It's not how many possessions you have. It's what you do with those possessions.

Not including a kneel-down to end the half, Tamaqua managed just two drives over the first two quarters. Both those touches, however, resulted in long marches that finished in the end zone.Those scores helped the Blue Raiders build a lead and propel them to a 27-12 Anthracite League win over host Panther Valley."It took us a while to get the offense going but once we did we had two possessions in the first half and scored both times with long drives," said Tamaqua head coach Sam Bonner. "I was happy with those drives, but I wasn't happy it took us half a quarter to get the ball."Getting the win was huge, though. Losing in overtime last week (to Schuylkill Haven) always does something to your psyche so it was definitely big to come away with a win. PV was really scrappy and played tough ball, but at times it feels like we're fighting an uphill battle with the penalties and turnovers."Those Raider turnovers helped the host Panthers grab their first lead of the season.It also prevented Tamaqua (2-3; 1-3) from touching the ball until midway through the first frame.Bonner's club fumbled on the opening kickoff and then again on a punt return to set up Panther Valley's first tally - a one-yard touchdown run by Anthony Vavra.That lead didn't last long, though, as the Raiders took the ensuing kickoff and traveled 56 yards on 11 plays.Tamaqua divvied up the carries between Bud Moyer, Daylon Barron and Nick Breiner to move down the field. Moyer capped the drive with a 10-yard run."We had a few guys run the ball there," said Bonner. "Everyone knows Bud is going to get the ball, so we have to find some other options running the ball."Following a three-and-out by the Raider defense, another option keyed an even longer trek to the end zone.Sophomore quarterback Thad Zuber picked up gains of 16 and 11 yards to help move his team 81 yards in 14 plays to push Tamaqua's lead to 14-6. Zuber actually capped the time-consuming trek when he went back to pass but eventually scrambled for a six-yard score."He just saw an opening," said Bonner. "He had two receivers open and I was wanting him to throw it, but I can't be upset with him for pulling it down and running it in.""They had a drive that was pretty much the entire second quarter," said PV mentor Matt Davis, whose team dropped to 0-5. "We couldn't get much going offensively. We couldn't get into a rhythm. Credit them because they made adjustments coming into the game to take some things away from us."Both teams couldn't mount much offense in the second half, but turnovers allowed both clubs to return to the end zone.A Panther fumble set up a short field for the Raiders and they cashed in with a six-yard Moyer scoring run.Tamaqua returned the favor in the fourth quarter as Nate Miller's interception set up PV's second score. A Hunter Kennedy 28-yard pass to Tristan Blasko put Vavra in position for his second score of the evening, cutting the margin to 20-12.The Raiders, however, closed out the game by getting another three-and-out (they had six in the game) and a Moyer 23-yard touchdown run with under a minute to play.RAIDER RUSHING ... Tamaqua ran the ball on 49 of its 54 offensive plays, including all 26 in the first half. Moyer finished with a game-high 125 yards on 30 carries.PANTHER PUNTING ... Panther Valley's Brendan Morgan had a solid game punting the ball. The junior kicked five times for a 42-yard average. Included in that were a 65-yard boot and a 41-yarder.RETURNS TO LINEUP ... The Raiders' Matt Weaver, who missed last week's game with a concussion, had a couple tackles for loss and helped his team limit the Panthers to just 12 yards rushing.STILL WINLESS ... The Panthers are still without a win, but again played tough in defeat. "The effort was fantastic tonight, which was something we've lacked the past two weeks," said Davis. "It was good to see our kids fighting hard tonight. They never gave up, and I'm super-proud of their effort. We had too many spots throughout the game, though, where we made a crucial mistake. We've taken some steps forward but we've also taken some backward."