Western PA

 

MECHANICSBURG, PA — As the media descended on Cumberland Valley High School’s Chapman Field Saturday night with their mics, and hand-held cameras and video phones, no one lined up to talk to Jake Namnun, Kahlil Stewart, or Christian Leonard.

They did not need the attention, nor were looking for it. The trio knew they were the cornerstone to a championship season and they knew their teammates appreciated them.

They were a little hard to ignore.

Namnun, St. Joseph Prep’s junior center, Stewart, the Hawks’ Syracuse-bound senior left guard, and Leonard, the senior right guard, set an early tone on the first play of the PIAA Class 6A state championship against Pittsburgh Central Catholic and carried that throughout the night in leading St. Joe Prep to a threepeat as state champions with a 35-6 victory.

It was the Hawks’ ninth state championship overall and sixth Class 6A state title in the last seven years. The Hawks are 32-2 in the state playoffs, with their only two losses coming in state title games to Pine-Richland (41-21 2017 6A championship) and Mount Lebanon (35-17 2021 6A championship). It was the 11th trip to the state finals in the last 12 years for St. Joe’s Prep (2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024).

St. Joe’s Prep slammed through a Central Catholic defense that was allowing an average of 20 points a game in the state playoffs. The Hawks were up 21-0 after the first quarter.

The victory marked the second time the Hawks have threepeated as state champions (2018-2020 & 2022-2024).

While the Hawks’ victory extended their state championship success, they also created some history in shutting out any team from the dominant District 7 (WPIAL/Pittsburgh) from winning a state championship at any level for the first time since 1992 (District 7 Avonworth lost earlier in overtime to Northwestern Lehigh in the Class 3A final).

The play that started it all was “PAT South,” with Namnun taking out the middle linebacker, Stewart sealing off the three technique and Leonard kicking out the backside linebacker and pulling with Khyan Billups running right behind.

No one touched him until his teammates caught up with him in the end zone.

“We wanted to set a tone, and that first play started it,” Stewart said. “All year, we’ve been harping on us doing our jobs. I’ll admit it, it took a while for us to come together. But by the end of the season, we came together and it showed. When we did, we were unstoppable.”

Namnun, Stewart, Leonard, along with tackles Sean Molley and Bleek Turner, and junior tight end Rob Novotny created gaping holes for Billups, who rushed for three touchdowns and a career-best 228 yards on 29 carries, averaging 7.9 yards a carry.

The offensive line needed some mending as the season progressed. As they got better, the Hawks got better.

“The next guy up, the next guy up, it was the message we had all season,” Leonard said. “This is amazing. I love my teammates. The seniors on this team have only known winning.”

Namnun was the new man up. He was learning and Leonard and Stewart took him in and coached him up as much as his coaches did.

“I can’t say enough about these two guys (Leonard and Stewart),” Namnun said. “No matter how many times they yelled at me, I love them to death. They made me a better player, and they made me play to a higher standard. My job tonight was to reach the second level and I did.

“Our jobs were to create holes for Khyan, and he did a fantastic job running through those holes.”

The game may have been over on the first play of the game. In the first 14 seconds, Billups took a handoff 80 yards for a 7-0 lead. At the end of the first quarter, it was 21-0. The Hawks had outgained Central Catholic, 197-35, averaging an outrageous 15.15 yards a play to 2.5 yards for the Vikings.

By halftime, Billups had 177 yards rushing on 14 carries, averaging 12.6 yards per carry.

After the first two quarters, the Hawks’ dominance settled, but they still were able to go into intermission with a commanding 28-6 lead and had gained 312   yards of total offense to Central Catholics’ 85—five yards less than what Billups had on Prep’s first play.

Back-up senior tailback Will Vokolos added a cosmetic score on a 44-yard TD run capping another Prep championship. Although, the Hawks will have a new program first out there to achieve next season, which they have not even been able to do in program history—fourpeat.

For the present, Hawks’ coach Tim Roken was more than pleased with how this team came together. Prep lost Ohio State-bound defensive tackle Max Roy prior to the season, and Ohio State-bound tailback Isaiah West during the season.

