North Pocono’s Breakthrough Season Ends in State 4A Quarterfinals
By: Matt Flanagan | SportzWire | November 22, 2025 | Photo courtesy Jake Speicher
WHITEHALL TWP — North Pocono’s dream season came to a close Friday night, as the Trojans fell 28–6 to District 12 champion Cardinal O’Hara in the PIAA Class 4A state quarterfinals at Whitehall High School. Cardinal O’Hara scored on its opening 11-play drive and never trailed, leaning on a physical defense and a downhill run game to hand North Pocono its first and only loss of the year.
North Pocono’s touchdown came on its best march of the night — a 21-play, 77-yard drive capped by a quarterback sneak from Chase Zimmerman. A blocked extra point kept O’Hara in front 7–6, and the Lions answered with a 16-yard scoring run from Amahj Gowans, who surpassed 2,000 rushing yards this season, and a 35-yard touchdown pass from John Welde to Damir Spencer to make it 21–6 at the half. Welde added a third-quarter quarterback draw for the game’s final points, sending Cardinal O’Hara to the state semifinals and closing North Pocono’s season at 13–1.
The loss doesn’t diminish what the Trojans accomplished over the past three months. North Pocono rolled to an 11–0 start, including wins over Nanticoke, Valley View and Delaware Valley, and finished 6–0 in the Lackawanna Football Conference Division I to claim the league title. According to NEPAFootball.com’s standings, the Trojans outscored opponents 486–187 on the year, the most points scored among big schools in District 2.
In the District 2 Class 4A playoffs, North Pocono defeated Crestwood 42–21 in the semifinals to extend its unbeaten run to 11 games. A week later, the Trojans dominated Dallas 38–6 in the district championship game. Cole West had two touchdowns and an interception, including a score on the opening kickoff of the second half, while Zimmerman accounted for both a rushing and passing touchdown and Josiah Gray and Jayden Taylor added one score each as North Pocono captured its first District 2 4A title since 2016.
North Pocono then made history in the state tournament. In a wild first-round game at Bishop Shanahan, the Trojans won a 40–36 shootout to earn the program’s first state playoff victory. Gray ran for 146 yards and three touchdowns, West added two rushing scores and a key interception, and Seamus Maguire delivered the knockout blow with a strip-sack in the final minute as the defense closed out a game that featured multiple fourth-quarter lead changes. North Pocono finished with 311 rushing yards in that win, a perfect snapshot of the power-run identity that carried them through the fall.
From a team that had just nine wins over the previous two seasons to a 13–1 district champion and state quarterfinalist, the 2025 Trojans reset the standard in Covington Township. This group leaves behind a league title, a district crown, the program’s first state playoff win, and a blueprint for what North Pocono football can be in the years ahead.
