "So far, that has gotten us to where we are.
"To be able to call myself a champion in varsity football means a lot."
North Pocono turned in an overwhelming effort as it gets ready for the District 2 Class AAA playoffs where it will play next week at Dallas. The defense dominated the No. 2 ranked offense in Division I, limiting West Scranton to 67 yards - 255 below its season average per game.
Linebacker Greg Sporko led the spirited unit with seven tackles, including four for losses as West Scranton ran just seven offensive plays in the second half for minus-3 yards.
"We really did a great job," Sporko said. "I'm really proud of the guys. We just came out and did our best. I feel great about the shutout. It feels great to bring a championship back after eight years."
North Pocono stymied West Scranton's passing game that came into the game averaging 217.6 yards. Sporko and Frank Butash harrassed quarterback Tyler Hughes, Michael Craig recovered a fumble and Nick DeSavino led the secondary. The Trojans even scored a defensive touchdown as senior Mark Badyna returned an interception 25 yards in the second quarter to push the lead to 21-0 at halftime.
"I was really pumped up," Badyna said. "I was watching the quarterback's eyes and he looked right at him. I just jumped it."
Offensively, North Pocono controlled the line of scrimmage. Peter Calderone, a 300-pound junior tackle, Josh Pryzwara and A.J. Giombetti helped to overpower the Invaders and open holes for a legion of backs.
Nick Batzel had 73 yards rushing and a touchdown, Smith added 53 yards and a score, and senior Nick Reuther added 33 and a score as the Trojans piled up 251 yards on 47 carries.
"You always want to do well at home and we had a chance to prove ourselves and the kids came out and got it done," said third-year coach Jason Sepkowski, whose team is 9-1, its best regular-season record since 1994.
North Pocono got going quickly, powering its way for a touchdown on its opening drive. The Trojans covered 73 yards in 12 plays with Smith hitting Nick Bell for a 26-yard score.
In the second quarter, Smith finished an eight-play drive with a 1-yard run, and Badyna made it 21-0 on West Scranton's first play following the score.
As the temperature plummeted, North Pocono's ground game heated up. Batzel finished a nine-play drive with a 1-yard score and the lead ballooned to 28-0.
"We live and die with the pass and our passing game never got going," West Scranton coach Joe Gerek said. "I knew we would have trouble with them defensively, because they are a big, physical team. I was a little disappointed in our effort, but not the season. I thought we had a pretty good season. I would have liked a better outcome for the seniors."
NOVEMBER 7, 2009 TIMES-TRIBUNE SPORTS LINKS
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