Reese Wamsher field goal makes Schuylkill Valley a winner
2025 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
(This story was produced by LNP/Lancasteronline, and published in partnership with MikeDragoSports.com.)
By Logan Moyer — LNP/Lancasteronline
COLUMBIA — Reese Wamsher was prepared to have the game hinge on his right leg.
| Final | |
| Sch. Valley | 17 |
| Columbia | 14 |
Schuylkill Valley coaches had prepared the kicker for the possibility of a game-winning kick on Friday night against Columbia.
“They told me earlier in the game that it was probably going to come down to a game-winning field goal,” said Wamsher, who handles the Panthers’ kicking and punting duties. “I got myself ready.”
His coaches were right. At the end of the night, Wamsher’s 27-yard field goal just cleared the crossbar as time expired to secure a 17-14 win for the Panthers in a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 game at Columbia.
“I didn’t see it go off my foot pretty,” Wamsher said. “But it went through the uprights and that’s all that matters.”
Wamsher said it was the first time he had attempted a game-winning kick.
It was an uncharacteristic night for the Panthers (3-1 L-L, 4-3), who were shut out by Columbia (2-2, 3-4) in the first half despite recovering two Tide fumbles.
“During the season, you have to play a game like that,” Panthers coach Bruce Harbach said. “Nothing was going our way. We came out dropping balls, making mistakes and not tackling well.”
The Panthers also were dealing with plenty of injuries, most notably a concussion to leading rusher Brandon Pyle.
The only score of the first half was a 9-yard pass from Columbia quarterback Cameron McClair to Rnez Duncan.
Schuylkill Valley equalized on a 21-yard connection from Alex Aletras to Anthony Batista, which was almost immediately countered by another McClair touchdown pass from 4 yards to Kamrai Nichols.
| SECTION 5 | League | Overall |
| Ann.-Cleona | 4-0 | 6-1 |
| Berks Cath. | 3-0 | 4-2 |
| Sch. Valley | 3-1 | 4-3 |
| Columbia | 2-2 | 3-4 |
| Lanc. Cath. | 1-3 | 3-4 |
| Hamburg | 1-3 | 2-5 |
| Pequea Valley | 1-3 | 3-4 |
| Kutztown | 0-3 | 1-5 |
Aletras and Batista connected again on an 18-yard score on fourth down with 8:30 left to tie it.
Getting the ball on its 35-yard line with 2:33 to play, the Panthers worked it down as far as the Columbia 4 before settling for the field goal attempt after a false-start penalty.
“Everything is in front of us,” Columbia coach Nate Bagley said of the loss. “We’ve kind of talked about how we’re not always just playing the teams we’re playing. We’re playing other things that are out of our control.”
| SCORE BY QUARTERS | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final |
| Schuylkill Valley | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 17 |
| Columbia | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
Scoring summary
| 2 | Columbia | Duncan, 9 pass from McClair (McClair kick) | 6:40 |
| 3 | Schuylkill Valley | Batista, 21 pass from Aletras (Wamsher kick) | 9:46 |
| 3 | Columbia | Nichols, 4 pass from McClair (McClair kick) | 6:50 |
| 4 | Schuylkill Valley | Batista, 18 pass from Aletras (Wamsher kick) | 8:30 |
| 4 | Schuylkill Valley | Wamsher, 27 FG | 0:00 |
Team statistics
| Schuylkill Valley | Columbia | |
| First downs | 15 | 12 |
| Rushes-yards | 36-103 | 26-74 |
| Passing yards | 171 | 178 |
| Total yards | 274 | 252 |
| Passes | 14-24-0 | 17-25-1 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-0 | 2-2 |
| Punts-average | 7-38.5 | 4-39 |
| Penalties-yards | 5-40 | 6-43 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Schuylkill Valley: Ortiz 11-44, Aletras 16-36, Cammauf 6-20, Sarr 2-8, Santana 1-(-5).
Columbia: Brommer 8-43, Kar. Nichols 3-30, Marley 9-11, McClair 6-(-10).
PASSING
Schuylkill Valley: Aletras 14-24-0—171.
Columbia: McClair 16-24-1—159, Kar. Nichols 1-1-0—19.
RECEIVING
Schuylkill Valley: Batista 6-88, Gehret 4-66, Ammarell 2-5, Durland 1-11, Ortiz 1-3.
Columbia: Kam. Nichols 5-65, Duncan 5-39, Kar. Nichols 4-58, Green 2-19, Brommer 1-(-3).
INTERCEPTIONS
Schuylkill Valley: Rubinos.
