FOOTBALL: Northern Lebanon knocks off Elco in 44-41 thriller

FREDERICKSBURG>> It had been billed as a de facto Section Three championship game.

And by the time Friday's showdown in Fredericksburg was over, you had wished a real title had been on the line.

Northern Lebanon edged Elco in a 44-41 homecoming thriller deserving of hardware, pushed ahead by Isaac Wengert's rushing touchdown with 1:49 remaining. The senior quarterback scored five times to hand the Vikings (7-0, 3-0 Section Three) a lead on their homecoming night, but it was sophomore Blaise Bressler who secured the victory by grabbing an interception of Jeff Martin with 0:57 to go.

Martin had captained a stunning second-half rally that resuscitated the Raiders (3-4, 3-1) into a lead via 27 unanswered points until Wengert's deciding score. Then, after driving into Northern Lebanon territory, Martin's final pass was let go under serious pressure and sole possession of first place in Section Three belonged to the reigning champs.

"I had never been so happy in my life," said Wengert of watching Bressler's pick. "We're just going to keep it rolling. We've been eating, sleeping, breathing 'back-to-back.' We're a runaway freight train. Every other team's just like a bug on a windshield."