Banged-up Panthers battle to the end in loss to Shamrocks
2025 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Rod Frisco — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
CAMP HILL — Minutes after his final high school football game, Schuylkill Valley All-State linebacker Logan Cammauf displayed a thumbs-up with his left hand.
Not because he was celebrating a win by the Panthers in the quarterfinal round of the District 3 Class 3A football playoffs. Unfortunately for Cammauf and his teammates, they simply couldn’t overcome Trinity’s size, speed and experience, falling 35-7 to the third-seeded Shamrocks Friday night at Trinity.
| Final | |
| Trinity | 35 |
| Sch. Valley | 7 |
No, Cammauf’s thumbs-up was essentially involuntary: His hand was wrapped in layers of gauze protecting a 10-stitch injury he had suffered earlier in the day, his thumb protruding in a constant upright position.
“I was injured the third week of the season, got 10 stiches today,” Cammauf said. “But nothing was going to stop us from playing as hard as we could tonight.”
Cheers to that. Schuylkill Valley, which entered the game with a 5-5 record and a two-game losing streak, did indeed play with tremendous spirit and dignity. But the football math was completely against the Panthers: Trinity was bigger, faster and had the playmaker – senior Maddox Jarzynski – that Schuylkill Valley lacked.
Jarzynski scored four touchdowns, three on passes from fellow senior Mason Boyer and a fourth on a critical, early blocked punt return to propel the Shamrocks (8-3) into next Friday’s semifinals against Annville Cleona (8-2), which received a quarterfinal bye.
“We had the most injury-prone team in my five years at Schuylkill Valley,’’ said Panthers head coach Bruce Harbach. “We were banged up all year. We didn’t have a playmaker this year. And (Trinity) has guys who will play Division I next year.”
Jarzynski, who has a Division I offer from Norfolk State, looked the part on his first catch of the night, spearing a crossing route from Boyer on a third-and-18, eschewing a sure first down by not turning upfield and instead gliding almost the entire width of the field before cutting near the Schuylkill Valley sideline and outrunning everyone for a 66-yard score.
That came with 6:37 left in the first period. Just two minutes later he was in the end zone again, scooping up a punt blocked by Trinity’s Marcus Yeager and swiftly covering 28 yards for a 14-0 lead.
Frankly, things looked very grim for Schuylkill Valley, especially when Trinity charged into Panthers’ territory on each of its next two possessions. But Schuylkill Valley turned aside the Shamrocks twice, first on downs at the 18, next with a fumble recovery its own 24.
“That showed what kind of team we have,” said senior defensive back Brandon Pyle.
But an interception by Trinity’s Mason Nocker at the Trinity 43 with 30 seconds left in the half was transformed into a back-breaking touchdown with 3.6 seconds left in the half when Boyer found Jarzynski just inside the pylon from 8 yards out to make it 21-0.
“Our kids don’t quit,” Harbach said. “They didn’t quit tonight. I told them that at halftime, and they kept playing as hard as they could.”
“We definitely changed the culture here,” said Cammauf, with an agreeing nod from Pyle. “We had young players and injuries all year, but this team never let up.”
“We kept busting our butts every practice, every game,” said Pyle, who said he hopes he and Cammauf can play together at Kutztown University. “That’s what we were all about.”
That effort, while admirable, could not deny the inevitable. Trinity put the game away with third-quarter drives of 70 and 65 yards, running back Brandon Harris scoring from the 1 on the first, Jarzynski zipping in from the 19 on another Boyer throw on the second, triggering the mercy rule.
To that point, Schuylkill Valley had not managed a single snap inside Trinity territory until returning the Shamrock kickoff to the home team’s 42. The Panthers finally cracked the scoreboard with 3:12 left on quarterback Alexander Aletras’s 24-yard strike to Josiah Urbaez.
“We’re proud of these kids at Schuylkill Valley,” Harbach said. “These seniors helped put two (Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5) banners on the wall the last two years.
“We were a younger team this year,” said Harbach. “You can’t NIL or portal your way to success in high school. You have to work hard, and we’re going to commit to the weight room with these guys right away.”
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Schuylkill Valley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Trinity | 14 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Trinity | Jarzynski, 66 pass from Boyer (Amatucci kick) | 6:37 |
| 1 | Trinity | Jarzynski, 28 blocked punt return (Amatucci kick) | 4:27 |
| 2 | Trinity | Jarzynski, 8 pass from Boyer (Amatucci kick) | :03.6 |
| 3 | Trinity | Harris, 1 run (Amatucci kick) | 7:12 |
| 3 | Trinity | Jarzynski, 19 pass from Boyer (Amatucci kick) | 1:34 |
| 4 | Schuylkill Valley | Urbaez, 24 pass from Aletras (Wamsher kick) | 3:12 |
Team statistics
| SCH. VALLEY | TRINITY | |
| First downs | 7 | 17 |
| Rushes-yards | 23-52 | 27-166 |
| Passing yards | 82 | 200 |
| Total yards | 134 | 366 |
| Passes | 8-13-2 | 12-18-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 0-0 | 2-1 |
| Punts-average | 6-27.2 | 2-35.5 |
| Penalties-yards | 7-75 | 5-35 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Schuylkill Valley: Ortiz 5-36, Cammauf 5-6, Pyle 6-6, Aletras 5-4, Johns 1-1, Team 1-(-1).
Trinity: Harris 16-109, Sutton 7-27, Jarzynski 1-12, Yeager 1-11, Dalton 1-8, Team 1-(-1).
PASSING
Schuylkill Valley: Aletras 8-13-2-82.
Trinity: Boyer 12-18-0-200.
RECEIVING
Schuylkill Valley: Cammauf 3-34, Ortiz 3-17, Urbaez 1-24, Gehret 1-7.
Trinity: Jarzynski 6-119, Yeager 3-48, Brown 2-18, Dalton 1-15.
INTERCEPTIONS
Trinity: Nocker, Sutton.
