Wyalusing’s Dylan Johns broke free on an 18-yard run with three and a half minutes remaining in the game to break the 0-0 tie and give the Rams a 6-0 lead after a failed two-point attempt. 

Wellsboro fumbled away the ensuing kickoff and Wyalusing capitalized on the Hornet error as Johns again got loose from the Hornets’ defense .. which had been stingy and swarming throughout the game .. and with under two minutes left the Rams led 13-0.

"Last week we didn't have a lot of emotion. This week our kids came out, they were focused, and we told them they need to play with emotion and have fun," Hornet Head Coach Matt Hildebrand said. "This is what it's all about, coming out and playing a football game .. this is what all the work is about. They did everything we asked of them tonight. They flew around. Defense was lights out and a lot of the guys were playing on both sides of the ball, and at least four of them are freshmen. We're getting everything we can out of them right now. I'm proud of these guys despite coming out on the wrong side of the score again. We just have to keep pushing."

Early on in the game neither team had much offensive success. The Rams came in averaging 37 points a game and Wellsboro held Wyalusing to 167 total yards of offense. But the Hornets struggled offensively as well .. gaining only 71 yards on the night. 

Wellsboro had two scoring opportunities late in the first half .. including a long touchdown pass from freshman QB Griffin Morral to junior wideout Marek Mascho that was negated by a holding call against the Hornets. 

The second half played out much like the first for both teams, but an interception by freshman Reed Richardson midway through the third quarter set Wellsboro up on the Rams' 23-yard line. The Hornet offense moved the ball down inside the red zone on the legs of senior Ryder Bowen. Wellsboro reached the Rams' 13 before opting for a field goal try. An illegal substitution penalty moved the ball back five yards and junior Jonathan Carl's 35-yard kick was wide left.

The Hornets had another scoring opportunity late in the third quarter and into the early fourth. After holding the Rams and forcing them to punt, Mascho gave Wellsboro great starting field position on a 21-yard punt return. Runs by Mascho and Bowen moved the ball down to the Wyalusing 7, where again Carl attempted a field goal. His second attempt, this one from 23 yards away with 10:16 remaining in the game, was blocked.

"We have to clean up the turnovers," Hildebrand said. "When we score a touchdown and have it come back it's a punch in the gut. We have to be better and eliminate the untimely penalties. It's killing us right now."

Wyalusing’s Johns led all ball carriers with 106 yards on 22 carries. Jesse Lamb (2) and Jonathan Earle intercepted passes for the Rams while Ethan Vanderpool led the defense with 10 tackles.

Morral finished 5-of-12 for 25 yards passing while Bowen carried the ball 18 times for 63 yards. Mascho caught four of Morral's passes for 20 yards while Carl caught the other for five yards. 

Bowen had 12 tackles to lead the Hornets on the defensive side of the ball while sophomore Levi Champaign and junior Cole Knapp had nine and eight tackles, respectively. Bowen and Knapp also recorded sacks and senior Aiden Carson intercepted a pass.

The loss drops the Hornets to 0-3 on the season. They’ll travel to Towanda next Friday to take on the Black Knights (1-1).