Several players made significant contributions to Susquehanna’s run to its first football championship game appearance in 19 years.

Austin White led the Sabers in rushing, passing and scoring; Christian Miller led in sacks, tackles for losses, pass rushes and blocked kicks; Zach Conrad led the team in tackles; Craig Stanley was first in interceptions and broken-up passes; Steve Jesse led in extra points and field goals; Brett Hepler led in punting and punt returns; Jarred Mills led in kickoff returns and assisted tackles while ranking second in tackles; Nolan Hausser led in receptions while finishing second in rushing; and Austin Felter led in receiving yards while finishing second in scoring.

The Sabers had one of their best seasons in the past two decades, going 7-5 and reaching the District 2 Class A final. The 2010 team went 9-2 and won the Lackawanna Football Conference Division 3 title but lost in the semifinals of the District 2 Class AA playoffs.

A statistical look back at this season’s team:

White led the team in rushing with 166 carries for 998 yards and 12 touchdowns. Hausser was second with 71 carries for 458 yards and two touchdowns. They were followed by: Felter 68-299, 5 TDs; Hepler 52-269, 2 TDs; and Luke Brinton, 11-51, 1TD.

The Sabers outrushed their opponents, 5.3-4.1 per carry, 177.8-156.8 per game, and 23-21 in touchdowns.

White was 51-for-145 passing for 899 yards and nine touchdowns with eight interceptions.

Opponents outgained the Sabers through the air, 87.3-74.9, per game. Susquehanna had the advantage in touchdown passes, 9-7.

Hausser led a balanced group of receivers with 11 catches for 147 yards and three touchdowns. Austin Darrow also had 147 yards, along with two touchdowns, while catching 10 passes.

Felter led in receiving yards, going 9-262 for two touchdowns.

Stanley had seven catches for 120 yards and a touchdown and Brady Towner had five for 93 yards and a touchdown. Miller made all of his catches in the playoffs, finishing with four for 55 yards.

The Sabers outscored opponents, 237-201.

White had 76 points on 12 touchdowns, a two-point conversion and a safety.

Felter had seven touchdowns for 42 points.

Jesse had 35 points by going 26-for-31 on extra points and 3-for-7 on field goals.

Hausser added 30 points and Hepler 18.

Mills had the top kickoff return average of 24.8 on five returns. Hepler led in kick return yardage with 220 on 13 returns for a 16.9 average. Hausser had a 19.3 average with six for 116.

Hepler led in all punt return categories, going 13-for-167 for a 12.8 average.

Hepler also had the best numbers among four punters. He averaged 33.1 yards and placed 12 of his 39 kicks inside the 20.

Brinton averaged 30.2 and put one of his five inside the 20. Eric Peters put two of his six punts inside the 20.

The defense, which had two shutouts and held eight of 10 regular-season opponents under 20 points, had many contributors.

Conrad led the team with 90 tackles, followed by Mills with 60, Miller 57, White 55 and Hepler 40.

Mills assisted 71 tackles, followed by Michael Vaccaro with 53, Conrad 48, White 41 and Miller 39.

Miller had seven sacks for 55 yards in losses and 18 total tackles for losses, amounting to 117 yards.

Wes Richardson was second in sacks with three for 18 yards.

Other leaders in tackles for losses: Conrad 9-30, White 9-21, Richardson 8-35, Mills 6-33, Evan Aldrich 6-12 and Vaccaro 5-19.

Miller rushed the passer into incompletions or interceptions 12 times. Vaccaro was next with eight and Richardson had five.

Stanley made four interceptions and Hepler three.

Stanley broke up nine passes, Miller five and Hepler four.

Mills forced two fumbles and Richardson recovered two. They were the only players with more than one in either category.

Miller blocked three kicks -- two punts and an extra point.

Hepler had the only defensive touchdown on an interception return. White made the tackle for the only safety.

WEEK IN REVIEW

Several Susquehanna County players participated in the UNICO Soccer Cup, an all-star doubleheader for Lackawanna League seniors held Saturday in Scranton.

