The game began as if it would be a shootout, with both teams scoring TDs in the first four minutes, but by night’s end points would be at a premium.

Athens sophomore Connor Davidson put the Wildcats on the board just 18 seconds into the contest with an 87-yard return of the opening kickoff. Zach Fisher’s PAT kick made it 7-0 Athens.

NP-Mansfield answered with a seven-play, 48-yard drive, capped by senior QB Cooper Shaw’s 15-yard TD run. The Panthers’ two-point try failed and Athens’ lead was cut to 7-6 with 8:07 remaining in the first quarter.

Both teams threatened throughout the remainder of the first half, and in the third quarter, but self-inflicted wounds stopped the majority of drives.

Athens’ first play following the ensuing kickoff was a 30-yard run by sophomore Lucas Persun, which took the ball to the NP-Mansfield 32.

After another first down, Athens had the ball at the Panthers’ 22, but a bad shotgun snap resulted in a 30-yard loss and a subsequent punt.

Fisher’s punt pinned NP-Mansfield at it’s own 10-yard line and the Wildcat defense forced a quick punt.

Athens took over at the Panther 32, and a 28-yard pass from Davidson to Sean Peters moved the ball to the NP-Mansfield 2.

A pair of false-start penalties moved the ball back to the 12, and an interception by Shaw ended the Athens’ threat.

Three plays later, NP-Mansfield coughed the ball up at its own 31, but Athens returned the favor on the next play.

The Panthers drove from their 26 to the Athens 20, but Shaw was sacked on fourth down to force a turnover on downs at the Wildcat 25 early in the second quarter.

Back-to-back completions of 8 and 6 yards from Davidson to sophomore Gage Marmor started the Wildcat possession, and a 25-yard dart to Peters moved the ball to the NP-Mansfield 37, with a late hit call against the Panthers advancing the ball to the 22.

Runs of 7 yards by Davidson, and 6 yards by Persun moved the ball to the NP-Mansfield 9-yard line, but a personal foul penalty on second down moved the ball back to the Panther 30 and the drive fizzled.

The Wildcat defense forced a quick punt, and Athens had good field position at the NP-M 40.

Athens overcame a holding call, thanks to a 20-yard pass from Davidson to Peters moved the ball to the NP-M 19, but another holding call and a sack of Davidson for a 10-yard loss resulted in the Wildcats turning the ball over on downs as time expired in the first half.

NP-Mansfield took the second half kickoff and marched from its 36 to the Athens 8, before a holding call forced the Panthers into a 35-yard field goal attempt, which sailed wide left with 4:14 remaining in the third quarter.

Davidson gained 9 yards on the first play of the ensuing possession, then hit Peters with a 26-yard strike to the NP-Mansfield 42.

Another holding call put the Wildcats in a hole, and they punted three plays later.

NP-Mansfield once again put together a drive, mostly on the running of Shaw and Riley Oakes, but the Athens defense stiffened inside its 10. This time, Panther kicker Brody Grinnell split the up rights with a 25-yard field goal to give the Panthers a 9-7 lead with 9:18 remaining in the game.

A pair of illegal procedure penalties against the Wildcats put them in a second-and-15 predicament on their next possession, and they punted two plays later.

The Athens defense forced a quick three-and-out, but the Wildcats were flagged for roughing-the-punter, giving NP-Mansfield new life at their own 48.

Seven plays later Shaw scored on a QB sneak from 1-yard out. Grinnell’s PAT kick made it 16-7 with 1:43 remaining in the game.

Athens quickly moved down field on a five-play scoring drive that started with a 24-yard run by Davidson, and culminated with a 23-yard TD pass to Marmor with 32.5 seconds left in the game.

Fisher’s PAT kick trimmed the deficit to 16-14, but NP-Mansfield pounced on the ensuing onside kick attempt to seal the win.

Shaw led NP-Mansfield with 159 yards rushing and two TDs on 30 carries.He also completed 10 of 21 passes for 102 yards, with Luke Kreger hauling in five catches for 83 yards. Oakes rushed for 27 yards on four carries and had three catches for 20 yards.

North Penn-Mansfield improves to 2-3 on the season with the win. They’ll host Warrior Run (4-1) for their annual homecoming game on Friday at Island Park. 

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SCORING SUMMARY:

1st Quarter

AHS: Connor Davidson 86 yd Kickoff Return (TD) 0-6

AHS: Zach Fisher (PAT) 0-7

NPM: Cooper Shaw 15 yd Rush (TD) 6-7

2nd Quarter

3rd Quarter

4th Quarter

NPM: Brody Grinnell 26 yd (FG) 9-7

NPM: Cooper Shaw 1 yd Rush (TD) 15-7

NPM: Brody Grinnell (PAT) 16-7

AHS: Gage Marmor 23 yd Pass from Connor Davidson (CNV) 16-13

AHS: Zach Fisher (PAT) 16-14

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