LEWISTOWN, Pa. – Week one of the 2024 Central Keystone Youth Football & Cheer League (CKYFCL) saw a full slate of games contested across all three divisions of play.
Mighty Mights:
Juniata 5 – Terrace 2
PORT ROYAL, Pa. – Four different players found paydirt on Sunday afternoon as the Juniata Little Indians got the season off on the right note with a 5-2 victory over the Terrace Tigers.
Wyatt Seiber scored twice to the lead the way for the Little Indians while Axton Bomberger, Colby Fortney and Ryker Stahl added touchdowns for Juniata in the win.
Juniata led 3-1 at the intermission and added two second half scores to claim the season opener by a 5-2 tally.
Kish 8 – Derry-Decatur 1
ALFARATA, Pa. – Luke Russler scored twice to lead seven different scorers for the Kish Indians in an 8-1 rout of the host Derry-Decatur Cyclones.
The Indians went to the air for their first score of the afternoon when Bennett Harmon connected with Quay Vogt for the game’s opening touchdown.
Eli Jackson, Harmon and Layton Glick each struck paydirt in the opening half as Kish took a commanding 4-0 lead into the locker room.
Derry-Decatur added a third-quarter score to get on the board, but it was Russler matching the Cyclones tally with one of his own before Hugh Harmon got in on the action and handed Kish a 6-1 lead with one stanza to play.
Jack Wagner pushed the Kish lead to 7-1 before Russler rounded out the scoring with his second touchdown of the day as the Indians rolled to an 8-1 road victory in the season opener.
McVeytown 6 – Burnham 5
BURNHAM, Pa. – McVeytown held off a late-game surge from the host Burnham Bulldogs to open the season in style with a 6-5 victory in Mighty Mights action.
Knox Hartman, Stetson Bordell and Bryce Seedes each found the end zone in the 6-5 win.
Pee Wees
Juniata 27 – Terrace 0
PORT ROYAL, Pa. – Four different players struck paydirt and the defense stood strong throughout as the Juniata Little Indians rolled to a 27-0 victory on Sunday afternoon against the visiting Terrace Tigers.
Abel Yoder opened the scoring with a ground score in the first quarter for the host Little Indians and it was a defensive battle through the remainder of the first half as Juniata took a 7-0 lead to the locker room.
Juniata extended its lead out of the intermission when Michael Lorenz scampered into the endzone to extend the lead before Cooper Snyder added a third quarter rushing score to build the Little Indians lead to 21-0.
Banks Hackenberger rounded out the scoring for Juniata’s offensive outpouring in the third with another rushing touchdown to push the lead to 27-0 as the game headed to the fourth quarter on a steamy afternoon in Juniata County. The score was extra special for Hackenberger who was also celebrating his 10th birthday.
Lorenz, Yoder and Mason Delancy each added takeaways for Juniata’s shutdown defense in the victory.
McVeytown 33 – Burnham 7
BURNHAM, Pa. – Lincoln Knable took the opening kickoff to the house and the visitors never looked back as the McVeytown Eagles rolled to a 33-7 season-opening victory on Sunday afternoon at Burnham.
Calvin Napikoski followed Knable’s tally with back-to-back rushing touchdowns for the Eagles and Matt Hartsock added the first of his two rushing touchdowns on the day as McVeytown owned a 27-0 halftime lead.
Hartsock added a fourth-quarter score to round out the day. Jayse Snyder added a fourth-quarter, 55-yard run to the three-headed McVeytown rushing attack.
Alex Weaver added an extra point for the Eagles and led the defense with a pair of sacks.
Kish 33 – Derry-Decatur 0
ALFARATA, Pa. – Five different players found the end zone on Sunday as the visiting Kish Indians cruised to a 33-0 road victory on Sunday at Derry-Decatur.
Wyatt Hassinger, Jase Atherton, Duke Peachey, Quentin Rowe and Knox Wagner each struck pay dirt on the day while the defense ratcheted up the intensity and pitched a shutout of the host Cyclones.
Kish scored twice in each of the two opening frames, and added a third-quarter score to round out its offensive efforts.
Midgets
Kish 13 – Derry-Decatur 8
ALFARATA, Pa. – Clayton Fultz scored late in the fourth quarter to put the visiting Kish Indians ahead by five points on Sunday at Derry-Decatur. Derry-Decatur attempted to respond, but Kish forced a fumble and Asher Dupert made the recovery to seal a 13-8 Kish victory.
Bronn Zook got the scoring started for the Indians as the visitors took an early 6-0 lead.
Derry-Decatur responded with a score of its own and converted the two-point attempt to take an 8-6 advantage. Jett Nail picked off a pass on a late-half drive as Derry-Decatur looked to extend its lead, but it was the host Cyclones owning an 8-6 advantage at the half.
Fultz scampered into the endzone from 16 yards out and the Indians added the PAT to take a 13-8 lead late in the contest which is how the game would end.
McVeytown 34 – Burnham 6
BURNHAM, Pa. – Bentley Felmlee scored three times on the ground and added a pick six on defense as the visiting McVeytown Eagles cruised past the Burnham Bulldogs by a 34-6 tally on Sunday afternoon.
Brayden Hess added a touchdown for the Eagles in the victory.
The CKYFCL is a 501c3 registered non-profit organization benefitting the more than 600 children across a four-county area in Central Pennsylvania. In addition to healthy competition, the league aims to provide an equal opportunity for kids between the ages of 5 and 13 to learn important skills in teamwork while forming friendships and bonds that can last a lifetime.
Member organizations include:
Burnham Bulldogs
Derry-Decatur Cyclones
Juniata Little Indians
Kish Indians
McVeytown Eagles
Terrace Tigers
(headline photo courtesy of Jessica McChesney)