Montrose’s Nick Henry and Troy Ply, Mountain View’s Ed Bognatz and James Goodenough, Blue Ridge’s Shawn Woodruff and Allen Weed, and Elk Lake’s Chris Cook played on the Northern Tier team that tied the Southern Tier, 1-1, in the boys’ game.

Carbondale goalkeeper Jarrod Arendt, who played for the Southern Tier, was named Most Valuable Player.

Valley View’s Julia Gillow was named MVP for helping the Southern Tier to a 5-0 win in the girls’ game.

Mountain View’s Ali Virbitsky and Makenna Whitaker and Montrose’s Mara Blachek and Anna Churco played for the Northern Tier.

In high school football, Lackawanna Football Conference teams went 1-1 and District 2 teams were 1-2 in the first round of the state playoffs Friday night.

Dunmore, which is on a 12-game winning streak that includes victories over Susquehanna and Montrose, produced the only win.

The Bucks ran for 442 yards while defeating Northwestern Lehigh, 35-27, at Henzes Stadium in Peckville in Class AA.

Northwestern Lehigh had not allowed an opposing running back to rush for 100 yards in a game this season.

Sal Marchese and Colin Holmes both got there in the first half.

Marchese ran 2 yards for a touchdown to put Dunmore ahead, 28-27, with 1:22 left in the third quarter, then scored another at the end of a nine-minute drive with 3:50 remaining.

Marchese finished with 181 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries. Holmes ran 21 times for 118 yards and one touchdown.

Garrett Murray led the Dunmore defense.

Murray broke a 14-14 halftime tie with a 31-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown.

The District 11 champions responded with the next two scores for a 27-21 lead. When Northwestern Lehigh tried to rally again, down by eight in the final minute, Murray’s end zone interception clinched the victory and a spot in the state quarterfinals.

Old Forge and Crestwood each had unbeaten records ruined in the state openers.

By the time Dominick Bragalone was done running for 394 yards and four touchdowns, the big board at Loyalsock Township read: South Williamsport 40, Old Forge 0.

Bragalone ran for 60 yards on the game’s first three plays, but fumbled at the 6.

That was the last time Old Forge stopped South Williamsport until the game’s final 11:15 was being played under the Mercy Rule.

A defense that had posted seven shutouts and allowed just 67 points – less than half as many as every other team in District 2 – was no match for one of the most prolific runners in state history.

Bragalone has 3,923 rushing yards and 58 touchdowns on the season, giving him 7,955 yards and 119 touchdowns in his high school career.

The numbers went up quickly as Bragalone surpassed 300 yards in a playoff game for the fifth straight time, including District 4 games the last two years.

The senior halfback went over 100 yards in 9 ½ minutes, surpassed 200 with 8:19 left in the first half and soared past 300 on his final touchdown, a 70-yard run for a 33-0 lead with 6:50 still left in the third quarter.

Cooper Califano ran for 103 yards for Old Forge, which lost four turnovers.

The Blue Devils reached the state playoffs with a 30-0 shutout of Susquehanna in the District 2 Class A championship game.

Wyoming Valley Conference and District 2 Class AAA champion Crestwood lost to Bethlehem Catholic, 42-28.

In other high school sports, official practices for basketball, wrestling and swimming opened Nov. 17.

COLLEGE CORNER

Dan Kempa set another King’s College school record, breaking the mark he set last year for catches in a season while helping the Monarchs end their season by defeating rival Wilkes University, 27-21, November 15.

The Blue Ridge graduate, who played quarterback at Susquehanna, helped King’s to its second straight Mayor’s Cup win while finishing the season 4-5 in the Middle Atlantic Conference and 4-6 overall.

Kempa finished with four catches for 72 yards, including getting behind the defense for a 36-yard touchdown that gave the Monarchs a 17-7 halftime lead. He caught a 19-yard pass on fourth-and-four to set up a field goal that opened the scoring in the first quarter.

