Lehighton head coach Tom McCarroll was well aware of North Schuylkill’s abilities in this penultimate week of the scholastic football regular season.

The highly-touted Spartans have been punishing teams on a five-game winning streak, and operating at a high level of efficiency.

The matchup problems were abundant, the injuries to crucial skill players on the Tribe’s roster were near insurmountable, and early turnovers by the Indians punished their own feet.

Despite the frigid temperatures, the only snowball was the ever-increasing problems for the locals, as North Schuylkill built a 47-0 halftime lead, en route to a 59-8 victory.

“They are the best team in our division, I think,” McCarroll said after the game. “We saw how polished they were tonight, how efficient they were, and compound that with the mistakes we made, in all three facets of the game. Turnovers and special teams especially made it tough for us.”

To start the game, a Lehighton punt gave way to the Spartan offense, which scored after four plays when Jaden Leiby raced away up the left side for a 43-yard touchdown run. On the next possession, defensive back Tyler Elsdon swiped a Lucas Sangiuliano pass and raced in for a 24-yard score.

That 13-0 lead occurred over the course of under two minutes.

“The kids executed well and they jumped out fast there,” North Schuylkill head coach Wally Hall said. “A lot of our offense is read games and it depends on the reads that he gets to open up space, and it’s effective and he does it very well.”

Leiby, who finished the first half with six rushes for 74 yards, three passing receptions for 72 yards and three TDs, sold fakes well, read defenses near-perfectly, and marched his team downfield repeatedly.

“It’s not just me, it’s everyone. It’s (tailback Zack) Chowansky doing it and selling it so well for like five to 10 more yards, and it just drags everyone (on defense) over,” Leiby said. “We knew we had a big game and we didn’t want to take them lightly. We were pretty focused and we had a great week.”

A fumbled snap on the Tribe’s next possession’s punt gave good field position to the Spartans (8-1). Chowansky finished off his team’s third scoring drive for a 19-0 lead with 4:30 left on the first-period clock.

Leiby added another score on the winners’ next charge, and then a Lehighton kickoff return fumble yielded another score by Chowansky and it was 33-0 at the end of one.

“There was almost no margin for error tonight against a team like them,” said McCarroll, whose team dropped to 3-6. “The snowball effect comes into play and their skill level is impressive.”

The Spartans tacked on two more scores in the second frame for a 47-point lead at the break, spurring the mercy rule in the second half.

However, Lehighton’s Lucas Sangiuliano began the third with an impressive 60-yard run to get his team on the board, and added the two-point conversion as well.

“Hopefully, some of the younger kids that stepped in for our injured guys take this as a learning experience and maybe use it to build on,” McCarroll said.

WHAT A SHOW ... The Lehighton band performed at halftime and put on a powerful rendition of rock ‘n roll over the years that had this reporter impressed.

SLIPPERY ROCK ... The pigskin wasn’t kind to the Indians’ possessions, as four fumbles (two lost) and an interception gave way to easier points for the Spartans.

SCHERER AND SHARE ALIKE ... Former Lehighton phenom and current Kutztown baller, Cody Scherer, was in attendance, and spotted in the locker room postgame, conversing with players and coaches.