BANGOR — Jim Thorpe went to Bangor looking to reestablish its standard.

The Olympians found it in the trenches.

Behind a physical defensive effort and an offense that mixed the run with a well executed passing game, Jim Thorpe bounced back from last week’s loss with a 27-6 victory over Bangor on Friday night.

Tyler Hoherchak threw touchdown passes of 45 and 46 yards and added a score on the ground as the Olympians improved to 2-2. Defensively, Jim Thorpe came up with stops whenever Bangor threatened to gain momentum.

“We talked about reestablishing the standard that we expect to play at Jim Thorpe, and one of the keys was execution,” said Olympians head coach Mark Rosenberger. “I thought we did a great job. We talked about the physicality being needed, and I thought we were a very physical football team.”

Jim Thorpe wasted little time establishing that tone.

The Olympians leaned on the running game during their opening possession before Hoherchak hit Anthony Kiehl down the field for a 45-yard touchdown. Blaze Flyzik’s extra point made it 7-0 with 8:38 remaining in the first quarter.

“It’s what we’ve been game-planning all week,” Hoherchak said. “We knew we were going to come in, establish the run and hit deep shots when they’re there.”

While the Olympians struck quickly, their defense spent much of the first half keeping Bangor (1-3) from answering.

The Slaters advanced to the Jim Thorpe 43 on their second possession before punting, then reached the 25 midway through the second quarter before an incomplete pass on fourth-and-14 ended the threat.

Bangor again moved into Jim Thorpe territory late in the half, but the Olympians came up with another series of big defensive plays.

Spencer Gothard broke up a deep pass from Eziah Cartagena on a gadget play, and Nicholas Faust later delivered a third-down sack to force another Bangor punt.

That stop set up the pivotal sequence of the night.

Taking over at its own 20 with 56.7 seconds remaining, Jim Thorpe immediately flipped the field when Bobby Levins broke loose for 34 yards. On the next play, Hoherchak found Gothard, who raced into the end zone for a 46-yard touchdown with 38 seconds left.

Instead of taking a one-score lead into the locker room, the Olympians suddenly held a 13-0 advantage.

“That whole change of momentum right before halftime, where they were driving, our defense stopped it, and Bobby makes a big run,” Rosenberger said. “Then the next play, the big pass from Tyler to Spencer was just huge for us. It was a total momentum change and gave us a little breath coming into halftime.”

Jim Thorpe carried it into the third quarter.

“Coaches preach all the time that you’ve got to win the last four minutes of the second quarter and the first four minutes of the third quarter,” Hoherchak said.

The Olympians did both.

Jim Thorpe forced a punt on Bangor’s opening possession of the second half, took over at the Slaters’ 48 and extended its lead when Anthony Kiehl broke free for a 23-yard touchdown run. Levins added the two-point conversion to make it 21-0 with 6:17 remaining in the third.

For Dominic Kiehl, who was a disruptive presence throughout the night defensively, the reason for Jim Thorpe’s success was straightforward.

“Simple. The line dominated the line of scrimmage, and that’s why we stopped them,” Kiehl said.

Bangor finally broke through on its next possession, putting together a methodical drive that Lucas Hurd finished with a 21-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1 with 56 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

The Slaters had finally generated some momentum.

Jim Thorpe promptly took it back.

The Olympians responded with a 12-play, 64-yard drive, with Hoherchak keeping the possession alive on a 4-yard run on third-and-4 from the Bangor 13. He eventually powered in from the 1 on third-and-goal to push the lead to 27-6 with 5:05 remaining.

“I think what I liked the most is when they got the momentum back at 21-6, we went on a 12-play drive and just took the momentum right back,” Rosenberger said.

“Tyler played really well throwing the football, running the football,” Rosenberger added. “Usually we platoon things, but we didn’t do that this week. He was just in a rhythm, and we felt that we were going to stick with that rhythm.”

Rosenberger saw more than individual performances, however. He saw a group beginning to come together.

“They’ve become such a tight group of kids over the last few weeks, and you can see it on the field,” Rosenberger said. “They don’t care who’s making the plays. They’re just happy someone’s making the plays, and that’s important.”

Dominic Kiehl saw it the same way.

“Especially defensively, we allowed 43 points last week and this week six points,” he said. “So we obviously did our job, played unselfish football, and we won 27-6.”

Even with the outcome no longer in doubt, the Olympians weren’t finished defensively.

Bangor drove from its own 37 to the Jim Thorpe 6 in the closing minutes and faced fourth-and-goal. The Olympians forced an incompletion with 1:16 remaining, preserving a second half in which the Slaters managed only one score.

“Our kids are playing hard,” Rosenberger said. “They play hard and physical for 48 minutes, and that’s all you can ask.”

After responding to a difficult loss against unbeaten and defending state champion Southern Lehigh with a physical road victory, Rosenberger believes the Olympians are moving in the right direction.

“The progression we’ve gone through over the last four weeks of the season is huge,” he said. “I think we’re for sure going in the right direction and on the right pathway.”

MOVING ON ... Jim Thorpe has little time to dwell on the win. The Olympians host Wilson on Thursday, while Bangor travels to Palisades next Friday.

And despite getting back to .500, Hoherchak knows there is still plenty of work ahead.

“We’re getting better, but it’s nothing to be satisfied with,” he said. “We’ve got to take it week by week and just try to win the next one.”

Jim Thorpe 27, Bangor 6

Jim Thorpe 7 6 8 6 - 27

Bangor 0 0 6 0 - 6

JT - A. Kiehl 45 pass from Hoherchak (Flyzik kick)

JT - Gothard 46 pass from Hoherchak (kick failed)

JT - A. Kiehl 23 run (Levins run)

B - Hurd 21 run (kick failed)

JT - Hoherchak 1 run (kick failed)