SEASON SNAPSHOT

2023 Schedule

Aug. 6—vs. Towanda

Sept. 1—at Canton

Sept. 8—at Troy

Sept. 15—at Northwest

Sept. 22—vs. Muncy

Sept. 29—vs. Cowanesque Valley

Oct. 6—at Athens

Oct. 14—at Sayre

Oct. 20—vs. Wyalusing

Oct. 27—vs. Wellsboro awesome. When the older kids buy in, it seems like everyone else follows. I cannot ask for more from the senior class in terms of making the transition go smoother.”

North Penn-Mansfield was one of the area’s youngest teams last year, playing mostly first-time starters, so it was not always a smooth ride. But the Panthers started flattening those bumps as the season progressed, reaching the District 4

Class AAA playoffs. North Penn-Mansfield won its last two regular season games in exciting fashion to earn that seventh district berth in eight seasons before earning valuable playoff experience against top-seeded Mount Carmel.

The hope now is that North PennMansfield can pick up where that progress left off. The Panthers return a quality nucleus from that team and are adding some promising newcomers as they try building on the team’s stellar tradition established throughout the 2000s.

“They have high expectations for themselves,” Wright said. “A lot of kids that played smaller roles last year are excited to show what they can do, whether that’s in a different role as far as playing time or a different position. We think we have a lot of players that will surprise some people this year.”

North Penn-Mansfield features a good mix of returning starters with those upand-coming younger players. That includes at all the different position groups which can help in a lot of ways numbers cannot be measured. Add it all together and North Penn-Mansfield is hoping those intangiblesleadtomorewins.

“Thatexperiencewillhelpus maintainourfocusthisyear.They keepthehighsfromgettingtoo highandthelowsfromgettingtoo lowandalotofplayersplayother sports,soIdon’tthinkit’saneasilyshakengroup,”Wrightsaid. “Otherkidshavebeenoutthere andwhenthoseotherplayerscan lookoverandseethemonFriday night,thatcanhelpthemstay comfortableandconfident.”

NorthPenn-Mansfieldcertainly hasalotofconfidenceinitsquarterback.KarsonDominickwillbea three-yearstarterandhasputtogetherconsecutivestrongseasons, topping1,400yardsayearago. Theseniorisamulti-yearstarter infootball,basketballandbaseball,givinghimthesavvytocomplementhistalent.

“Karsonhasseenitall,really. He’sawell-roundedathleteanda leader,too,”Wrightsaid.“He’s amongthatgroupofseniorswho havereallyboughtinandlisten andlearn.Ithelpshavingthatexperienceatquarterback.”

NorthPenn-MansfieldmustreplaceleadingrusherKohen Lehman,butitalsohassomeexperienceinthebackfieldwithEthan Dickabletoplaytailbackorfullback.CaleWagnerandGabeBellowsbothareexcitingprospectsas well.Thosetwoalsocanbeutilized asreceivers,givingNorthPennMansfieldsomeniceoptions.The Panthersalsocombineexperience withyouthupfrontandwilltryto turnallthoseingredientsintobalance.

Asteamsoftendo,NorthPennMansfieldhaditsmostsuccess whenitwasbalancedlastseason. Attimes,though,thePanthers wereforcedtorelyonmostlythe aerialattack.Whilethatproduced

2022 RESULTS (3-7)

N.P.-Mansfield 13, Towanda 34

N.P.-Mansfield 0, Canton 53

N.P.-Mansfield 14, Troy 56

N.P.-Mansfield 21, Northwest 35

N.P.-Mansfield 21, Muncy 49

N.P.-Mansfield 40, Cowanesque Valley 15

N.P.-Mansfield 0, Athens 55

N.P.Mansfield 21, West Perry 49

N.P.-Mansfield 20, Wyalusing 14

N.P.-Mansfield 24, Wellsboro 21

District 4 Class AA Quarterfinals

N.P.-Mansfield 20, Mount Carmel 60 somebignumbers,keepingteams guessingaboutwhat’scomingis theprimarygoal.

“Thatwillbeoneofourbigfocuses,”Wrightsaid.“Karson’sarm canopenalotofthingsforrunning theball,andrunningtheballcan openupKarson’sarm.”

