Dallas running back Parker Bolesta takes a handoff and gets loose for a big gain in the second quarter against Lake-Lehman in Friday’s Old Shoe Game between Back Mountain rivals.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas defensive back Lucas Tirpak (7) intercepts a pass intended for Lake-Lehman’s Gavin Paraschak in the second quarter on Friday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Lake-Lehman running back Gavin Paraschak (19) takes a screen pass for a touchdown on Friday night against rival Dallas.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas’ Dylan Geskey runs along the sideline on his way to the end zone for the Mountaineers’ second touchdown on Friday night.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas wide receiver Joe Peters (24) gets tackled by Lake Lehman’s Gavin Wallace (4) after catching a pass in the second quarter on Friday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
On a chilly Friday night under the lights, the Dallas Mountaineers rolled over rival Lake-Lehman in dominant fashion by a score of 49-6 to reclaim the Old Shoe trophy.
After last season’s edition of the annual rivalry game was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, the Black Knights came into the contest having beaten Dallas in 2020 and posting a 40-13 win against Hanover Area last week. Dallas, meanwhile, was looking to bounce back after a tough 35-7 loss at Wilkes-Barre Area.
The Mounts (8-2) responded on both sides of the ball. Besides the strong defensive effort that held Lehman to only six points, senior captain Parker Bolesta led the way, as he ran for a game-high 334 yards on only 16 carries to go along with five rushing touchdowns to earn game MVP honors.
“It feels pretty amazing getting the Old Shoe trophy back,” Bolesta said. “We’ve been sitting on that loss against Lehman two years ago for a while now and we’ve had this game on our minds since we’ve been sophomores. Not playing this game last year built it up even more, so we were ready.
“It feels amazing to be named MVP of this game. I give all the credit to my team for helping me get here and making me the player I am today.”
Dallas kicked off the scoring early in the first quarter after winning the coin toss and embarking on an impressive 66-yard opening scoring drive. Just 1:19 into the game, Bolesta scored from 14 yards out to give his squad a quick 7-0 advantage.
But the Black Knights (3-7) would come roaring back about five minutes later. Quarterback Landon Schuckers connected with fellow senior Gavin Paraschak on a 47-yard touchdown pass on a third-and-6 call. That cut the deficit to 7-6 with 5:27 left in the first quarter.
Dallas would seize the momentum right back as Mountaineers quarterback Brady Zapoticky found fellow sophomore Dylan Geskey on a big play of their own, a 63-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline to increase the lead to 14-6.
Dallas wasn’t finished in the first quarter, as Bolesta would barrel into the end zone from 7 yards out with just two seconds left in the period to increase the advantage to 21-6.
The second quarter was just as productive for the Mounts, who tacked on three more touchdowns to take a 42-6 lead into halftime.
It started with a 71-yard scoring drive that was capped off by Bolesta’s third touchdown run of the night, this one from 8 yards out. Then Dallas would increase the advantage with 3:08 remaining in the half, as the Mounts capitalized on a fumble recovery that thwarted a Black Knights drive near the goal line.
Dallas turned it around into a 95-yard march the other way as Bolesta scored his fourth touchdown, breaking loose for a 45-yard score on the ground.
The Mountaineers went to the air to close out the half as Zapoticky found junior tight end Nick Farrell for a 15-yard touchdown pass with 36 seconds left before the break.
Bolesta closed out the scoring early in the second half, scoring his fifth rushing touchdown of the evening on his biggest play, an 83-yard sprint to the end zone to give Dallas a dominant 49-6.
Bolesta was proud of the effort against Dallas’ archrival after dropping two of the last three games following a 6-0 start.
“Yeah, we’ve been in a slump these last three games, and that was our whole talk this week — getting our mojo back — and it showed tonight,” Bolesta said. “When we watch tonight’s film it’s going to be pretty clear. All I saw was open field, and a lot of these big runs are just taking off.
“… Heading into the playoffs we’ve got to take this win and build off of it. We’ve got another game coming up next week, and I’m sure we will be ready.”
Dallas 49, Lake-Lehman 6
Lake-Lehman`6`0`0`0 — 6
Dallas`21`21`7`0 — 49
First Quarter
DAL — Parker Bolesta 14 run (Jace Chopyak kick), 10:41
LL — Gavin Paraschak 47 pass from Landon Schuckers (kick failed), 5:27
DAL — Dylan Geskey 63 pass from Brady Zapoticky (Chopyak kick), 4:40
DAL — Bolesta 7 run (Chopyak kick), 0:02
Second Quarter
DAL — Bolesta 8 run (Chopyak kick), 7:01
DAL — Bolesta 45 run (Chopyak kick), 3:08
DAL — Nick Farrell 15 pass from Zapoticky (Chopyak kick), 0:36
Third Quarter
DAL — Bolesta 83 run (Chopyak kick), 9:05
Team statistics`LL`DAL
First downs`14`19
Rushes-yards`28-125`28-437
Passing yards`170`153
Total yards`295`590
Passing`10-18-1`7-9-0
Sacked-yards lost`4-14`1-5
Punts-avg.`3-35`0-0
Fumbles-lost`3-2`1-0
Penalties-yards`5-45`12-140
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — LL, Landon Schuckers 9-82, Gavin Wallace 3-30, Javon Borger 2-1, Gavin Paraschak 2-5, Chris Yetter 3-5, Josh Ryan 6-4, Hunter Lee 3-(minus-2. DAL, Parker Bolesta 16-334, Dylan Geskey 1-8, Sam Kelley 5-51, Nico Wilk 3-30, Bob Booth 2-3, Zach Paczewski 1-11.
PASSING — LL, Landon Schuckers 8-12-1-155, Gavin Wallace 2-6-0-15. DAL, Brady Zapoticky 7-9-0-153.
RECEIVING- LL, Gavin Paraschak 3-105, Brandon Ritinski 2-28, Christopher Sholtis 3-22, Jake Daum 2-15. DAL, Nick Farrell 1-15, Zach Paczewski 2-39, Dylan Geskey 1-63, Joe Peters 3-36.
INTERCEPTIONS — DAL, Lucas Tirpak 1.
MISSED FGs — None.
