The Salisbury football team dropped a heartbreaker to Palmerton last Friday, 26-25.

In a game that featured many lead changes and enough haymakers to fill a boxing ring, Palmerton (3-5) escaped with a victory that came down to a crucial fourth-and-1 conversion in the final minutes.

Salisbury struck first when junior quarterback Keaton Frye found senior tight end Jadan Claudio wide open for a 17-yard touchdown, capping an impressive opening drive. The Falcons led 7-0.

Palmerton answered immediately.

A methodical 12-play drive ended with sophomore Michael Garey powering in from two yards out to tie the game.

Midway through the second quarter, Garey started to take over.

An eight-play drive — aided by a fair catch interference penalty and a roughing the passer call — ended with Garey scoring from 18-yards out to give Palmerton a 13-7 advantage.

With just under five minutes left in the first half, Frye was injured and didn’t return for Salisbury (2-6) after walking off on his own.

Sophomore Jarrod Blunt stepped in at quarterback, and on his first play nearly broke a 57-yard touchdown on an RPO keeper — only to have it erased by a holding penalty.

Palmerton recovered a fumble on the Salisbury 8-yard line with just over a minute left to play before halftime. However, the Bombers came away with no points and clung to a 13-7 lead at intermission.

Salisbury opened the third quarter with a statement drive, converting on fourth down before Jamanni Cruz scored on a 21-yard run to tie the game at 13.

The Falcons switched to a different style of offense without their starting QB, featuring direct snaps and jet-sweep type plays, which put their speedy playmaker Cruz in space. His speed changed the dynamic of the game.

Then came the dagger, or so it seemed.

Late in the third quarter, Salisbury used some trickery.

Cruz took a wide receiver reverse, and instead of running it up the sideline, he launched an 85-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Jadiel Gonzalez. The trick play completely fooled the Blue Bomber defense as Salisbury grabbed a 19-13 lead on its home field.

Palmerton responded with an 11-play scoring drive in the fourth quarter that was capped by a 12-yard touchdown pass to Ben Negley for a 20-19 with nine minutes remaining.

Two minutes later, Cruz struck again — a 63-yard touchdown run that put Salisbury back on top 25-20 with just over seven minutes to play.

With just over three minutes remaining, another counterpunch from the Bombers gave them a 26-25 lead.

Garey finished off another crucial drive with a two-yard touchdown plunge.

“We had to adapt,” said Palmerton head coach Chris Walkowiak, whose team is also dealing with a slew of injuries. “We had to get new people comfortable with being uncomfortable. And at the end of the day, we overcame a lot of adversity.”

A fumble ended the Falcons’ final possession.

The Salisbury defense nearly got the back with time running down, but Palmerton converted a fourth-and-1 to seat the win.

Garey ran for 136 yards on 21 carries in the win. The Bombers ran for 185 yards on 40 carries and passed for another 140 in the game. Their two quarterbacks, TK Gursky (10-for-13, 97 yards, TD) and TJ Weller (5-7, 43 yards) have been sharing snaps all season long.

For Salisbury, Cruz ran for 105 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries. He also caught one pass for 85 yards and a score. Frye ran for 57 yards on five carries while completing four of five passes for 36 yards and a TD.

Jacob Watson led the Falcons with 10 tackles against Palmerton, including four solo tackles. Elijah Garriga had nine tackles, four solo. Jadan Claudio had eight tackles in the game.

Salisbury, which has now lost five straight games after a 2-1 start, hosts Northern Lehigh (5-3) Friday night.

The Falcons remain in the eighth spot out of nine teams in the District 11 Class 3A rankings with a sizable rating points lead over last-place Pine Grove for the eighth and final playoff spot, and a sizable margin between the Falcons and seventh-place Panther Valley (3-5).

Salisbury will finish the regular season Oct. 24 at Palisades and then will likely have a first-round district playoff matchup against either Notre Dame (Green Pond) or Northwestern.