Hampton’s defense ‘On fire’; Defeat Indiana 21-12
Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News
Greg Hillman | October 3, 2026
ALLISON PARK, PA– It’s a good start.
Not only that, but the offense needed it as well.
Hampton’s offense finally found some footing late in their 21-12 victory over the Indiana Indians in the Greater Allegheny Conference opener Friday night from wet Fridley Field.
After just putting up 23 points in the last two games combined, the Talbots were able to connect on two touchdowns late to propel them to a win.
But what’s interesting is that there were some points left on the board by both teams. Indiana and Hampton turned the ball over on downs quite a bit in the early going and couldn’t solve each other’s defenses to begin the game.
Even with Tyler Scully getting Hampton on the board early, the Talbot’s defense held strong through the whole first half. Surrendering, you guessed it, 0 points.
Listen, you could make an argument that Hampton has the best defense in 4A. It’s a testament to Dan Gigler and the players he and Steve Sciullo put out on the field every Friday night. His players feed off of his play-calling abilities.
“I have so much confidence,” Ronan Straub said about Gigler. “He’s been putting together everything on this defense. All of his defensive ideas come from him, and that’s what helps us. He calls our defense good.”
The head coach LOVES this group.
“They’re on fire, and we love it,” Steve Sciullo added. “We felt like we gave up a couple of late touchdowns against Deer Lakes and Ringgold. [Defensive scoring] is a little higher than we think it is, and we did the same thing tonight. But they are playing amazing. They are going to continue [playing] next man up. People go out, people come in. We got a lot of depth right now, not a lot of guys, but we got some depth. So, we’re really happy about where we’re at.”
They should be happy. It’s a fun group to watch. Especially when they turn the ball over. Did anyone watch Jacob Stephenson jumping up and down after he forced that fumble on the pitch out from quarterback Jason Strack? You know which one I’m talking about.
Look, these games are not getting easier. Just look at the next two weeks. But that win over Central Valley is looking really nice on the resume. These last two weeks have been a huge confidence booster for this squad. You can hear it when they blast “Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus outside the clubhouse. They needed it too, especially after taking two gut-wrenching losses to Armstrong and Mars. Although that loss to Armstrong isn’t looking too bad right now.
They know what this team could do come November. But they’ll cross that bridge when/if they get there. Long way to go.
Switching back to the offense, man, credit to those guys for stepping up. They have struggled over the last few weeks and again in this game, but they stepped up when they needed to. Heath Borgo and Andrew Reschoff connecting on those long sideline passes was huge. Credit to them for being on the same page on both throws.
Andrew Reschoff has found his footing recently after having a slowish start to his season. Remember when I said it would come around at the beginning of the season after coming off shoulder surgery?
Well, here we are. He’s made some great throws over the last couple of weeks, and he’s really gaining his confidence as the season goes along.
“It just keeps building,” he’d tell me afterward. “Trusting God and really helping me with that.”
He would then go on to list a number of teammates who help on the sideline every game. Team effort. He’s feeling it.
My final thought would be to give a nod to Jake Kennedy, who stepped up in the absence of Decan Csellar, who hurt his shoulder in the 1st half. Such a shame; the kid really was emerging as a legit RB1. 2 touchdowns for Kennedy tonight, contributing big time to help Hampton secure the win.
“It was great; we’ve been trying to get him going,” Sciullo said of Kennedy. “And he got going tonight. I’m proud of the way the kid’s played, and he played hard the whole way.”
With Csellar probably out for now, Kennedy will get the bulk of the work in the backfield. Good for him; he’s earned it. Just like his coach said, he’s been playing hard all year.
Now, Kiski.
They’re not the talk of the WPIAL, but they’ve been giving teams fits. Yes, that includes blowing a 28-0 lead against Plum last week. But, for now, Hampton will enjoy this win. Like I said, good start. Keeping it going.
“When you play at home, there are always issues; we’ve been pretty good on the road,” Sciullo said. “We’ve been road warriors this year. We just like to have Kiski coming in here. We have our youth night, so it’s going to be exciting to have all the kids there as well, so we want to put on a good show for them.”
