Southern Columbia Wins Easily, 46-6, Against Central Columbia
Tagged under: District 4, Gameday Hub, News, pfn
Dave Fegley | September 26, 2026
Tigers take care of business
Southern Columbia entered Friday night’s Homecoming game with the expectations that come with being the defending PIAA champions. Through the journey of a regular season, teams need to take each opponent as if they are the defending Super Bowl Champion like the Seattle Seahawks, or any team before, and not allow for a letdown. The Tigers left their turf in Tiger Stadium looking every bit like a team capable of making another run.
Southern scored three touchdowns through the air and three on the ground during a dominant first half, building a 40-0 advantage and cruised to a 46-6 victory over Central Columbia.
The win kept the Tigers unbeaten at 5-0 while extending their winning streak over the Blue Jays to 31 consecutive games, including playoff meetings. Central’s last victory over Southern came in 1996.
“I thought we played well in the first half. The offense was clicking on all cylinders, and our defense didn’t give up any big plays,” Southern coach Jim Roth said. “Our defense has made great strides throughout the year. There were those question marks that anyone would have with having to replace a bulk of kids after graduating.”
The Tigers nearly produced 500 yards of total offense, finishing with 497 yards compared to Central’s 139.
“We were focused coming into the game, and I think it showed with the way we played,” said SCA defensive end Chase Williams who blocked a punt to set up the first TD for the host.
The running game accounted for 414 of those yards, with junior Grady Garcia providing the biggest fireworks.
Garcia carried just five times but turned those opportunities into 183 yards and three touchdowns. His scoring runs covered 62, 53 and 61 yards.
The final two touchdowns were especially impressive, as Garcia cut back against the flow of the plays and weaved through Central defenders on his way to the end zone.
“You go out and try to make a play,” Garcia said. “I trust my linemen that they are going to block no matter what until the play is over. I just try my best to do what I can to try and score.”
Garcia credited Southern’s offensive line for continuing to block even when he changed direction.
“When I get out there, I have a lot of trust in my line. Even when I’m cutting back, they are continuously blocking for like 10 or more seconds on some of those plays,” Garcia said.
While Garcia was producing big plays on the ground, senior quarterback Ayden Hockenbroch was nearly perfect through the air.
Earlier Friday, Hockenbroch was crowned Southern’s Homecoming King. Later in the day as September is drawing to an end, he completed five of six passes for 83 yards and three touchdowns.
“We are having a lot of fun playing a game that we love,” Hockenbroch said.
His first touchdown came less than two minutes into the game when he found senior tight end Jace Malakoski for a 13-yard score.
The touchdown was significant beyond putting the Tigers on the scoreboard.
It was the 12th career touchdown reception for Malakoski, giving him the school record for touchdown catches by a tight end. The previous record had stood since 2001. Sean Connaghan was the leader in that mark for more than two decades.
“When you play for Southern Columbia, you need to be able to produce. The expectations are high at our school, so the effort you give is the most important thing,” Malakoski said.
Hockenbroch completed touchdown passes to senior wide receiver Blaise Kissinger twice as well, connecting with him on plays of 26 and 19 yards.
Kissinger finished with those scoring plays to the end zone and also intercepted a pass on defense.
“Ayden puts it right in the breadbasket basically every time, and I have so much time to get open,” Kissinger said. “Our line protects him, so I feel like I have like 10 minutes to get open. It makes it easy for me.”
The three seniors — Hockenbroch, Malakoski and Kissinger — have developed into a productive group for an offense that has traditionally been known for its running game.
Roth said Southern wanted to establish that balance early against an opponent that was the underdog by a significant number, if there was a betting line, entering the midway point of the 2026 regular season.
“We thought that the score might get out of hand since Central is a young team that is trying to build for the future, so I wanted to get our passing game involved early on,” Roth said. “I have said it before, it’s important to have balance on offense and we have gotten that so far this year.”
The Tigers’ defense was equally impressive.
Central managed only two first downs during the first half, and Southern’s starters watched the entire second half from the sideline.
Senior defensive tackle Ty Ruckle said the Tigers approached the game with the same mentality they have used throughout the season.
“We just came out tonight ready to play. The goal was to get out of the game early and get the younger guys a lot of action,” Ruckle said. “We have to come out with the mentality that every game is like our Super Bowl. We don’t take any team lightly regardless of their record.”
The defensive performance is particularly noteworthy considering the number of graduates Southern lost from last year’s record 15th PIAA championship team.
