Schuylkill Valley survives Cougars comeback bid
2025 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Andrew Clauser — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
Schuylkill Valley staved off a furious fourth-quarter rally from Kutztown Friday night, hanging on to win the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 opener 35-28 at Kutztown.
| Final | |
| Sch. Valley | 35 |
| Kutztown | 28 |
The Panthers (2-2) had a 35-14 lead at the start of the fourth quarter before Cougars fullback Ian Bahr (168 rushing yards) scored on runs of 11 and 8 yards to cut the deficit to seven with 3:13 left.
On the ensuing possession the Panthers faced a third-and-11 in their own territory with little more than a minute left. Junior quarterback Alex Aletras delivered a timely pass to Alex Gehret just beyond the first down marker to ice the game. It wasn’t a highlight-type play but one the Panthers desperately needed after a rough second half.
There were fireworks early, starting with a game-opening 79-yard kickoff return for touchdown by senior Josiah Urbaez.
On the next Cougars possession Bahr dashed 82 yards and fell 1 yard short of touchdown on their first play from scrimmage. The play looked like it was about to be blown dead until Bahr emerged from a massive pile and broke through for the big gain. Quarterback Wyatt Stoss punched it in from the 1 to tie it.
The rest of the half belonged to Aletras.
After a rough performance against Fleetwood last week, Aletras was finding his receivers Friday. If it wasn’t for a dropped pass that was a sure touchdown and another touchdown lost to a fumble in the end zone the game wouldn’t have been so close.
The Panthers were also hurt by the loss of running back Brandon Pyle to an undisclosed leg injury late in the second quarter. He had 98 yards rushing and looked like he was primed for more until being forced to leave .
Kutztown (1-3) showed why it is leading the league in rushing. Along with Bahr’s big night, his running mate, sophomore Ryan Walters, had even a bigger night, rushing for 176 yards on 19 carries.
The Cougars rushing attack kept the Panthers offense off the field for most of the night. Fatigue was setting in on the defensive side of the ball for the Panthers. Kutztown ran more plays, killed more time off the clock, and committed significantly fewer penalties.
Key play of the game
Wide receiver Josiah Urbaez ignited the Panther with a 79-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown.
Star of the Game
Schuylkill Valley quarterback Alexander Aletras went 11-for-16 for 160 yards and accounted for three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing), all in the first half. He also converted a third-and-long for a first down with a minute left in the game to seal the deal.
Key statistic
Despite the losing outcome Kutztown outgained Schuylkill Valley in rushing yards (405-199) and total yards by 77.
Quotable
“There were a lot of self-inflicted wounds in the second half. Kutztown is a good football team. They are going to beat some teams or give them problems. We were lucky to escape with a victory tonight.”
— Schuylkill Valley coach Bruce Harbach
Quotable
“They play for each other regardless. They are a very close-knit group and never tighten up. We are also more fit than in years past. They understand our system (Power T). They run our system well. They believe in our system. We just do our thing and pound the ball.” — Kutztown coach Larry Chester
Quotable
“It’s one of our ‘bread and butter’ plays we look for on a third-and-long. It worked well last year and we executed it perfectly and at the right moment.” — Schuylkill Valley coach Bruce Harbach, on the conversion to end the game
Up next
Kutztown (1-3) takes on Hamburg Friday at home while Schuylkill Valley (2-2) hosts Pequea Valley.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Schuylkill Valley | 14 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 35 |
| Kutztown | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | Schuylkill Valley | Urbaez, 79 kickoff return (Wamsher kick) | 11:47 |
| 1 | Kutztown | Stoess, 1 run (Moriarty kick) | 10:29 |
| 1 | Schuylkill Valley | Aletras, 8 run (Wamsher kick) | 7:07 |
| 2 | Schuylkill Valley | Ortiz, 18 run (Wamsher kick) | 9:28 |
| 2 | Schuylkill Valley | Klinikowski, 10 pass from Aletras (Wamsher kick) | 1:44 |
| 3 | Kutztown | Walters, 47 run (Moriarty kick) | 8:43 |
| 3 | Schuylkill Valley | Batista, 36 pass from Aletras (Wamsher kick) | 7:52 |
| 4 | Kutztown | Bahr, 11 run (Moriarty kick) | 11:55 |
| 4 | Kutztown | Bahr, 8 run (Moriarty kick) | 3:13 |
Team statistics
| SCHUYLKILL VALLEY | KUTZTOWN | |
| First downs | 13 | 16 |
| Rushes-yards | 21-199 | 53-405 |
| Passing yards | 160 | 31 |
| Total yards | 359 | 436 |
| Passes | 11-16-1 | 2-10-2 |
| Fumbles-lost | 3-2 | 2-1 |
| Punts-average | 1-36 | 1-30 |
| Penalties-yards | 9-95 | 4-35 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING
Schuylkill Valley: Pyle 7-98, Ortiz 4-59, Cammauf 6-24, Aletras 2-10, Klinikowski 2-8.
Kutztown: Walters 19-176, Bahr 18-168, Sherry 12-51, Stoess 3-10, Amato 1-0.
PASSING
Schuylkill Valley: Aletras 11-16-1–160.
Kutztown: Stoess 2-10-2–31.
RECEIVING
Schuylkill Valley: Klinikowski 4-35, Gehret 3-54, Batista 2-45, Urbaez 1-18, Pyle 1-8.
Kutztown: Wicke 2-31.
INTERCEPTIONS
Schuylkill Valley: Batista, Pamboge.
Kutztown: Walters.
