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Canisius (NY) hands Scranton Prep their first loss

Tagged under: Beyond The Keystone, District 2, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

| September 7, 2024

When Scranton Prep wanted to be able to opt out of some of their Lackawanna Conference schedule in order to play some higher caliber competition, some wondered how that would work out. The Cavaliers went on the road last week and played a tough Loyola Blakefield (MD) team, and the name most heard in preparation for the game was Junior 4-star recruit DB/WR Khary Adams. Adams scored on the first offensive play of the game for the Dons as he showcased his skills and confirmed the hype, but the Cavaliers got the win. This week perennial NY state powerhouse Canisius paid a visit to Northeast PA to play the Cavaliers, and the hype was certainly transferred to Sophomore RB Elijah Kimble.

Believe the hype.

Kimble put Canisius ahead for good before their offense ever took the field as he scored on a 78-yard kickoff return and then added 3 more TD’s on the ground as Canisius defeated Scranton Prep 39-25. The Cavaliers hung tough throughout most of the game, but several mistakes were costly in the loss at Dunmore Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Canisius won the toss but deferred, so the Cavaliers took the opening kickoff. WR Brady Holmes had a nice return out to the Scranton Prep 36. The Cavaliers were very deliberate in the huddle and approaching the line, obviously looking to control the tempo of the game. WR Treyvon Dickey had a nice 8-yard run, followed by a strong 5-yard run by RB Will McPartland. Dickey had another nice run of 7 yards and then QB Louis Paris joined the action. After a bad snap caused a loss of 4 yards, Paris hit McPartland right in stride for 5 yards but was short of the line to gain. Facing a 4th-and-2 at the 43, Paris got a hard-earned 4 on the keeper for the 1st down, then immediately hit Holmes for a big gain of 32 yards down to the Crusader 7 yard line. Paris then called his own number, and fought hard for the 7-yard TD. The PAT was blocked, and with 6:58 to go in the 1st quarter it was Scranton Prep with a 6-0 lead.

On the ensuing kickoff, Crusader RB Elijah Kimble showed his explosiveness, running down the right sideline untouched for a 78-yard kickoff return touchdown. With 6:45 still to go in the 1st quarter, and the Crusader offense still on the sideline, Canisius took a 7-6 lead.

The Cavaliers started their next drive on their own 37, and again they were very deliberate on keeping the tempo they wanted. The Crusaders adjusted on defense and applied strong pressure. Paris and McPartland took turns at QB and the Cavaliers gained yardage into Canisius territory. On a 2nd-and-10 from the Crusader 40, Paris scrambled and was sacked but a defender ripped off the QB’s helmet and a personal foul penalty gave the Cavaliers a gain down to the 18. Unfortunately, that was as far as they could move the ball as the 1st quarter ended. As the 2nd quarter started and the Cavaliers facing a 4th-and-20 at the 27, McPartland scrambled and was sacked forcing a turnover on downs.

The Canisius offense finally took the field at their own 35. Kimble had a 5-yard run and then a bad exchange caused a fumble that was recovered by QB Matteo Brusco. Facing a 3rd-and-5 at the 40, Brusco rolled out and hit WR Jahyden Clark for a 60-yard catch-and-run TD. The PAT was blocked and with 10:16 left in the half it was 13-6 in favor of Canisius.

The teams then traded possessions as neither offense could get anything going. Scranton Prep then started a drive at their own 13, and McPartland pushed the pile forward for a yard to start things out for the Cavaliers. On 2nd-and-9 from the 14, Paris threw a screen pass to Dickey but it was read perfectly by Canisius DB Amir Hernandez as he dropped Dickey for a loss of 7 yards. Facing a 4th-and-15 from the 8, Prep lined up to punt and the Crusader special teams unit flooded in and blocked the punt. Tempers ensued and there were offsetting personal fouls, with the end result being Canisius ball at the 5. 2 plays later, Kimble scored on a 1-yard run. The PAT was blocked again and it was 19-6 for Canisius with 4:27 to go in the half.

