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Lions Break Through: Lackawanna Trail Holds Off Old Forge for First Win, 21-14

Lions Break Through: Lackawanna Trail Holds Off Old Forge for First Win, 21-14

By: Justin Bradley | SportzWire | October 3, 2026 | Photo courtesy Andrea Mecca | Borden Photography

FACTORYVILLE — Five weeks of frustration finally gave way to a Friday night celebration for Lackawanna Trail.

The Lions entered their matchup with Old Forge still searching for their first victory, and after controlling the game for three quarters, they had to withstand one final push from the Blue Devils before walking away with a 21-14 win.

Lackawanna Trail improves to 1-5, while Old Forge falls to 1-5.

Neither offense found the end zone in the opening quarter, but Trail began to take control before halftime.

Carter Edwards broke the scoreless tie with a 16-yard touchdown run with three minutes remaining in the second quarter, and Joey Thomas added the extra point to give the Lions a 7-0 halftime advantage.

Trail added to it through the air in the third.

Quarterback Lucas Filipek connected with Danny Jones for a 12-yard touchdown with 5:42 remaining in the quarter. The extra point was blocked, but the Lions had stretched their lead to 13-0.

Filipek finished an efficient 4-for-6 for 89 yards and a touchdown while adding 47 yards on six carries.

The Lions leaned heavily on their ground game throughout the night, running the ball 34 times for 174 yards.

Edwards led the way with 57 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries, while Filipek, Riley Borruso and Tim Richmond combined for another 103 yards.

Early in the fourth quarter, Trail appeared to have delivered the knockout punch.

Colby Stanton scored from six yards out before Borruso converted the two-point attempt, giving the Lions a 21-0 lead with 7:10 remaining.

Old Forge wasn’t ready to go away.

Just 14 seconds later, Rylan Gutowski ripped off an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, immediately injecting life into the Blue Devils. Cristopher Nino added the extra point to make it 21-7.

Old Forge struck again with 1:45 remaining when Parker Harte found Gutowski for a 35-yard touchdown. Another Nino extra point suddenly made it a one-score game at 21-14.

Gutowski was the spark Old Forge needed, finishing with six receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown in addition to his kickoff-return score.

Harte completed 14 of 26 passes for 177 yards and a touchdown, but Trail’s defense made the Blue Devils almost entirely one-dimensional. Old Forge finished with minus-32 rushing yards, compared with Trail’s 174.

After watching a 21-point advantage shrink to seven in a matter of minutes, Lackawanna Trail did enough to finish it.

And for a team that had spent the first five weeks searching for that breakthrough, the final result mattered most.

Lackawanna Trail had its first win of 2026.

The Lions (1-5) will try to build on it next Saturday when they travel to face Susquehanna (0-6).

Old Forge (1-5), meanwhile, returns home Friday for a matchup with Tunkhannock (1-5). The Tigers will arrive with some momentum of their own after earning their first victory of the season Friday against Montrose.

For two teams that entered Week 6 with one combined victory, Friday night gave Trail something it had been chasing all fall.

A chance to finally celebrate.