From the outside, it may appear all Roken had to do was roll the ball out and the Hawks were geared to automatically threepeat. He didn’t. He found Billups, who through time learned to trust his offensive line. He stuck with sophomore quarterback Charlie Foulke through some trying times, and watched as he matured.

“The expectation in the beginning of the year is that we learn and grow together,” Roken said. “We always play to a standard and not the scoreboard. We have to fix the things without getting complacent. The old saying of what is harder to deal with, adversity or success, I say absolutely success, because it is complacency you have to fight.

“Consistency is the key to success. When you look at this group, we had inexperienced guys, or young guys in big spots. Not necessarily young across the board, and we had leaders like Anthony Sacca and Isaiah and Cam Smith. We also had guys who waited their turn.

“People ask me does this get old. No, winning and tradition will never get old. Watching these guys develop is the most special piece as a head football coach seeing that every single year.”

Scoring Summary

(District 12) St. Joseph’s Prep (11-2) 21 7 0 7-35

(District 7) (Pittsburgh Central Catholic (12-3) 0 6 0 0-6

1st Quarter

SJP – Khyan Billups 80 run (Leo Ricci kick), 11:46

SJP – Jett Harrison 19 pass from Charlie Foulke (Ricci kick), 3:53

SJP – Billups 45 run (Ricci kick), 1:23

2nd Quarter

CC – Jy’Aire Walls 1 run (kick failed), 11:54

SJP – Billups 1 run (Ricci kick), 7:29

4th Quarter

SJP – Will Vokolos 44 run (Ricci kick), 2:44

FULL GAME STATS

CC/SJP

FIRST DOWNS 16/17

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 36-285/33-88

PASSING YDS (NET) 148/129

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 13-22-0/12-32-0

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 58-433/65-217

Fumble Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 3-24/4-35

Kickoff Returns-Yards 1-21/5-171

Interception Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Punts (Number-Avg) 6-30.0/6-28.8

Fumbles-Lost 0-0/3-1

Penalties-Yards 5-45/5-30

Possession Time 27:26/20:34

Third-Down Conversions 5 of 13/4 of 15

Fourth-Down Conversions 0 of 0/1 of 5

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 2-3/1-2

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall of fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball [twitter.com].

 

MECHANICSBURG, PA — These were different tears. These were not tears of defeat. They were tears of joy and anguish. They were tears of history.

Eli Zimmerman could not help himself. The Northwestern Lehigh senior tailback lost a state title a year ago, then lost a friend, Tucker Wessner, over the summer.

So, when Zimmerman turned the corner for the game-winning touchdown Saturday afternoon he was thinking of them in the Tigers’ 36-33 PIAA Class 3A state championship overtime victory over Avonworth at Cumberland Valley High School’s Chapman Field.

Zimmerman’s 10-yard touchdown run was the winning difference in overtime and capped Northwestern Lehigh’s historic, perfect 16-0 season and the school’s incredibly rare fall season in which both boys’ and girls’ soccer teams won their respective PIAA Class 2A state soccer championships with a combined 56-0 record.

With the Tigers finishing 16-0, it gave the school a combined 72-0 record for the fall season.

It is a community that was hit by the tragic loss of Wessner, a 16-year-old who would have been a junior linebacker for the Tigers this season.

“I was thinking about Tucker, I was thinking about last year, everything, yeah, these are different tears than the last time I was on this field,” Zimmerman said. “We wanted to do this; we had to do this especially for Tucker. This summer was definitely a hard one for us. We had to do this for him. This season was sad, but winning has counteracted that.

“We completely did what we wanted to do. I know I had to get this done for the community. No one was going to stop me from scoring that (overtime) touchdown. Nothing was going to get in my way.”

No one did.

Zimmerman finished with 123 yards rushing on 28 carries and three scores. Quarterback Shane Leh did a great job of mixing things up, taking advantage of the Avonworth defense’s focus on Zimmerman, and trying to keep Avonworth’s explosive junior Luca Neal off the field.

Neal finished with a game-high 252 yards rushing on 36 carries and four touchdowns. There was one point when Northwestern Lehigh was up. 30-16, with 5:47 left in the third quarter. The Tigers had scored on their first five drives and looked unstoppable, while Avonworth began to sputter.