The team’s leading scorer with nine touchdowns, Kempa finished the year with 60 catches for 836 yards and seven touchdowns. He also returned 14 kickoffs for an average of 34.1 yards and a touchdown, carried four times for 19 yards and a touchdown and returned 16 punts for a 5.1 average.

Kempa was the all-time leading career receiver at King’s with 151 catches for 2,550 yards and 20 touchdowns. For his career, he also had eight carries for 34 yards, averaged 20.3 yards on 73 kickoff returns and averaged 8.0 on 52 punt returns. He accounted for 4,480 yards and 140 points. Kempa scored 23 touchdowns and kicked a field goal and extra point.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Dunmore (12-1) will face District 12 champion Neumann-Goretti from Philadelphia (9-4) in Friday night’s state Class AA quarterfinals.

Last week’s high school football predictions were 1-1 (50 percent), bringing our playoff record to 10-3 (76.9) and our season record to 99-34 (74.4).

This week’s prediction: Dunmore 27, Neumann-Goretti 14.

TOM ROBINSON writes a weekly local sports column for the Susquehanna County Transcript. He can be reached online at RobbyTR@aol.com or followed on Twitter at @tomjrobinson.

STEWART’S SEASON ENDS ON HIGH NOTE

Kevin Harvick hugs car owner Tony Stewart after winning the 2014 Sprint Cup championship

Tony Stewart has had more downs than ups in the last two years.

In 2013 he broke his leg in a sprint car accident and missed 15 races during the latter part of the season, and was not fully healed when the 2014 season started.

On August 9, 2015, Stewart was involved in another sprint car accident that took the life of Kevin Ward after being hit by Stewart’s machine.

There has been a tremendous amount of emotional pain that has not allowed Stewart to regain his old racing form.

But Kevin Harvick’s championship brought an uplifting end to a tumultuous 2014 season for Stewart, who missed three races after his involvement in that tragic racing accident, involving Kevin Ward.

After Harvick’s win, Stewart spoke about his role as team owner, his season and his thoughts on Harvick’s first championship to the Charlotte Observer.

“You know, I think more than anything, I’m happy for this organization and happy for this team,” he said. “It’s not about me right now; it’s about us as a group. It’s about everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing. You know, you learn when you’re in these situations that it’s about a larger group of people and a bigger picture that’s in play. I’m grateful that I have a co-owner and co-workers and teammates that are such great people that no matter what’s been thrown at us the last year and a half that this organization was able to thrive and continue to prosper and be successful through this.

“It shows the depth of this organization and what these people are capable of. Nights like tonight are when you sit back and you reflect on everything and you realize how proud you are of your entire group and everybody that you surround yourself with.

“The hard part is you’ve got to do the things that got you here in the first place and not get caught up in the moment, not get out of that rhythm that got you here. I didn’t tell them anything they haven’t been doing all year, but sometimes going into that last deal, it’s nice to just remind them why they’re here and why they do what they do.”

Stewart now has claimed three Sprint Cup driving championships and two owner titles.

“This has been the toughest and most emotional year of my life,” Stewart continued.

MISTAKE PROBABLY COST GORDON A WIN

It is what it is.

It we could use hindsight to help direct our future course of action, what a wonderful world this would be.

Such was the case with Jeff Gordon and his team during the latter part of the Homestead Cup race.

Gordon was leading the race when a caution came out with 20 laps remaining. Most of the other leaders, along with race-winner Kevin Harvick pitted for four fresh tires. Gordon and Denny Hamlin did not. They stayed on the track.

The decision not to pit kept Gordon first but with most of the field taking tires, it left him at a disadvantage. During the next caution with six laps to go, Gordon pitted to get four new tires. He didn't have time to recover, and finished 10th despite leading a race-high 161 laps.

So what happened?

Crew chief Alan Gustafson said his mistake late in Sunday's race at Homestead-Miami Speedway cost Gordon a chance to win. Gustafson discussed his late-race strategy on SiriusXM Radio.

