Dunmore and Lackawanna Trail have taken distinctly different approaches, but each arrives at their Friday night meeting with a 3-1 record.
Lackawanna Trail hosts the rematch of last season’s District 2 Class 2A football championship game that the Lions won on the same field, 14-10.
There will not be a playoff rematch this season with Lackawanna Trail now playing back at the Class A level.
Their game is the only one of 15 on the Friday football schedule in District 2 that matches two winning teams against each other.
Dunmore has gone 3-1, losing only at state-ranked Mount Carmel, by averaging 38.3 points per game, second among the Lackawanna Football Conference’s 19 teams behind only Lakeland.
Thomas Bowen has passed for nine touchdowns while Nico Ruggiero has run for four and caught two of the touchdown passes. Domenick DeSando and Daniel Pigga have been the top receivers.
Lackawanna Trail also ranks second in the LFC behind Lakeland, but in fewest points allowed. The Lions are giving up just 10.3 points per game, helping them win their first three before losing last week at Honesdale, 14-12.
Hunter Patterson, Lukas Gumble and Gary Shaw lead the defense. Patterson has been in on 36 tackles, along with making an interception and recording a sack. Gumble has 33 tackles, an interception and a sack. Shaw has 21 tackles, including a sack.
Dunmore comes into the game ranked fourth while Lackawanna Trail is sixth among Small Schools in the Gaughan Auto Store Super Six Power Rankings, compiled by our partners at NEPAFootball.com.
There is one other matchup of ranked Small Schools on the schedule.
No. 1 Lakeland (4-0) is at No. 5 Old Forge (2-2).
Both teams won LFC titles a year ago.
The Lakeland-Old Forge game is one of four on the schedule pitting a winning team against one with a .500 record.
Scranton (1-0, 4-0) is at North Pocono (0-1, 2-2) in an LFC Division 1 game where the Trojans will try to shake off two straight road losses in which they gave up a total of 87 points.
Valley View (3-1) is at Pittston Area (2-2), Western Wayne (3-1) is at Carbondale (2-2) and Montrose (1-1) is at the Schuyler Storm (3-0) in non-league games. Schuyler is a cooperative sponsorship of New York State schools Watkins Glen and Odessa-Montour.
Wilkes-Barre Area is at Berwick in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 game between teams that are 2-2 overall. The Wolfpack is 0-1 in the division while the Bulldogs are 1-0.
In other divisional games: Scranton Prep is at Delaware Valley in LFC 1; Williamsport is at Crestwood and Wyoming Valley West is at Dallas in WVC 1; and Hanover Area is at Wyoming Area and Lake-Lehman is at Nanticoke in WVC 2.
The rest of the schedule has Hazleton Area at West Scranton, Honesdale at Tunkhannock and Riverside at Mahanoy Area.
There are key contests in other sports in District 2, led by a meeting between the top two teams in the Electric City Volleyball Elite Eight Power Rankings of district girls teams.
No. 2 Berwick (7-0) is at No. 1 Delaware Valley (6-0).
Both are 5-0 in the WVC and tied with Lake-Lehman, a half-match behind first-place Holy Redeemer.
Delaware Valley is the defending WVC and District 2 Class 4A champion. Berwick is the defending District 2 Class 3A champ.
Wyoming Seminary (9-0, 11-0) tries to move closer to another WVC girls tennis championship when it plays at Dallas (8-1).
The Blue Knights have won 60 straight conference matches.
First-place Holy Redeemer (5-0, 7-1) is at third-place Wyoming Area (3-1, 6-2) in WVC Division 2 girls soccer.
A non-league field hockey game sends WVC Division 2 leader Abington Heights (7-2) to neighboring Lackawanna Trail, a ranked team from Division 1 with a 4-2 overall record. Abington Heights has posted six shutouts, but is just 1-2 against Division 1 teams.
There are also light schedules in boys soccer and golf.
MORE FRIDAY COVERAGE
Football predictions: Tom Robinson’s high school football predictions: Week 5 – NEPA Sports Nation.