Neal dragged the Antelopes back.

It was just a difficult way to end their season. The Antelopes went into the game without top senior back Nico Neal, Luca’s older brother, due to turf toe.

“Our kids are resilient, they battled back and competed and they made the plays when they had to,” Avonworth coach Duke Johncour said. “It was a hard-fought game. It is a shame one team had to lose, unfortunately, it was us. Overtime in a state championship, I do not know if it gets any worse than that.

“(Nico) is a stud. We obviously had to make some changes. Losing him is a big, big loss. We fight, we compete, and so proud of their effort. We were going for two if we were on defense (to begin overtime) for sure. But we had to put points up, and we only got a field goal out of it. That’s a great football team. We talked about containing Zimmerman. They’re not 16-0 for nothing.”

Avonworth rebounded from a 30-16 deficit to tie the score, 30-30, on Neal’s fourth touchdown with 4:32 left to play. It was Neal who brought the Antelopes within a score on a 54-yard, third-quarter TD run.

Northwestern Lehigh took control at its 30 with 4:27 to play, after being stopped on three-and-outs the previous two drives. The stops ended the Tigers scoring streak at five drives. As Northwestern Lehigh was driving, the Tigers averted big trouble when quarterback Shane Leh fumbled at the Avonworth 45 and tackle Bryer Reichard was there to fall on it.

With 1:18 left in regulation, disaster did strike Northwestern Lehigh and possible resurrection came to Avonworth, when the Antelopes’ Bill Onyshko intercepted a Leh pass at the Avonworth 31.

But the Antelopes could not move the ball beyond their 45 with 17 seconds left and were forced to punt. Northwestern Lehigh took a knee, sending the game into overtime.

In the first overtime, the Tigers halted Avonworth at the seven, forcing a Calder Mahan 24-yard field goal. On Northwestern Lehigh’s first overtime play, Zimmerman went right, got the corner, and beat everyone to the cone for the walk-off, game-winning score.

“For us to push through, it means a lot for us and the community, and I can die a happy man,” Tigers’ coach Josh Snyder said. “In overtime, we have that little bronco formation and we used that a couple of times. We noticed (Avonworth) was loading up on the strong side, and it just popped into my head to fake a toss, and run a little double trap back to the weak side.

“This summer, we lost Tucker in a tragic accident. He has been in our thoughts all year long and he’s been an angel on our shoulders. But Eli would not let us down. He gets everything out of his frame. Measurables are out the window. Their whole defense was designed to stop him. This will be a team I will remember forever. I played at Lehigh and won four Patriot League championships, but there is nothing like this. It is still sinking in.

“We did this for Tucker.”

Scoring Summary

(District 11) Northwestern Lehigh (16-0) 7 10 13 0 6-36

(District 7) Avonworth (12-4) 6 10 7 7 3-33

1st Quarter

A – Luca Neal 18 run (kick failed), 8:54

NL – Eli Zimmerman 1 run (Seth Kern kick), 5:11

A – Neal 32 run (Calder Mahan kick), 2:26

2nd Quarter

NL – Shane Hulmes 7 pass from Shane Leh (Kern kick), 9:13

A – Calder Mahan 28 FG, 2:14

NL – Kern 29 FG, :00

3rd Quarter

NL – Zimmerman 1 run (run failed), 7:45

NL – Hulmes 1 run (Kern kick), 5:47

A – Neal 54 run (Mahan kick), 1:42

4th Quarter

A – Neal 1 run (Mahan kick), 4:32

OT

A – Mahan 24 FG

NL – Zimmerman 10 run

FULL GAME STATS

NL/A

FIRST DOWNS 22/15

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 49-203/42-259

PASSING YDS (NET) 114/48

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 12-15-1/3-6-0

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 64-317/48-307

Fumble Returns-Yards 1-6/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 0-0/1-23

Kickoff Returns-Yards 5-76/4-54

Interception Returns-Yards 0-0/1-0

Punts (Number-Avg) 2-32.5/2-55.5

Fumbles-Lost 2-0/1-1

Penalties-Yards 0-0/2-10

Possession Time 24:15/23:45

Third-Down Conversions 4 of 10/6 of 11

Fourth-Down Conversions 2 of 2/1 of 1

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 6-6/4-4

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall-of-fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball [twitter.com].