“Really, the error was made,’ said Gustafson. “I told Jeff to stay out when the majority of the field pitted and that put us in a bad situation. Jeff felt like (on the following caution) we weren't in a very good position to succeed, so we made a decision to come pit. Really the first stop, when us and Denny (Hamlin) and ... a few other cars stayed out, that was the one that really hurt us.

“That's on me. It was a mistake I made. I tried to keep the track position. I felt like that was going to be the highest percentage decision and it ended up not being. That put us behind unfortunately. I think we had the best car. The team deserved to win the race. It was a bad decision from my part and I'm going to learn from it. It would be really easy for me to make a lot of excuses and say, ‘Hey there's a lot of circumstances that play into it - and there are and it is a very tough thing to do,’ but that's my job and in that situation I feel like I didn't do it to the best of my capabilities.”

You win some and you lose some. But wouldn’t we all like to have the advantage of hindsight in our lives.

BUSCH MEETS WITH POLICE

On November 5, the Dover (Delaware) Police Department confirmed that an investigation was being conducted based on an allegation of domestic assault involving Kurt Busch, and his former girlfriend.

This past week Busch and his attorney met with police and denied all allegations that he assaulted her inside Busch's motor home at Dover International Speedway in September; just days after the couple broke up.

Police spokesman Mark Hoffman says the investigation is continuing and that no decision on whether to file charges has been made.

Two female members of the U. S. Congress have sent a letter to NASCAR asking that Busch be suspended. NASCAR said in a statement, “We take charges like this very seriously. We are monitoring the situation, but until we receive further clarification and additional information, we will not make any decision.”

FINAL DRIVER RANKINGS

Final top-16 Sprint Cup standings: 1. Harvick-5,043, 2. Newman-5,042, 3. Hamlin-5,037, 4. Logano-5,028, 5. Keselowski-2,361, 6. Gordon-2,348, 7. Kenseth-2,334, 8,-Earnhardt-2,301, 9, Edwards-2,288, 10. Kyle Busch-2,285, 11. Johnson-2,274, 12, Kurt Busch-2,263, 13. Allmendinger-2,260, 14. Biffle-2,247, 15. Kahne-2,234, 16. Almirola-2,195.

Final top-10 Nationwide Series leaders: 1. Elliott, 2. Smith, 3. Sadler, 4. Scott, 5. T. Dillon, 6. Bayne, 7. C. Buescher, 8. Gaughan, 9. Reed, 10. J. Buescher.

Final top-10 Truck Series standings: 1. Crafton, 2. Blaney, 3. Wallace Jr., 4. Sauter, 5. Peters, 6. Quiroga, 7. Coulter, 8. Burton, 9. Kennedy, 10. Silas.

Racing Trivia Question: In what years did Stewart win his three Cup championships?

Last Week’s Question: Marcos Ambros is returning to his native Australia, but he plans to stay in racing. What are his racing plans for 2015? He will race in the V8 Supercar Series. Note: The V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.

You may contact the Racing Reporter at: www.hodges@race500.com.

Congratulations to the 2014 Susquehanna Junior Sabers Flag Football Team for an Undefeated Season (6-0).

The Mom Squad, Family and Fans want to acknowledge our players (ages 4-6) for working really hard. The coaches also did an amazing job of teaching our players more than just football.  

Pictured (l-r) are: first row - #57 Chad Benson, #3 Caleb Mauro, #6 Thomas Fremberg, #4 Cody Brewer, #2 Camdyn Hawley, #31 Griffin Fisk; second row - #88 Trevor White, #10 Huntor Travis, #13 Weston Yannone, #1 Joel Decker, #77 William Hobart, #38 Milo Wilson, #28 Esther Davis; third row - Coach Chad Benson, Coach Phil Yannone, Coach Jeff Decker, Coach Kevin Davis. Missing from photo - #7 Spencer Ott, #8 Xander Stone, #19 Malachi Nabinger, #62 Thomas Wayman, #99 Zachery Stone.