The Parkland football team has found its way as of late. After an 0-2 start, the Trojans won two straight heading into an early showdown with rival Whitehall.

Parkland's offense racked up 492 total yards and gave the Zephyrs their first Lehigh Valley Conference loss, while also taking home the annual Joe Gerencser Memorial trophy, and sending a message to District 11 that the Trojans are for real.

Tim Baranek accumulated 308 yards and four touchdowns, and the Trojan defense held the potent Whitehall attack in check in the second half for an emotional 52-23 win.

Whitehall (3-2) opened on their its possession with a 10-play, 4:32 scoring drive on quarterback Nick Shafnisky's 10-yard run.

Twenty six seconds later, on Parkland's first play from scrimmage, Baranek took the snap and scampered 60 yards down field to tie the game.

"We knew it was going to be a long game," Baranek said. "That's the bottom line with football. The game can flip just like that. It's a game of momentum and if we got it back, I knew we could run with it."

Parkland's momentum seemed to fade quickly, as Whitehall scored the next two touchdowns, and held a 20-7 lead early in the second quarter. The latter score came after Baranek fumbled inside the five yard line.

But the Trojans battled back again. Baranek found Jarey Elder on a quick inside rout that he turned into a 67-yard touchdown. Baranek then connected with the other Elder brother, Jarel, for an 11-yard pass-and-catch to give Parkland its first lead of the game with 3:01 left in the second quarter.

That wasn't the last you would hear from the Trojan offense in the first half.

Eli Redmond blocked an attempted punt, and on the fourth play of the preceding drive, Baranek rumbled in from 28 yards out for a 28-20 halftime lead.

"I knew our kids were going to hang in this football game, there was no doubt in my mind," said head coach Jim Morgans. "There wasn't even a thought of quitting in this football game - it's Whitehall and Parkland. We got on top of them and wore them down with our up-tempo offense."

Morgans also credited his defense for fighting hard all game and never giving up. The Trojans intercepted Shafnisky twice and only allowed three points over the final 33 minutes.

"We knew our offense always takes a little bit to get into the game, but we knew defensively we needed to kick it in," Jarel Elder said. "It's all about having heart. You have to play with an oversized heart. That's what we did last week with the two all-state receivers [Boise Ross and K.J. Williams of Liberty]. It's a big win. It's a rivalry. Just coming out to play Whitehall, it's always big."

Parkland added three more long touchdown runs in the second half by Jarel Elder (30 yards), Redmond (27 yards), and Kareem Williams (56 yards) to break open the game.

The Trojans rushed for a total of 324 yards.

Shafnisky may have been the more hyped quarterback coming into the game, but Baranek outplayed him. The Trojan signal caller was named the MVP of the game, but knew how big of a team win this was.

"I knew Nick a little bit before this, he's a good kid," said Baranek. "It really wasn't in my mind that I had to go out and outplay him. I just wanted to play my game. The award means something to me, but not nearly as important as the win. As a senior, this win feels good."

Parkland (3-2) heads home for an LVC contest against another high-octane attack in Nazareth this Friday night.