Hornets slay Sayre in the slop.

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Wellsboro coach Russ Manney didn't even know Brandon Keck did so much to help the Green Hornets defeat Sayre 32-12 Friday, October 25, until the saw the stats in the paper the following day.

"I didn't know he (Keck) carried the ball 35 times until I looked at Saturday's newspaper," Manney admitted. "His contribution helped Pat Coolidge have a little more time to get comfortable in his new role."

Coolidge stepped into the roll of quarterback for the Wellsboro Green Hornets.

Coolidge, who took on the responsibility of signal caller in the absence of Will Osgood, went four-of-eight for 48 yards in his first start of the season.

According Manney, Keck's contribution helped take a little pressure off Coolidge.

Keck stepped up big for the Hornets, amassing an impressive 222 yards rushing, helping the team build 352 yards rushing.

Wellsboro opened the game showcasing their defensive dominance, which was responsible for holding Sayre to 60 yards of total offense.

"Our defense did well. We only let down one play when they (Sayre) hit the angle and scored on a kickoff return," Manney said. They are good at that and have done it in every game this year."

Leading Sayre was running back Greg Paul who totaled 114 yards on six carries.

With two fellow running backs suffering a less than stellar night and a combined offensive tally of negative 59 yards, the effort of Paul was the only thing that kept the visiting NTL team's offensive ground attack on the positive side.

Wellsboro began churning out the offensive yardage early in the game.

After pushing the ball to the Sayre 39-yard line, Keck made his first touchdown scamper of the game Keck scampered 39 yards to pay dirt with 8:02 remaining in the first quarter for a 6-0 lead.

Coolidge's placement was off on the extra point attempt.

Wellsboro returned to the end zone six minutes after their first score when Matt Priset took the hand off and raced 17 yards He added the two-point conversion to give the Green Hornets a 14-0 lead that only lasted 13 seconds.

On the ensuing kickoff, Sayre's Greg Paul fielded at the 11-yard line and raced down field unscathed to cut Wellsboro's lead to 14-6.

Wellsboro denied Sayre on their two-point conversion run. "That put them right back in the game," Manney said.

Wellsboro was not content with just a eight point lead and added another six points to their tally when Keck burst out on a 17 yard touchdown run with 51 seconds remaining in the first frame. Priset was stopped short on his two-point conversion and Wellsboro held a 20-6 first frame lead.

Sayre opened the second quarter with another score when Paul burst through the line and scampered 76 yards and into the end zone.

Wellsboro denied Sayre on the two-point conversion attempt then drove for another score with 1:14 remaining in the first half.

This time, after Wellsboro bulled their way to the Sayre one-yard line, Coolidge kept the ball and plunged into the end zone from one yard out to build a 26-12 halftime lead.

After a sluggish third quarter, Wellsboro found the end zone again. This time, with 2:49 remaining in the fourth quarter, Keck added a three yard scoring run to build Wellsboro's lead to 32-12.

Willie Blackwell’s defensive savvy helped him pick off a Chris MacNeal pass and stop a Sayre drive.

Wellsboro will spend this week preparing for the annual Morton Jones Memorial game against North Penn. According to Manney, the Hornets are more concerned about finishing the season with a .500 mark and are looking forward to the annual game.

"We want to try to even up on the season and North Penn is looking to earn a playoff bid," Manney said.

"It’s a good rivalry. They have a balanced and tough rushing team. Tom (Dickinson) has done a good job coaching. Their defense really moves to the football quick. They're not big but they are quick and aggressive. We hope to stop them and slow them down," Manney added.