Friday’s road to victory over visiting Stroudsburg began much earlier than the opening kickoff as quarterback Ethan Parvel was determined to erase last week’s loss as soon as they sat down to prepare for the Mounties.

After watching the film from last Friday’s loss, Parvel said that the focus shifted to their upcoming opponent.

“It definitely starts on Sunday,” said Parvel. “We all had a sour taste in our mouths from that loss, especially a loss like that to Bethlehem Catholic. We all said on Sunday that we don’t want to lose any more like that, and that’s what we did.”

That commitment began in the weight room and extended onto the practice field. Parvel said they weren’t going to allow Stroudsburg to walk away with a win.

“We expected that we were going to be prepared to win this game,” said Parvel. “We put so much work in coming off that loss. It was horrible. It was very demoralizing for our team, but we came back with more effort this week than we’ve ever had.”

Parvel was instrumental in the win, throwing for 247 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for 84 yards, adding two more scores in helping the Zephyrs earn their sixth victory of the season. The 49-10 win over the Mounties raises their season record to 6-3 with a game against Northampton remaining on the regular season schedule.

While the game may have started a bit differently than envisioned since the Mounties drove straight down the field on their opening possession, scoring on a 28-yard run by quarterback Sherwin Stewart who glided into the end zone unbated, the Zephs countered with a big play to even things up.

After the Zephyrs were forced to punt on their first possession, they got things rolling when Braxton Marrero took the handoff and bolted 61 yards for the tying score. That set off a 14-0 run by the Zephs who made some defensive adjustments to curtail the Mounties potent running attack.

“Our defensive staff made an adjustment and made a slight change, and our guys responded well to it,” said head coach Brian Gilbert. “They wanted it, and I could feel that they wanted it. We were physical tonight and tackled well, and we got the momentum. Once we got the momentum, it was hard for them to get it back.”

A lot of that momentum was provided by Parvel who connected with Allen Negrete for their second score on a 57-yard strike. Negrete deftly sidestepped two defenders en route to the end zone, cutting inside and then outside for their second big-play touchdown.

Parvel used his legs to make it 21-7 as he faked the handoff to Boykin and then found a crease and dashed 27 yards for the score.

Once they made those defensive adjustments which resulted in some tweaking of the defensive line as well as linebackers, they contained the Stroudsburg running game. They also brought the blitz a few times which led to a number of sacks as well as tackles for losses, most notably by Dabriel Ayala, Ian Kulp, Joshua Novak and Dez Boykin who each made big plays behind the line of scrimmage.

After the Mounties kicked a field goal to cut the lead to 21-10, Boykin asserted himself into the stat line once again. The standout wide receiver took a pass in the flat and went 35 yards for the score, giving the Zephs a 28-10 lead. Boykin has now scored a touchdown in 15 consecutive games. He finished Friday’s game with six catches for 123 and two TDs.

Boykin’s second TD catch is one that should be part of his senior highlight reel as he streaked down the far sideline, outracing the defenders as he glided under Parvel’s perfectly thrown ball for the 32-yard score.

“It was funny, Dez looked over at me and I knew he wanted the ball,” said Parvel. “He had one-on-one coverage, so hey, I’ll show it up to him, and he’s a great playmaker and it worked out.

Gilbert said that offensive coordinator Chris Kinane did a great job calling the offense against Stroudsburg.

“He really had those guys off balance,” said Gilbert.

Gilbert said that Parvel did a tremendous job managing the game. He said that it stems from the relationship between his quarterback and offensive coordinator who work well together, coupled with the work of the guys up front to get it all working.

The Zephs also benefitted from Marrero’s interception, turning that into seven points as the senior turned his swipe into seven on the ensuing drive with a 24-yard TD reception. Marrero finished the game with 87 yards. The entire ground game was clicking on all cylinders as Ali Barkley, Boykin and Ayala each rushed for 20 yards in the win.

The Zephs will now prepare for their final home game against Northampton, their annual cross-river rivalry that will close out their regular season.