HS FOOTBALL: Voglino’s speed, big plays lead Carbondale Area past Holy Cross

Carbondale Area's dynamic running back and kick returner showed off his speed, rushing for 86 yards on three carries and two touchdowns and returning a punt for a touchdown, leading the charge toward a 43-20 win over Holy Cross on Saturday afternoon in a Lackawanna Football Conference Division III game between first-place teams.

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"It is all a team effort," said Voglino, who also had three receptions for 62 yards. "I can't thank my teammates enough. All of the guys are putting in the hard work. They are the main players on this team.

"We are always supporting each other."

Wasting little time establishing himself, Voglino sprinted 50 yards on the game's opening play. He also completed a 20-yard pass to Cole Balderas on the second scoring drive, capped on a 2-yard run by Francisco Roman for a 13-0 lead.

Then, Voglino took a punt back for a 52-yard score for a 19-0 lead late in the first quarter. It was his fifth special teams kick return for a score this season. He also has four kickoff returns for touchdowns.

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"It is all about the uppers," Voglino said. "The guys set the wall, and I just followed them. I can't take any of the credit; it is all the blocking."

After Holy Cross (2-5, 1-1) responded and cut into the lead on a 2-yard touchdown reception by Luca Berardi, Voglino struck back.

He raced 27 yards for his third score and a 27-6 lead. Voglino leads Division III with 13 touchdowns and 80 points.

Carbondale Area's lead expanded to 34-6 when Voglino caught a 15-yard pass that led to a Nick Zaccone 2-yard touchdown run with 1:10 remaining in the first half.

On the Chargers' first possession of the second half, Voglino caught a screen pass, broke two tackles, and ran 47 yards, setting up another touchdown. Roman, who had 81 yards rushing, scored his second touchdown for a 40-6 lead.

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Levi Gabriel finished Carbondale Area's scoring on a 27-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.

Carbondale Area contained Holy Cross' running game, helping the team to establish a big lead. The Crusaders had 54 yards on 24 carries, and the Chargers recorded tackles for loss.

"We kept our eyes open and did a good job of reading and reacting," said Carbondale Area's Cole Balderas, one of the defensive standouts. "We had guys making big plays. We set the offense right up to make big plays."

Holy Cross did show off a productive passing game. Luca Berardi caught 10 passes for 147 yards and a touchdown, and quarterback Chase Rutkoski completed 17 of 28 passes for 229 yards and a touchdown.

Ryan Monroe added three catches for 47 yards, and Tyler Kohut had three catches for 29 yards for the Crusaders.