In their first game of their playoff run, the North Penn Knights took on the Pioneers of Conestoga. Both teams knew this could be their final game of the season, and came ready to play.

The game started off with the Knights retuning the opening kickoff. After a 6 play drive that produced little, North Penn punted away to Conestoga. On the Pioneers’ first drive of the game, they were also unsuccessful, going 3 and out. A deep punt put the Knights on their own 8 yard line. Despite a 25 yard run by Shane Gallagher, the Knights once again could not get an offense going, and turned the ball over on a fumble on their own 32 yard line. The Pioneers’ tried to take advantage by throwing deep into the end zone, but the pass fell incomplete. A sack by Josh Nuebert on the next play drew a 7 yard loss and eventually forced a punt. The Knights once again were halted on their drive, and after working much of the clock, turned the ball over on an interception to end the quarter.

The Pioneers controlled the ball, and worked their way down to the Knights 7 yard line, however a fumble recovery by Gerald Bell put an end to their drive. Gallagher took over the Knights next possession, with a 25 yard catch, and a 31 yard run. These plays set up the Knights for the first score of the game. A run by Peter Stoll from two yards out put North Penn on the board, and after the extra point, the Knights led the Pioneers 7-0 with 3:17 left to play in the half. Conestoga started strong with a 30 yard kickoff return; however a sack by Zach Raffle stopped their momentum, and the Pioneers once again punted back to the Knights. This proved to be costly, as Stoll found a gap in the middle of the field, and broke free for a 52 yard touchdown run. His second of the night put the Knights up 14 after the extra point. Once again the Pioneers began their drive with a strong return. After a few plays, and one controversial passing play, another sack by Nuebert put a stop to their drive. The Knights later took possession after Conestoga turned the ball over on downs. This ended the first half, with the North Penn Knights leading 14-0.

The Knights kicked off to open up the second half. Conestoga returned the ball to the 36, and after a 9 yard gain were faced with a 4 th &1 on the 45 yard line. The Knights defensive line held strong, and a big stop by North Penn forced yet another turnover. Adam Hearns, Gallagher, and Ian Carpenter all played big rolls in the Knights next offensive possession, moving ball to the 2 yard line, both in the air and on the ground. Once again, Peter Stoll got the call, and from 2 yards out was successful, giving him three touchdowns on the nights. After the extra point, North Penn held the lead, 21-0 with 5:58 left in the quarter. Again, the Conestoga Pioneers came out strong with an impressive kickoff return to the 50 yard line. After going deep in the air the Pioneers were with in striking distance, with a 1 st and 10 in the Knights 17 yard line. A sack by Alex Johnson resulted in a loss of 5 for the Pioneers, and they once again decided to go in the air. The pass was broken up, however a roughing the passer call gave the Pioneers a first down on the Knights 10 yard line. The Conestoga quarterback became good friends with the Knights defense tonight, as he was sacked twice more on the drive, before he cut into the Knights lead. On a desperation 4 th and 16, a pass was caught in the end zone, putting the Pioneers on the board. The extra point was blocked, making the score 21-6, North Penn with the lead. The score remained the same into the 4 th quarter.

The fourth quarter opened up, the Pioneers with possession of the ball, on the Knights 29 yard line. Conestoga could not convert on 4th down, and once again turned the ball over to the Knights. The Knights began their next drive, which took almost 8 minutes off the clock. On a 4 th and 3 on the Conestoga 13 yard line, QB Adam Hearns kept the drive alive with a 7 yard run. After a small gain, the Knights looked to their powerful senior, and Gallagher broke free for a 5 yard TD. After the extra point the Knights led 28-6 with 3:42 left in the game. The Pioneers would not give up however, and on their ensuing drive connected on an 11 yard pass for the score. With 2:15 left in the game the Knights were on top 28-13. ‘Stoga attempted an onsides kick, but was unsuccessful, as the Knights recovered the kick. After a few short plays, Shane Gallagher once again found a hole, and went 44 yards for what looked like his second touchdown of the night. Gallagher was taken down at the 1 yard line however with just 35 seconds left. Instead of going for another score, the Knights chose to take a knee to end the game.

The final score was 28-13, in favor of the Knights. They improve their record to 9-2, and advance to the next round of playoffs. North Penn faces a familiar challenge in their next match up. The Knights are up again the Pennridge Rams, one of only two teams to defeat North Penn this season. The game is scheduled for Friday the 19 th at Poppy Yoder Field.

- Meghan Halberstadt, NP 2005