Nick Ponko didn’t set a goal of catching four touchdown passes against Hempfield. In fact, the Penn-Trafford senior hasn’t set many individual goals at all this season.

“I just want to see the team succeed and have fun doing it, to be honest,” Ponko said. “Just go as far as possible to get that state championship.”

So far, both Ponko and the Warriors are off to quite a start. Ponko hauled in six passes for 83 yards and four touchdowns in Penn-Trafford’s 51-29 victory against Hempfield, earning him Westmoreland Sports Network Player of the Week honors.

The game itself was anything but ordinary. Originally scheduled for Friday night, the rivalry matchup was pushed to Saturday afternoon, giving Ponko his first taste of daytime football since his middle school days.

“It was definitely a different atmosphere, different experience for sure,” he said. “It was just a blast just being with my boys out in the sun Saturday morning.”

While the schedule changed, Penn-Trafford’s offense certainly didn’t miss a beat. The Warriors piled up 51 points, with Ponko repeatedly finding openings in the Hempfield secondary. Some of those opportunities came after the original play began to break down.

“There was a couple of touchdowns where the quarterback was scrambling and I just found an opening,” Ponko explained. “Just doing that and running the routes really fast.”

Of his four trips to the end zone, one stood above the rest. Penn-Trafford reached into its bag of tricks with Ben Grabowski taking the snap, handing the ball to Daniel Lisbon on a jet sweep before Lisbon pulled up and found Ponko downfield.

Ponko saw Hempfield’s cornerback bite on the run and knew the opportunity was there.

“I just went and he made a perfect throw,” Ponko said. “We’ve been practicing (the play) and the throws in practice, they weren’t the best, but when it came down to the game, he definitely made up for it.”

Those types of plays are nothing new for the Warriors. Ponko said Penn-Trafford dedicates time each Wednesday to working on trick plays, something that adds a little fun to the practice week.

“It gets us a little out of our comfort zone,” he said.

Ponko’s impact on Penn-Trafford goes well beyond catching touchdown passes. His teammates voted him a captain, a responsibility he takes seriously both on and off the field.

“My teammates trusted me in voting me for captain and just being that vocal guy that a captain is supposed to be every day at practice, on and off the field,” Ponko said. “Even at school, just saying what’s up to the guys, making sure they’re on top of things. It’s important for sure.”

Now Ponko and the Warriors turn their attention to another challenge against Moon Area. It’s a familiar opponent for Penn-Trafford after the Tigers ended the Warriors’ season in last year’s WPIAL playoffs.

The logistics will be unusual again. Penn-Trafford is unable to use the locker rooms at Robert Morris so the team must travel to Moon Area High School to change and then head to Joe Walton Stadium for the game.

“We usually like to keep the same routine every week, home or away,” he said. “But we change it up and I’m excited for it, to be honest.”