EASTON - Easton proved to have more firepower in its East Penn Conference opener with Pleasant Valley, as the Red Rovers scored the first five touchdowns of the contest, en route to a 49-14 mercy-rule win.

In a game that saw the Bears unable to finish tackles and execute on opportunities early on, Easton managed to take advantage and roll to the big win."We have a veteran line back this year," Easton head coach Steve Shiffert admitted afterwards. "We also have some talent in the skill positions back this year, too. Our game plan tonight was to come in and have a balanced attack on offense, and I think we accomplished that."In fact, on the victors' opening drive of the night, they picked up 72 yards in eight plays for a score, as junior quarterback Trey Durrah went in from the one to seal the early lead. Following a Pleasant Valley punt, the winners returned to their plan and rattled off a ten-play, 71-yard drive that was capped off by a one-yard score by senior back Shane Simpson."That's our goal on offense - to be more versatile," Shiffert continued. "And I think early on, we did a great job of mixing it up and not being so one-dimensional."The game's pattern ensued in the same manner, as a Pleasant Valley punt yielded another impressive Easton scoring drive. The end of the first quarter came in the midst of the Red Rovers' third TD, as Durrah found senior tight end Daniel Pasch for a 36-yard scoring reception. Simpson scored on another one-yarder with three minutes remaining in the first half to balloon his team's lead to 28-0.Ed Roeder intercepted a Brandon Kuehner pass on the Bears' next drive and returned the ball 20 yards to set up another Durrah passing score. This time, Simpson added to his already-impressive season, as he pulled in a 27-yard haul for the 35-0 lead a minute later."I think the main thing was execution and discipline and that falls back on me," Pleasant Valley head coach Dave Pacchioni lamented. "Some of the blocking schemes weren't there, and defensively, we have to do a better job of filling holes. We had guys there at times and then we missed tackles."To Pacchioni and his team's credit, the Bears never rolled over and quit, as they bounced back and scored a late first-half score, as Kuehner found Brendan Kearns for a 20-yard score with just under a minute remaining.The second half saw the winners score early, as Simpson added his third one-yard TD of the night for a 42-7 lead.The two sides traded scores the rest of the way, as Nysir Minney-Gratz scored on a 21-yard run for Easton and Matthew Sheehan trotted in from the three for the Bears to produce the final score."Defensively, you knew we were going to bring it and we would have blitzed our way off the bus," Shiffert commended. "I think it was just we had a little more talent tonight."The Bears, who travel to Bethlehem Catholic next weekend committed two turnovers in their first outing of the season and have some things to work on throughout the week, if they want to maintain their claim as one of the tougher teams in the EPC.