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For information on submitting an obituary, please contact Reading Eagle by phone at 610-371-5018, or email at obituaries@readingeagle.com or fax at 610-371-5193. Most obituaries published in the Reading Eagle are submitted through funeral homes and cremation services, but we will accept submissions from families. Obituaries can be emailed to obituaries@readingeagle.com. In addition to the text of the obituary, any photographs that you wish to include can be attached to this email. Please put the text of the obituary in a Word document, a Google document or in the body of the email. The Reading Eagle also requires a way to verify the death, so please include either the phone number of the funeral home or cremation service that is in charge of the deceased's care or a photo of his/her death certificate. We also request that your full name, phone number and address are all included in this email. All payments by families must be made with a credit card. We will send a proof of the completed obituary before we require payment. The obituary cannot run, however, until we receive payment in full. Obituaries can be submitted for any future date, but they must be received no later than 3:00 p.m. the day prior to its running for it to be published. Please call the obituary desk, at 610-371-5018, for information on pricing. On Halloween night, things got spooky for the Lower Dauphin Falcons as the Exeter Eagles made a statement. Seventh-seeded Exeter shut out 10th-seeded Lower Dauphin 35–0 on Friday night at Reiffton in a District 3 Class 5A first-round matchup. The Eagles (9–2) dominated with takeaways, sacks, and explosive runs as they cruised to victory, setting their sights on No. 2 Conestoga Valley next. The Eagles fell to the Buckskins 21–17 in Week 9, a tight loss that decided a share of the Lancaster-Lebanon Section 2 title hanging in the balance. But after a commanding win to open the District playoffs, the Eagles are ready for their shot at payback. “We want it more badly than ever. Even more than last year,” senior Jayden Ware said. “We’re going back there and we couldn’t be more excited.” Exeter fell to the Buckskins during the 2024 regular season but responded five weeks later with a 48–14 win in the semifinals. “I don’t think we’re going to have any problem getting them up for practice,” Eagles coach Matt Bauer said. “They’re very determined to set the record straight, and we’re gonna challenge them to do so. We’re gonna be us, and hopefully that’s enough.” However, before punching a rematch with Conestoga Valley, the Eagles first had to take care of business against the Falcons (7–4). Exeter received the opening kickoff, and right away, there was a surprise as the offense jogged onto the field. Senior Riley Martinez, who had been sidelined with an injury since Week 2, took the field. Before Thursday’s practice, the Eagles learned their starting quarterback would be returning, hoping to lead the team to a district title. “It was pretty exciting,” Ware said of getting Martinez back. “We practiced throughout the week with both Jake (Hafer) and Riley, just to be prepared for anything. And to have Riley back is a great feeling. He can sling it, and we have trust in him. We have trust in Jake, too, so we’re comfortable either way.” In Martinez’s absence, Hafer threw for 980 yards and 13 touchdowns, keeping his squad afloat. “Jake’s done such a great job for us, and he’s such a competitor,” Bauer said. “Riley did a great job, and I’m so happy he made it back. He defied the odds for sure, and I’m thrilled.” On the Eagles’ opening drive, Martinez, still shaking off some rust, threw an interception. After limiting the Falcons to only one first down, the Eagles’ offense was back in full gear on their second possession. Leo Brown had gains of 13 and 19 yards before taking a handoff up the middle and bouncing to the right for a 44-yard touchdown. Brown surpassed 2,000 yards on the season, also breaking the Eagles’ single-season rushing record. Following Friday’s game, Brown’s season total stands at 2,173 yards on the ground, and it’s still counting. “Ecstatic, it feels great,” Brown said of breaking the record. “He’s such a selfless individual, and as hard as he works, he deserves everything he gets,” Bauer said of Brown. “He gives all the credit in the world to his offensive line, and that’s a special young man.” The scoring didn’t stop there. On the ensuing kickoff, the Falcons mishandled the return, and Braylon Reinert scooped up the ball, returning it about 20 yards to extend the lead to 14–0 with five minutes remaining in the first quarter. That was when each defense held strong, taking turns making stops as the clock ticked down. Exeter tallied four sacks and four takeaways in the game, as the Falcons could not get anything going, totaling just 176 yards. “That’s a very physical team, and we challenged them to match their physicality,” Bauer said of his defense. “I think we controlled the line of scrimmage and answered the call in key situations.” “They just kept coming up with plays. Every kid kept stepping up. I could have given 10 game balls tonight. Overall, though, I couldn’t be happier with the way we played and the way we stayed together. We responded to adversity and did what we needed to do.” With 7:47 remaining, the Eagles put together a quality drive. Carving up the Falcons on the ground and through the air, the Eagles faced a 3rd-and-9 at the 19-yard line. Martinez found Jayden Ware over the middle, and the senior made one defender miss before jogging into the end zone with 1:44 left. Then Ware followed it up with an interception on the defensive end to head into halftime. The Eagles led 21-0 at halftime. Leo Brown rushed for 189 yards in the first half alone, finishing with 267 yards and two scores. With a comfortable lead, the Eagles began to run down the clock. Early in the fourth quarter, Brown scored his second touchdown of the game, hitting the hole up the middle and racing 52 yards to the end zone. “I love blocking for him, that’s my guy,” Ware said of blocking outside for Brown. “ I spend a lot of time with him, so we have that connection. He knows where to cut off from me and stuff like that. I always love to meet him down in the end zone. I’m really proud of him. He’s a great player.” Another touchdown came from a familiar face, Braylon Reinert, who had been a force on defense and special teams all game long. This time, the Eagles’ defensive line pressured Falcons’ quarterback Tyler Newman. As Newman tried to throw, he was hit, and the ball landed in Reinert’s hands, allowing him to return it 40 yards for his second touchdown of the game. “Our defense was playing out of our minds, just flying around,” Ware said. “All of our young guys play with a different type of chip on their shoulder, and we were flying to the ball.” For the Falcons, Hunter Strohm was limited to 81 rushing yards on 18 carries, while Tyler Newman completed 5 of 11 passes for 34 yards and threw three interceptions. For the Eagles, Riley Martinez went 8 of 13 for 73 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.
