Five touchdowns by Gio Cavanna carry Muhlenberg to second win
Gio Cavanna was a one-man wrecking crew Friday night in Laureldale, leading Muhlenberg to a 47-25 win over Lebanon in the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 opener for both.
Cavanna had 240 rushing yards and scored five touchdowns, one short of the program record. Lebanon had no answers for the senior running back as he scored on runs of 7, 23, 56 and 65 yards and a 90-yard kickoff return. He also scored on a two-point conversion and had an interception.
Teammate Ulices Ramirez contributed 78 rushing yards, including a 54-yard touchdown sprint through the middle of the Lebanon defense. Javion DeJesus chipped in with an interception to halt a Cedars drive.
The win evened the Muhls’ record at 2-2. It’s their most wins since they went 6-5 in 2017. They won a total of two games over the last four seasons.
After Lebanon scored to get within 12-7 in the second quarter on an Emanuel Mason 1-yard run, Cavanna answered with a kickoff return down the sideline for his third score.
The momentum quickly turned back to the Muhls as they continued to increase their lead with Cavanna running through around and by the Cedars defense time and time again.
The Cedars (0-1, 0-3) trailed 34-7 in the fourth quarter but sophomore quarterback Brandyn Cruz kept firing away, throwing for three fourth-quarter scores. Cruz was 16-for-32 for 223 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Cedars saw their losing streak extend to 16 consecutive games, dating back to 2020.
Jason Reinhart set the Muhlenberg record with six touchdowns in 1998. He also scored five TDs three times. Three other Muhlenberg players have also scored five TDs in a game; Ben Ortiz did it twice in the 2013 season.
Lebanon returns home next week to face undefeated Exeter while Muhlenberg hosts Gov. Mifflin.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Lebanon | 0 | 7 | 0 | 18 | 25 |
| Muhlenberg | 6 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 47 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Muhlenberg | Cavanna, 65 run (kick failed) | 5:17 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Cavanna, 7 run (run failed) | 7:56 |
| 2 | Lebanon | Mason, 1 run (Infante kick) | 1:12 |
| 2 | Muhlenberg | Cavanna, 90 kickoff return (Cavanna run) | 58.3 |
| 3 | Muhlenberg | Cavanna, 56 run (conversion failed) | 11:01 |
| 3 | Muhlenberg | Ramirez, 54 run (Dotson run) | 4:28 |
| 4 | Lebanon | Orosco, 13 pass from Castro (conversion failed) | 11:09 |
| 4 | Muhlenberg | Miller, 50 run (Altamirano kick) | 8:19 |
| 4 | Lebanon | Stoner, 32 pass from Castro (conversion failed) | 7:12 |
| 4 | Lebanon | Infante, 30 pass from Castro (conversion failed) | 3:09 |
| 4 | Muhlenberg | Cavanna, 23 run (conversion failed) | 1:31 |
Team statistics
| Lebanon | Muhlenberg | |
| First downs | 12 | 11 |
| Rushes-yards | 24-71 | 36-358 |
| Passing yards | 223 | 21 |
| Total yards | 294 | 379 |
| Passes | 16-31-2 | 3-5-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 0-0 | 1-0 |
| Punts-average | 6-28.6 | 6-28.8 |
| Penalties-yards | 12-122 | 9-87 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Lebanon: Mason 9-41, Orosco 2-22, Watson 2-11, Figueroa 2-6, Trace 1-6, Castro 8-(-15).
Muhlenberg: Cavanna 16-240, Ramirez 7-78, Miller 1-50, Cruz 7-0, Rosario 1-(-2), Lopez 4-(-8).
PASSING
Lebanon: Castro 16-31-2-223.
Muhlenberg: Lopez 3-5-21.
RECEIVING
Lebanon: Stoner 4-97, Infante 4-63, Orosco 3-30, Mason 3-5, Trace 2-28.
Muhlenberg: Gumby 2-14, Cavanna 1-7.
INTERCEPTIONS
Muhlenberg: Cavanna, DeJesus.
