Trojans blank Hornets.

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The Wellsboro Green Hornets faced another tough Northern Tier League football team Friday, October 27. Head coach Mike Pietropola knew they had to stop the option of the Trojans football team. And they did for the most part.

The Green Hornet (2-7) defense, led by Colin McBride with six solo tackles and 12 assists, coupled with the added depth of Derek Harsch and Brad Jones, held the Trojan's option in check and only six points midway through the third quarter.

But just as in past outings for the Green Hornets squad, a lack of offense proved costly as Troy shut out Wellsboro for the 26-0 Northern Tier League win.

"We shut down the option and defensively we played the game we needed to play," Wellsboro coach Mike Pietropola said. "We did excellent on defense. It was 6-0 through the third quarter, but we couldn’t generate offense."

The Green Hornet offense sputtered and moaned and only eked out 32 yards rushing on the night. The Trojan defense kept a steady presence in the Wellsboro backfield and held Kevin Shultz and Harsch to only 59 combined yards.

But it was the sacks by the Trojan defense that put the Green Hornets rushing average at .97 yards per carry.

"We had no offense," Pietropola said of the loss. "But I think it was a combination of things. We don't have our timing down and we're not coming together offensively."

Troy (7-2) picked up then first score of the night when Josh Boor capped the first quarter drive with a 15 yard plunge for the 6-0 lead. Troy's extra point attempt failed and Wellsboro strapped down for a strong defensive stand.

The Wellsboro defense held the Trojans over the next one and a half quarter but soon became weary from a lack of rest due to the nonproductive offense.

"The defensive ends and linebackers did what they needed to do to fill on the option," Pietropola said. "The defense had too much time on the field and we were in the game right up until the end."

"You can't win when you keep your defense on the field the entire game," Pietropola added.

After the grueling play began to take effect on the Green Hornet defense, Troy opened up the game on offense to secure the win in the final 15 minutes of the game.

With three minutes remaining in the third quarter, Troy battered their way downfield to set up for the score. Casey Kulago broke open a 25 yard run to give the Trojan offense a spark and take a 12-0 lead.

Troy kept their offensive movement in tack and forged in for another score one minute into the final frame when Boor picked up his second touchdown of the night a with a six yard plunge. Knapp added the extra point kick and Troy took a 19-0 lead with 11 minutes remaining in the game.

Troy capped the game off with their final touchdown of the game with 38 seconds remaining on a Whitford 16 yard touchdown run. Troy's Knapp added the extra point for the 26-0 NTL shutout.

Wellsboro will need to turn their offense around before they enter the game against North Penn Friday night, November 3, when the two meet in the battle for the Morton Jones Memorial Trophy.

The trophy match began in 1969, but the rivalry dates back to 1962 when the two teams met for the first time.

The Panthers came out the winner of the first match by edging Wellsboro 7-6, but since that time Wellsboro has won the trophy 29 times while North Penn has only taken home the trophy nine times over the past 38 years.

This year will mark the first time since North Penn's move from the NTL that the match-up between the two teams was the last game of the season.

Other rivalry games will also be taking place all across the NTL as each team faces their rival to end the regular season.

"I think it's great to have a match-up between these two teams as the final game of the season. What more could you ask for? It's great for the kids and for the community. I’m looking forward to it," Pietropola said.

"It doesn't matter if the teams are 9-0 coming into the game or not doing well, it's a good finale," Pietropola added.

Although the hopes of a playoff berth are nonexistent for each of the teams, Pietropola is hoping for a more productive offense to lead them to a win.

"We need to be able to move offensively," Pietropola said.

"North Penn does a nice job with the Wing-T offense and hopefully we can shut them down and shut down Cleveland." But we've got to be able to move the ball," he added.

Pietropolia is hoping the success of the J.V. team, who picked their first win of the season over Troy 43-6 on Tuesday night, will carry over into Friday's game.

"They played tough and hope fully it will spill over into the game Friday night," Pietropola said.

Game time is set for 7:00 p.m. with the awarding of the trophy following the game.