‘Thunder and lightning’ strike for Blue Jays

SOUTH CENTRE TWP. — Despite Friday night’s 47-14 loss being anything close to what Central Columbia would like to experience, the Blue Jays feel as if they are close to turning the tide.
That’s what happens when a pair of running backs who should be around for three years, Dominic Keller and Blake Edgar, gives a team 226 combined yards and two scores. The team also showed fight until the final whistle, a missing variant during its current 14-game losing streak that dates back to October 2024.

That was on display in their final scoring series, which stretched from late in the third quarter into the fourth. RJ Kressler got the Jays out of a tough situation after a holding penalty, rushing for 11 yards on third-and-18 and then buying time with his legs to find Edgar on the left sideline for a 10-yard completion to move the chains.

Kressler later connected with Keller — who capped the drive off with a 1-yard touchdown — on a third-down screen pass for 21 yards.

It’s no secret the duo is going to touch the ball, with Edgar often getting direct snaps and rushing to the outside. He finished with 15 carries for a team-high 99 yards.

Keller, meanwhile, posted a team-high 18 carries and 82 yards from the usual running back post. He accounted for all of Central’s scoring, getting a nice burst through the second level for a 16-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

“If we’re not getting our athletes the ball, we’re doing something wrong,” Central coach Ky Seesholtz said. “Those two are our thunder and lightning. Dom’s going to be our power guy, and Blake’s going to be our speed guy.

“I told Dom after the game it’s like I watched a different kid play football tonight. With one only being a sophomore and one being a freshman, they’re going to be a problem (for opposing teams) going forward in their careers.”

Unfortunately for the Blue Jays, the same issues that have been lingering during the losing streak struck again: execution and letting up big plays.

After Keller’s first touchdown closed the game to within six, Loyalsock struck quickly as Ivan Baker broke a high tackle attempt and raced down the right sideline for a 71-yard touchdown.

Baker finished with 170 yards on 10 carries, adding a 3-yard rushing touchdown to start the night’s scoring.

The Blue Jays thought they had an immediate answer with Kressler connecting with Owen Zanoline for a 72-yard score on their first play from scrimmage. Instead, a holding call brought it back, and Edgar coughed up the football. Any momentum the Blue Jays had died there as the Lancers responded by scoring 27 unanswered points.

The Lancers also struck for a 35-yard post pass from Dyson Dupont — who added a 1-yard scamper in the first quarter — to a wide-open Carter Brown and a 33-yard rushing touchdown by Cayden Sones during that scoring stretch.

Loyalsock — working out of the no-huddle for much of the night and having starting tackle Jordan Walker ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct midway through the third quarter — added a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Niyaud Loyd late in the fourth.

“I’m very proud of this team, but we have to fix our mistakes because a loss is not acceptable,” Seesholtz said. “We still need to learn how to win, and that’s the most important thing for these kids because getting that confidence is the biggest learning curve.”

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