Senior linebacker Nolan Wittig is the lone returning starter in Southern’s linebacker group, but he has seen the new defensive players continue to settle into their roles.
“I feel like our defense up front played very hard in the trenches. That allowed our linebackers and secondary to fly around. I think everybody is getting into the flow of things now,” Wittig said. “It’s going to make it better for us in these upcoming hard games.”
Southern’s starters were finished for the night after halftime, and neither team scored during the third quarter.
Jacoby Karlovich added a fourth-quarter touchdown for the Tigers before Central’s Easton Gonder scored late to account for the final margin.
For Central coach Ky Seesholtz, the game provided another opportunity for his young team to experience what it takes to compete against a program with Southern’s sustained success.
“It’s an honor and a privilege to get the opportunity to play against Southern Columbia. They have been doing it for years. They have had the most success of any program in the state,” Seesholtz said. “I have two guys on my staff in Josh Marks and Steve Toczylousky that played for Southern and I have learned a lot from those guys on what it takes to become a program like Southern. They have that prominence of being the pinnacle and we are trying to get there.”
Seesholtz also pointed toward the Blue Jays’ next opportunity, a rivalry game against Bloomsburg.
“It’s a big game, and I have lived it from my days of playing for Central Columbia. It’s your rival which alone from that aspect provides the energy,” Seesholtz said. “Coach (Mike) Kogut is going to have his kids ready to go. Right now, we are focused on that. The goal is to play a clean game.”
For Southern, however, the attention now shifts to its biggest rivalry.
The Tigers will travel to the Silver Bowl next week to meet unbeaten Mount Carmel Area in a matchup that will feature two 5-0 teams.
“This one is going to feel more like it has a few years back,” Roth said. “There hasn’t been as much of a buildup the past few years because we weren’t both undefeated when we played.”
Garcia knows what awaits the Tigers.
“This is a huge week coming up. Mount Carmel is obviously a really good team, and we have to be ready to play,” he said.
Southern has taken care of business through the first five weeks.
Now, the intensity is about to increase.
NOTE: Before reading the box score, a special recognition is well deserved. Southern Columbia student Noah Hockenbroch has taken the feature photo of each Southern Columbia story for the past few seasons. The talented and inspired young man has been beneficial in capturing the latest part of the Tigers’ success on the gridiron.
Southern Columbia 46, Central Columbia 6
CC — SC
First Downs: 7 — 19
Rushes-yds: 39-131 — 28-414
Passing yds: 8 — 83
Total yds: 139 — 497
Passing (C-A-I): 2-6-1 — 5-6-0
Penalties: 2-10 — 3-15
Fumbles-lost: 1-0 — 0-0
Central Col. (0-5): 0-0-0-6 — 6
Southern Col. (5-0): 20-20-0-6 — 46
1st Quarter
S– Jace Malakoski 13 pass from Ayden Hockenbroch (Lincoln Billig kick), 10:10.
S– Blaise Kissinger 26 pass from Hockenbroch (attempt failed), 6:54.
S– Grady Garcia 62 run (Billig kick), 3:39.
2nd Quarter
S–Garcia 53 run (kick missed), 10:14.
S–Kissinger 19 pass from Hockenbroch (Billig kick), 5:44.
S– Grady Garcia 61 run (Billig kick), 3:27.
3rd Quarter
None.
4th Quarter
S– Jacoby Karlovich 7 run (no attempt), 10:33.
C– Easton Gonder 2 run (kick blocked), 5:24.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Southern: Grady Garcia 5-183, 3 TDs; Joey Williams 4-81; Kane Cecco 2-51; Jacoby Karlovich 5-34, TD; Gavin Brown 6-22; Will Wojtowicz 2-14; Gavin Trometter 2-11; Orion Wojtowicz 1-10; Ryan Davis 1-8. Central: Logan Robbins 4-37; Owen Zanoline 11-34; Blake Edgar 9-33; Dominic Keller 8-26; Easton Gonder 3-8, TD; Ahmad Hemphill 1-7; Robert Kressler 2-(-6); Team 1-(-8).
PASSING — Southern: Ayden Hockenbroch 5-6-0, 83 yds, 3 TDs. Central: Robert Kressler 2-6-1, 8 yds.
RECEIVING —Southern: Blaise Kissinger 2-45, 2 TDs; Jace Malakoski 3-38, TD. Central: Owen Zanoline 2-8.