 

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Mason Smith’s eyes widened. His father’s eyes widened, Troy head coach Jim Smith, up in the coaches booth. The whole Troy sideline’s eyes widened as defenders were converging on Mason Smith on a second-and-six option pass with 75 precious seconds hanging on the clock.

Somehow, with his head on a swivel, Mason weaved his way through the Central Clarion defense for a 16-yard touchdown and into history Friday afternoon at Cumberland Valley High School’s Chapman Field, providing the game-winning score in Troy’s dramatic 25-24 victory to win its first PIAA Class 2A state championship.

The victory capped the greatest season in Troy history, finishing 16-0, while the loss once again prevented a District 9 champion, Central Clarion, from winning a state title.

People in Troy will remember Mason’s run for decades when he went off-script and made something special from what looked like mud.

“It was a designed toss pass because they were really trying to eat up that toss,” Mason said. “Central Clarion had it locked down, so I saw a wide opening on the other side of the field, I cut it back and tried my best to get it in the end zone.

“As soon as I saw they had it locked up, I had to make something happen. Earlier, I kicked myself over slipping on a jet. We’ve been talking about winning the state championship for years. We knew we could do it. It’s a surreal feeling.”

For the last nine years, Troy, and every other Class 2A team in District 4, did not have a roadblock to hurdle, those teams had a mountain to conquer each year in perennial powerhouse Southern Columbia, which, because of Troy, did not reach the PIAA Class 2A state finals since 2014.

Troy toppled the seven-time defending state champions in the District 4 semifinals.

“We thought we had Central Clarion set up with the toss, and we run Mason to run that play, because he’s a tremendous athlete, and the play was not there and he adlibbed. I was like, first, ‘Uh oh, oh no,’ and then you can see the play developing upstairs. He busted it out.

“This is a historic team, but I have been telling people the whole time that for us to have a shot at this, we had to beat Southern. Leading up to this game, they were the best team we played. They would have been in this game if we did not beat them. We probably played our best game all year against them. But they are a legendary program that is in our district and maybe in the county. They upped the level of play in our district.”

It certainly prepared the Trojans to face a team like Central Clarion, and its special quarterback, Jase Ferguson, who entering the game completed 199 of 284 passes for 3,293 yards and 49 touchdowns against eight interceptions.

The Trojans did not get a full dose of Ferguson in the first half. They did in the second. Ferguson finished the game completing 17 of 24 passes for 189 yards and three-straight scoring drives that gave the Wildcats a 24-18 lead with 6:37 to play.

That’s when Troy responded with its game-winning 12-play, 78-yard drive. As the Trojans methodically moved into the red zone, they seemed stumped on the second-and-six from the Wildcats’ 16.

It’s when Mason Smith’s improvisation saved the game and won the Trojans the state title.

“We felt like we were going to score every time we had the ball in the second half,” Central Clarion coach Dave Eggleton said. “We knew it would a toss pass there in the end, and I thought we got too passive on it, when (Mason Smith) made a great play, cutting back across against the grain. Credit to the kid. He made a great play.”

Central Clarion had a chance to win it. On the ensuing kickoff after the Mason Smith score, Ferguson brought the Wildcats to the Troy 46 with a 35-yard kick return. The Wildcats looked cooked, when Ferguson bailed them again, hitting Mason Burford on a fourth-and-13 at the Troy 33 with 14 seconds left. A pair of Ferguson incompletions ground the clock down to :03, when Eggleton decided to let kicker Thomas Uckert attempt a 50-yard game-winning field goal into the wind.

It missed.

“I would let Uckert do it again,” Eggleton said. “This season was special and these kids deserve to be proud of the season that they had. This is a special group of young men. It was a tough wind to kick into, but I have all the confidence in the world in Uckert. I thought it was our best choice. We couldn’t overcome the slow start.”

Troy took a 12-3 lead into halftime, recovering quickly from a big opening blunder. The Trojans fumbled away the opening kickoff, and Ferguson was there to recover it at the Troy 20.

