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Wyoming Area tripped up by Lakeland in wild finish of D2 Class 2A title game.

SCRANTON – A malfunctioning clock, a touchdown-saving tackle and a desperation heave.
The fans who exited Scranton Memorial Stadium thinking Lakeland’s 12-point lead with 2:53 to play was secure – and there were plenty of them – missed Wyoming Area nearly pull off an improbable comeback Friday night.
But as Lakeland defensive back Matt Norton intercepted a pass at the goal line on the final play and fought off an attempt to rip away the ball by Wyoming Area’s Dustin Barrett, Lakeland had secured the District 2 Class 2A title with a 26-21 victory.
Lakeland (12-1) will play the District 11 champion, the winner of today’s Palisades at Wilson game, next weekend in the PIAA 2A quarterfinals. Wyoming Area ended its season at 10-3.
“There is no quit in this group of kids,” Wyoming Area coach Paul Marranca said.
There was some quit in the Wyoming Area fans, though, as a sizeable amount left after Lakeland quarterback Anthony Besten turned a simple keeper into a 76-yard touchdown run and a 26-14 lead with 2:53 to play.
They missed an incredible finish as Wyoming Area quarterback Justin Piontkowski found tailback Tyler Serbin behind the secondary two plays after the kickoff for a 32-yard touchdown. The point-after moved the Warriors within 26-21 at 2:05 of the fourth quarter.
Lakeland seemed to secure the victory when tailback Randy Nichols broke off consecutive runs of 24 and 20 yards following a failed onsides kick attempt. The Chiefs were at the Wyoming Area 9-yard line with 31 seconds on the game clock when game officials determined the 25-second play clock wasn’t in sync. Then they decided the game clock was also faulty.
After the third-down play, the game clock showed 8.1 seconds, but the officiating crew decided there were 17 seconds left and kept the remaining time on the field. Besten managed to get the clock to 14 seconds before being sacked by Wyoming Area’s Gary Frisbie and Teddy Lasher on fourth down.
Wyoming Area took over at its 28 and on the first play Piontkowski threw a strike to Barrett, who was running in stride in the middle of the field. Barrett had a clear path to the end zone, but Norton dived and made a shoe-string tackle, barely getting enough of Barrett’s foot to trip him up.
The Warriors raced to the line after the 40-yard reception and spiked the ball with one second left at the Lakeland 32. Piontkowski then launched a pass that would either extend or end the Warriors’ season.
It was the latter as Norton intercepted the ball a step from the goal line, and then held on as Barrett clawed and tugged at the ball.
“Ten seconds, they went a long way,” Lakeland coach Dan Case said. “It’s tough when the clock is not working.”
Marranca agreed and believed some seconds may have been lost along the way.
“I can’t comment,” Marranca said. “What’s that pro rule? They’ll fine me.”
Wyoming Area led 7-0 at halftime after Serbin scored on an 86-yard run on the first play after Lakeland’s opening drive stalled after 17 plays at the Wyoming Area 15. The Warriors also held on three downs inside their 5 in the second quarter.
While Lakeland was pleased at its ability to move the ball, it wanted more.
“It was frustrating we didn’t get in the end zone,” Case said. “Then we had to open it up a little bit because they were putting a lot of guys in the box.”
Lakeland, which has two 1,000-yard rushers, used a 36-yard pass reception by Drew Babcanec on the third play of the third quarter as part of its first scoring drive. Nichols capped it with a 13-yard run, but the point-after was wide and Wyoming Area held a 7-6 lead at 10:15.
“It’s funny. That long pass they had, I was worried we would be get caught peeking at a power play with three defensive backs in the game,” Marranca said. “Ironically, we had four (on the pass play).”
Wyoming Area regained the lead, 14-6, when Aaron Pietlukiewicz recovered a Lakeland fumble at the Chiefs’ 18 and later recovered a Wyoming Area fumble in the end zone for a touchdown at 3:17 of the third quarter.
Lakeland didn’t deviate much from its forte to regain the lead, pounding Nichols and fullback Craig Chopko at the Wyoming Area defense. Chopko eventually scored on runs of 1 and 4 yards to give the Chiefs a 20-14 lead at 7:42 of the fourth quarter.
The victory gave Lakeland its fourth D2 2A title in the last five years. Hanover Area broke the Chiefs’ reign last year.
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For more pictures of this game, go to www.timesleader.com