Thedefensecameonstrongin winsagainstWyalusingandWellsboroandwillbeanchoredbysome oftheplayersmentionedabove.

GeorgeValentinehadabigyearat linebacker,DickenjoyedabreakoutseasonandDominickanchors thesecondary.

NorthPenn-Mansfieldfacesthe samescheduleitdidlastseason andwillopenathomeagainst Towanda.ThePanthersarehoping tomakesomenoiseintheNTL, buttheirimmediategoalismore simple.Whileitisabasicone,itis agoalwhichifattainedeveryday couldmakeNorthPenn-Mansfield mightydangerousthisseason.

“We’rejustgoingtofocusonone practiceatatime;onegameata time,”Wrightsaid.“We’rejusttryingtobebettereachdayandthen trytocontinuetotryandbeatour besteachday.Theleagueisgoing tobetough,weknowthat.but we’llbealotbetteroffifwe’refocusedonmakingourselvesbetter, thatwillhelpalot.”

••••••• 2022 LEADERS •••••••

PASSERATCMINYDSTD

Karson Dominick3021416146913

RUSHERATYDSTD

Kohen Lehman1888296

Ethan Dick291391

Easton Pequignot10581

George Valentine7410

RECEIVERRECYDSTD

Sammy Lawrence395428

Alex Davis343331

Kohen Lehman262882

Cooper Shaw252143

2023 Football Players To Watch

Ethan Dick, DL/OL/RB: One of several first-time starters who made outstanding progress throughout the season, Dick now returns as a team leader for his senior year. The senior defensive end solidified the line last season, collecting a team-high 3 1/2 sacks and averaging more than five tackles per game. Dick made eight or more tackles three times and had 15 tackles in regular-season ending wins against Wyalusing and Wellsboro when North PennMansfield allowed just 35 points and earned a playoff spot. He continued making plays a week later against Mount Carmel in districts, returning a fumble 42 yards for a touchdown. At 210 pounds, Dick can play has played along both the offensive line and in the backfield during his high school career.

Karson Dominick, QB/DB: One of the NTLʼs top quarterbacks, Dominick is a three-year starter who has effectively run the offense in each of the past two seasons. The 6-foot-4 three-sport standout has thrown for 2,420 yards and 22 touchdowns during his scholastic career and nearly reached 1,500 yards last season. Mobile and possessing a strong arm, Dominick can pick apart a defense in different ways and threw for a career-high 330 yards and two touchdowns against Northwest. Dominick did not throw an interception in 54 attempts that night. Dominick topped 100 yards in each of his last four starts and went over 200 yards twice, while also running for five touchdowns. The senior also intercepted three passes in the first four weeks. Dominick added 30 tackles, including 25 solos and broke up two passes.

George Valentine, LB/OL: He made a nice arrival as a freshman, but Valentine really broke out during his sophomore season a year ago, leading North Penn-Mansfield with 95 tackles, including 69 solos. Valentine made at least 10 tackles five times and was outstanding down the stretch. The junior middle linebacker made 12 or more tackles in three of his last four games, including a career-high 16 in a close win against Wyalusing. He made 14 more in a playoffclinching victory against Wellsboro the following week and produced 23 solo tackles in those final two regular season games. Valentine averaged 9.5 tackles per game and also returned two fumbles for 48 total yards. Valentine made at least seven tackles in every game and also averaged 5.6 yards per carry.

Cale Wagner, WR/RB/DB: A senior leader throughout the offseason, Wagner could have a prominent role this season after showing flashes last year. Wagner can be utilized as a running back, slotback or at wide receiver and North Penn-Mansfield likely will do all it can to capitalize on that versatility. He was limited to eights games, but Wagner averaged nearly an interception a game and had put a couple productive games together before his injury. Wagner also likely will help in the secondary after making six solo tackles in his first game against Towanda and also breaking up two passes. A special teams weapon as well, Wagner averaged 16.8 yards per kick return.

B By y C CHHRRIIS S M MAASSSSE E cmasse@sungazette.com

Cwanesque Valley did not win a game last season, but no opponent ever broke its will.

CV faced a tall order entering 2022 after most of the starters from the previous team which enjoyed one of the best seasons in program history graduated. The Indians were one of the district’s youngest teams and coach Joe Lenard did not take over until June.