Harsch helps Hornets trounce Troy, 54-14.

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The Troy football team may have sought out medical help after the contest against Wellsboro Friday night, October 26. The purpose behind their search for medical help: a cure for "fumbleitis."

Troy had ball handling troubles on the slippery field at Wellsboro. Of the five fumbles coughed up by the injury-laden Trojans, Wellsboro recovered four.

The Hornets made the most of the fumble recoveries by converting all four into touchdowns. But despite Troy's ball handling problems, they had an even greater force to reckon with, Derek Harsch. The Wellsboro bruiser bombarded the Troy defense for 276 yards on 34 carries and four touchdowns to lead the Hornets to a 54-14 Northern Tier League win which keeps the Hornets in the hunt for an Eastern Conference playoff berth.

"Going into the game, Troy had some people hurt or injured, and would have had to play a good game to win," Wellsboro head coach Russ Manney said. "When we went up 14-0, I thought this might be easier than I thought. In the second quarter things got out of hand. It was like they (Troy) gave up but it was just that our kids just played a super game."

Despite his stellar rushing night, Harsch was not the sole offensive ground gainer for the Hornets. Matt Priset added 111 yards and two touchdowns of his own.

Troy fumble troubles started early when they coughed up the ball on their third play from scrimmage on their first possession of the game. Wellsboro recovered the loose ball at the 30-yard line.

Eight plays after taking over possession of the ball, Harsch bolted into the end zone from nine yards out to put the Hornets on the board. Pat Coolidge added the extra point to give Wellsboro a 7-0 lead with 7:32 remaining in the first quarter.

"There was a mismatch on the linemen and we wore them down," Manney said. "We were more excitable this week. They felt they could win and were having all the fun at Troy's expense."

Offensively, things just got worse for Troy. Two plays into Troy's second drive of the game, Wellsboro recovered a second fumble. Brad Smith covered the loose ball to set up Wellsboro's second touchdown in two minutes.

The recovery gave Wellsboro great field position at Troy's 33-yard line. Harsch was stopped on his first rushing attempt, gained nine yards on his second, and then scampered 29 yards to pay dirt to increase Wellsboro's lead. Coolidge's kick split the uprights as Wellsboro took a 14-0 lead with 5:31 remaining in the first frame.

Going into the game, Manney was concerned about Troy's speed. The team boasted one of the quickest running backs in the league, Casey Culago. Culago showcased that element of concern for Wellsboro on Troy's third offensive series when he burst through the middle of the Wellsboro defensive line, weaved through the Hornet secondary and scampered 61 yards for a touchdown. That was the only time Troy was able to get through from Wellsboro's starting defense for a touchdown. Harsch batted down Jordon Foust's extra point attempt.

It only took Wellsboro three minutes to score again and increase their lead to 21-6. Behind the trio of Harsch, Smith, and Matt Priset, Wellsboro pushed their way from their own 33-yard line to Troy's three-yard line. Harsch capped off the 69 yard drive with a three yard plunge into the end zone for his third consecutive touchdown. Coolidge's placement was accurate again on the extra point attempt.

Troy was held again by the defiant Hornet defense and, on the second play of the series, fumbled again. This time they recovered. Their following pass attempt fell incomplete and Troy was forced to punt.

Wellsboro followed by pushing the ball 60 yards down field to the Troy 14-yard line. Harsch took the handoff and plunged into the end zone to widen Wellsboro's lead. Coolidge followed with another extra point boot to build Wellsboro's lead to 28-6 with 9:20 remaining in the first half.

Troy was held at their own 40-yard line to faced fourth-and-four on the next series. A fake punt caught the Wellsboro defense off guard and completed a pass to Kurt Smith for a first down. But, two plays later, Troy coughed up the ball again. Tyler Mead recovered for the lose ball for Wellsboro.

Wellsboro then drove the length of the field, battling the clock in an effort to squeeze one more touchdown before time expired on the first half. Will Osgood took the snap and fired a pass over the middle to a waiting Smith who pulled in the ball for the touchdown completion with 30 seconds showing on the clock. Coolidge's extra point gave Wellsboro a huge 38-6 halftime lead.

Wellsboro opened the second half with a quick score. Two minutes into the third frame, Priset slipped into the end zone for the score from 25 yards out. Again Coolidge split the uprights. Wellsboro took a commanding 42-6 lead.

Another fumble ended Troy's ensuing drive when Mead recovered his second fumble of the game. Priset capped off another successful Wellsboro drive with a six yard touchdown run just over two minutes into the frame. Coolidge's extra point attempt was blocked and Wellsboro led 48-6.

The Wellsboro defense held Troy to 172 yards rushing. Of that tally, Culago accounted for 105 yards on five carries.

Culago did score again, but that wasn't until midway through the fourth quarter against the Wellsboro second-team defense. The Wellsboro starting defense had been given a much needed rest with eight minutes remaining in the game.

Culago combined two big rushing gains of 34 and 32 yards for the score on Troy's next offensive drive. The second rush netted Troy their second and last score of the game with 8:43 remaining in the game. But the Wellsboro second-team earned their revenge when Tyler Mead took the hand-off and scored the final touchdown of the night, a 22 yard scamper with six minutes remaining in the contest.

With the win, Wellsboro improved to 4-5 and enters the annual Morton Jones Memorial game against North Penn, who also has a 4-5 record, Friday night, November 2. This year North Penn hosts the game at Island Park. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. Wellsboro will need the win in order earn a Eastern Conference playoff berth. "I hope we can continue playing like we did against Troy," Manney said. "It shows how good we can be if we work at it."