Lackawanna Trail is headed back to the PIAA Class 1A semifinals after notching a 26-13 quarterfinal win over Muncy and sophomore Kody Cresswell was a big reason why.
He ran 10 times for 91 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also made a TD-saving tackle in the fourth quarter moments before the Lions had a goal-line stand.
Here is more from Cresswell’s Athlete of the Week interview:
Other sports I play: Wrestling, track and field
Favorite teams: Penn State
Athletes I admire: Barry Sanders, because of his speed and shiftiness. Also Saquon Barkley. He’s just an animal.
Favorite food: Tacos
Superstitions and rituals: I always have bacon and eggs in the morning on game days. I wear the same undergarments and headband for every game.
Three people I’d like to have dinner with: Ben Roethlisberger, Saquon Barkley, 21 Savage
Was Muncy keying on Ray Melnikoff? Did that help open things up for you to run for as many yards as you did? They definitely were trying to stop Ray a lot, which helped everyone else on the team. Of course, Ray still ran for (166) yards.
Muncy scored on the third play of the game. How important was it for the team to answer and score on the ensuing drive the way it did? You contributed two runs on the drive for 27 yards. It definitely was big. We’ve been down before. Last game against Williams Valley, we were down multiple times and we just kept our heads up and kept grinding.
You didn’t play on last year’s team that went to the state final. What did you learn from watching that team? Last year was my first year playing football; I was on the junior high team. I went to all their games. Last year I watched Cody Moyle a lot because coach Jervis told me I was going to play his position. It was awesome to watch, especially making Trail history.
How does it feel to go from watching last year to being a part of this year’s team? I don’t think anybody expected us to make it this far. The turning point was beating Old Forge in the district championship. Since then, we’ve just had momentum going. It’s really awesome to be a part of.
Since this is your second year of football, how tough was it to pick up the Delaware Wing-T offense the team runs? I didn’t start on offense the first couple of games. Josh Brown did. Then he got hurt and I went in for him and I’ve started since. In the beginning it definitely was very confusing on offense and defense, not really knowing the game as well as everyone else. I just felt like I needed to step up for the team. The coaching has been phenomenal. They’ve really helped me a lot this year.
Post-graduation plans: I’m not sure where, but I’m definitely going to college. I was thinking something in the engineering field. If the opportunity came to play a sport, I definitely would.
During more than 30 years at The Times-Tribune, Scott has covered everything from high schools to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. His current beats include motor sports, local colleges, high school cross country and high school baseball. He also is a copy editor and page designer. His articles have won awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association, Eastern Motorsports Press Association, the Society of Professional Journalists Keystone Pro Chapter and the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association Keystone Press. He also has been honored by the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League and the Minor League Football Alliance. In 2016, he was presented the Media Service Award by the Northeastern Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. A Long Island, New York, native, Scott graduated from the University of Scranton in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in communications. He lives in Peckville with his wife, Andrea, and daughters, Bridget and Emily. Contact him at swalsh@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100, x5109; or @swalshTT on Twitter