Kutztown comeback bid falls short in loss to Pequea Valley
2024 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Clay Oberholtzer — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
Kutztown coach Larry Chester will tell you his Cougars are one of the best 1-9 football teams in Pennsylvania.
He had hoped for more than that, of course, but too many games got away from the Cougars this season.
Put the season-ending 26-20 loss to visiting Pequea Valley in that category.
The Cougars (1-5, 0-9) came from 14 points down in the first half to tie the game early in the fourth quarter, but a missed PAT that could have given them the lead and a late touchdown by the Braves (3-4, 5-5) did them in.
The Cougars played turnover-free football, rushed for 237 yards and outgained the Braves by more than 80 yards. Still, they lost by 10 points or less for the sixth time. They end the season with two fewer wins than a year ago.
The Cougars had a chance to win it after Drew Tibbins gave Pequea a 26-20 lead with 5:51 remaining.
They went on a 17-play drive, starting from their own 27. They converted three fourth downs. They marched as far as the 10 but two costly penalties set them back to the 25 with no timeouts left.
A pass completed to Colten Mathias kept the clock running. Wyatt Stoess was able to get the next play off but his pass fell to the grass, ending the game.
Pequea Valley took the early lead on Tibbins’ 9-yard touchdown run in the opening minute of the second quarter.
After a long touchdown by the Braves’ Lebran Woods made it 14-0.
Kutztown answered on the ensuing possession. Mason Sherry galloped for 47 yards, setting up Brenden Ackley for a 4-yard dive, cutting the deficit to 14-7.
Pequea Valley got started early in the second half on a 6-yard TD pass from Anthony Stoltzfus to Adam Shultz. The PAT was blocked by Jayden Martin.
The Cougars defense stepped up forcing a crucial three-and-out in each of the second and third quarters, keeping the Braves at arm’s length.
The Cougars got a pair of short touchdown runs by Stoess to tie it 20-20, the second with 10:33 remaining.
Kutztown’s defense needed a late stop but couldn’t get it as the Pequea Valley offensive line dominated, paving the way for Tibbins’ go-ahead 2-yard run with 5:51 left.
A missed extra point left the door open for the Cougars, but they couldn’t take advantage.
Pequea Valley head coach Mike Choi expressed his pride in his team’s performance and finishing with their best record since 2015.
“I could not be more proud of what our guys did,” he said. “We had to give everything we had. When you see them leave everything they had on the field, it’s a magical moment.”
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Pequea Valley | 0 | 14 | 6 | 6 | 26 |
| Kutztown | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 20 |
Scoring summary
| 2 | Pequea Valley | Tibbins, 9 run (Graham kick) | 11:56 |
| 2 | Pequea Valley | Woods, 56 run (Graham kick) | 2:39 |
| 2 | Kutztown | Ackley, 4 run (Moriarty kick) | 1:24 |
| 3 | Pequea Valley | Shultz, 6 pass from Stoltzfus (kick failed) | 7:47 |
| 3 | Kutztown | Stoess, 1 run (Graham kick) | 2:55 |
| 4 | Kutztown | Stoess, 1 run (kick failed) | 10:33 |
| 4 | Pequea Valley | Tibbins, 2 run (kick failed) | 5:51 |
Team statistics
| Pequea Valley | Kutztown | |
| First downs | 11 | 13 |
| Rushes-yards | 37-191 | 43-237 |
| Passing yards | 52 | 88 |
| Total yards | 243 | 325 |
| Passes | 5-9-0 | 6-12-0 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-0 | 0 |
| Punts-average | 3-28.7 | 2-29.5 |
| Penalties-yards | 3-20 | 6-50 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Pequea Valley: Tibbins 21-107, Woods 5-53, Vollmer 6-18, Carter 2-9, Stoltzfuz 2-5, Team 1-(-1).
Kutztown: Sherry 14-108, Ackley 15-72, Swoyer 7-39, Stoess 4-12, Mathias 3-6.
PASSING
Pequea Valley: Stoltzfus 5-9-0–52.
Kutztown: Stoess 5-9-0–88, Mathias 1-2-0–0, Team 0-1-0.
RECEIVING
Pequea Valley: Shultz 3-26, Vollmer 2-26.
Kutztown: Mathias 3-50, Swoyer 2-38, Sherry 1-0.