The Cavaliers had a quick 3-and-out on their next drive, and after the punt Canisius had great field position at the Cavalier 49. Scranton Prep dug deep however, and made the Crusaders earn every yard they gained on the drive. Facing a 3rd-and-7 at the 25, Brusco threw it to left side of the endzone for Kimble but good coverage by the Cavaliers meant an incomplete pass on a close play. Brusco hit Clark for 14 yards to the Cavalier 16 for a 1st down, but on the next play a fumbled snap was recovered by the Cavaliers to end the threat and also end the 1st half with the score 19-6.

Canisius took the 2nd half kickoff and started at their own 31. Kimble had a 5-yard run and was hit hard by Cavalier LB Jack Doughton and LB Reese Tanner. Disaster was then averted as a Brusco pass was nearly intercepted by DL Ambrose Rossi. After a delay-of-game penalty, Brusco then connected with WR Jack Cullinan for a big 48-yard gain to the Cavalier 21. 3 plays later it was Kimble who scored again, this time from 10 yards out to make it 26-6 with 9:31 left in the 3rd quarter.

Prep was not done yet however. Starting their next drive on their own 40, Paris hit Tanner on a nice 21-yard gain down to the Canisius 38. McPartland then hit Paris for 5 yards, then Tanner for 14 and a 1st down at the Crusader 19. 4 plays later on a 1st-and-goal from the 7, Paris used the stretch play on the keeper and scored again. The 2-point conversion failed, but with 5:09 left in the 3rd the Cavaliers drew closer at 26-12.

Canisius started the next drive at their own 31. 2 runs by Kimble and 2 runs by Hernandez gained yardage out to the 47. Brusco then hit Clark again, this time for 14 yards and a 1st down at the Scranton Prep 39. But disaster struck 2 plays later when a Brusco pass was intercepted by Cavalier LB Mackey Lynett at the 2 yard line. Facing heavy pressure from the Crusader defense, the Cavaliers were forced to punt it away after 3 straight incompletions. The Crusaders had pressure on the punt attempt as well, and the punt only made it as far as the Scranton Prep 28. On the very next play, Kimble broke free on a stretch play run and rumbled 28 yards into the endzone for another score. The PAT missed but Canisius had increased their lead to 32-12 with 42 seconds left in the 3rd quarter.

Unfortunately, things got worse for Scranton Prep. Starting at the Cavalier 35, McPartland had a nice keeper run for 19 yards into Canisius territory to start things off. But on the very next play, a Paris pass was intercepted by the Crusaders Clark who returned it 55 yards for another Canisius TD as the 3rd quarter ended. The score was 39-12 as the final period began.

Knowing that time was running short, Scranton Prep took over at their own 32 but had a quick 3-and-out and punted it away. Canisius took over at their own 49 and drove down to the Cavalier 20 but had their drive stall as well and they turned it back over on downs. The Cavaliers then hit it big on the very next play when Paris hit Holmes for a big 80-yard TD catch-and-run. The PAT missed and the score was 39-18 with 6:33 left in the game.

The Cavalier defense answered the call immediately, forcing a 3-and-out for Canisius. Unfortunately it was all for naught as on the next play Cullinan intercepted the ball and returned it to the Cavalier 8. The Cavaliers refused to quit on defense, and on a 4th-and-goal from the 13 another bad snap fumble was recovered by the Cavaliers. Paris made up for the previous interception immediately as he hit Dickey for a 25-yard gain and then tossed it to WR A.J. Croom for 11 yards near midfield. Paris then struck paydirt as he connected on the screen to Dickey again, this time for a 51-yard weaving catch-and-run score to make it 39-25. Unfortunately, there were only 54 seconds left in the game, and Canisius kneeled it out on the next series to seal their season-opening win.

Scranton Prep now stands at 2-1 on the season and will head up to Delaware Valley next Saturday to face the Warriors.

Check out the photo gallery from today’s game here:  PHOTO GALLERY

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