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Hittin’ The Road With Travelin’ Matt – Week 5 (Black Knights and Ironmen)

Tagged under: District 4, News, pfn

| September 30, 2024

Each week Travelin’ Matt traverses Pennsylvania attending the hottest high school football games and best match ups in the Commonwealth.  Follow his exploits each week as he documents his journey from Week Zero to the Pennsylvania State Football Finals!

 

Thursday, September 26

2A Towanda (3-2) vs. 1A Canton (3-2)

 

Friday, September 27

3A #2 Danville (5-0) vs. 2A #5 Southern Columbia (3-2)

 

ROUNDTRIP – 176 MILES

 

 

Thursday, September 26

There’s an old saying from a 1940 novel by Thomas Wolfe that states “You can never go home again”.  The main character in the book says you can’t go back home to your family, childhood or dreams of fame and glory.  If you return to the place of your past all of those people and things might still be there…but it won’t be the same as it was.

I tested this old saying last weekend and I found it to only be a half-truth as I returned to my hometown of Towanda to watch them play a Thursday night game against Canton in District 4 Northern Tier League action.  While some of the town and people had changed…some for the better and some for the worse…what remained was a tremendous sense of community, friendships and my own love for the place and people that raised me.

I gave myself plenty of time to tour the town and surrounding areas again to re-experience my good ole hometown.  First stop, Papa V’s Pizzeria on Main Street and the original recipe pizza pie didn’t dissapoint.  In addition, the owner John whom I’ve known for 40+ years, was working and we caught up on some local news.  I then spent some time visiting and taking photos on the grounds of my childhood home on Main Street.  The building, which is one of the oldest in the historic town of Towanda, and once was a beautiful victorian home has fallen into disrepair and I fear it will need to be torn down soon.

I also had a chance to stop by the old football field at Memorial Park perched high atop the town and while most of the park has long been removed including the stands, press box and goal posts I still feel and hear again the cheers of the crowd in the place I spent many Friday nights playing for the hometown team.

After seeing some of the “old” in town I made my way to the high school and their gem on the hill at the Endless Mountains Athletic Complex.  The setting for the “new” football field is stunning as it sits high above the school grounds and surrounded by mountains as far as the eye can see in all directions.  In fact, in my experience attending games across the state over many years, there are few more beautiful settings for a high school football field.

        

The most satisfying aspect of returning home is being able to reconnect with so many of the people I grew up with including friends, teammates, coaches, teachers and administrators.  I had the opportunity to speak with so many on this return trip home and there were numerous moments throughout the night that 30 years of time melted away in an instant and I was transported back to my teenage years.  The conversations with all of these tremendous people were effortless and a testament to the welcoming nature of the Towanda community.  Special thanks to former Towanda Principal and Superintendent Don Butler, Coach Quig and Coach Geiger, Athletic Director Jack Young, Mayor Garrett Miller and the many additional friends I was also able to catch up with throughout the night.

As for the game, the hometown Black Knights put on a show all evening led by do-it-all signal caller and defensive back Riley Vanderpool en route to a solid 40-14 victory over the visiting Canton Warriors.  Vanderpool danced his way to four touchdowns on the night while also throwing for another to help his team to a 4-2 record on the season.

Check out a few highlights from the Towanda vs. Canton game…

 

 

 

Read the game story from Towanda vs. Canton…

 

Friday, September 27

I was so impressed with going “home” on Thursday I decided to stick with that theme and attend a game featuring a team from my new adopted hometown of Elysburg and the Southern Columbia Tigers.  I traveled the brief 10 miles to Danville where the Ironmen would be hosting their rival from across the river.  Danville entered the game unbeaten at 5-0 while Southern Columbia, winners of seven consecutive State Football Titles and 14 overall, limped into the contest at 3-2.

From the jump, Danville set the tone blistering the Southern Columbia defense on their opening drive for a TD and the Ironmen didn’t take their foot off the gas all game long en route to a convincing 34-8 victory.  Danville was solid on both sides of the ball scoring on the ground and through the air while limiting the legendary Southern Columbia Wing T for the bulk of the contest.

Check out some highlights from Danville vs. Southern Columbia…

 

 

 

Read the Danville vs. Southern Columbia game story below…

 

 

A lighter than normal weekend of PA high school football games complete I wrapped up my sixth week and headed home to plan for next week’s schedule of contests.  A little more than halfway through the season I’ve attended more than 20 games this year and the second half of the schedule is shaping up to be tremendous.

Follow along next week as Travelin’ Matt takes you on another PA High School Football journey.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
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