From there, the Wildcats could not move the ball. A holding penalty negated an Ethan Rex 15-yard touchdown run, forcing the Wildcats into a 36-yard

Uckert field goal.

Troy responded by scoring on consecutive possessions, helped by the Trojans’ Jack Burbage.

On the Trojans’ second possession, they traveled 77 yards over 15 plays, ending in the first of junior tailback Brendan Gilliland’s two first-half touchdowns. On the ensuing kickoff, Burbage pounced on a fumble at the Central Clarion 35 late in the first quarter.

Troy drove deep into Central Clarion territory again. Just when it looked like the Wildcats would get out of their fix, Trojans’ quarterback Evan Woodward found a wide-open Gilliland near the goal line for a 20-yard touchdown pass.

Throughout the first half, Troy dared the Wildcats to throw deep, showing no safety coverage. The times that Ferguson did drop back, he hardly had any time to pass, with the Trojans throwing six and sometimes seven defenders at him.

Offensively, Troy’s offensive line did a great job of reaching the second level against a vastly larger defensive front.

By halftime, Troy had amassed 141 yards of total offense and 10 first downs to Central Clarion’s 59 yards of offense and three first downs.

Troy had held Ferguson to a mere four-for-eight passing for just 18 yards. Central Clarion changed that by shortening its pass routes and having Ferguson take shorter drops.

“They played up man to man and we wanted to get our guys the ball in space, and in the second half, it worked,” Eggleton said. “We should have probably gone to it sooner, but we only had the ball three times in the first half. Whenever you get so close to something you worked so hard for the offseason, it’s tough to notice all the good things you did. We did a lot of good things this season.”

Scoring Summary

(District 4) Troy (16-0) 6 6 0 13-25

(District 9) Central Clarion (14-1) 3 0 13 8-24

1st Quarter

CC – Thomas Uckert 36 FG, 9:46

T – Brendan Gilliland 4 run (kick failed), 2:30

2nd Quarter

T – Gilliland 20 pass from Evan Woodward (pass failed), 10:20

3rd Quarter

CC – Ethan Rex 18 pass from Jace Ferguson (kick failed), 7:11

CC – Rex 48 pass from Ferguson (Uckert kick), 4:08

4th Quarter

T – Gilliland 28 run (run failed), 8:46

CC – Ferguson 11 run (Kohen Kemmer from Ferguson), 6:37

T – Mason Smith 16 run (Gavin Lykon-Leffler kick). 1:15

FULL GAME STATS

T/CC

FIRST DOWNS 18/15

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 43-201/46-168

PASSING YDS (NET) 162/28

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 13-21-0/1-6-3

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 64-363/52-196

Fumble Returns-Yards 1-14/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 1-6/0-0

Kickoff Returns-Yards 2-20/6-80

Interception Returns-Yards 3-60/0-0

Punts (Number-Avg) 3-33.0/4-42.8

Fumbles-Lost 4-2/1-1

Penalties-Yards 6-6/3-44

Possession Time 27:55/20:05

Third-Down Conversions 6 of 13/3 of 9

Fourth-Down Conversions 2 of 3/0 of 1

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 5-5/1-2

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall-of-fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball [twitter.com].

ALTOONA _ Mansion Park in Altoona is synonymous with big-time PIAA football.  Saturday afternoon this classic site was again hosting the West bracket PIAA 6A semifinal between Pittsburgh Central Catholic and Harrisburg.  In their only previous meeting in 2007, Harrisburg came out on top.   On Saturday, taking advantage of numerous short fields and Harrisburg miscues, The Vikings advanced to the PIAA 6A final by beating Harrisburg 38-33.  PCC will play St Joe Prep in the 6A Championship.

Special teams played a huge part in this game.  Harrisburg’s inability to punt effectively set up the Pittsburgh Central Catholic offense with short fields all game.  A lost fumble by Harrisburg on a kickoff return led to another PCC TD. The Vikings K/P Billy Lech made Harrisburg’s stellar return game a non-factor.  Lech also booted a 36-yard field goal.

Each team started slowly.  After starting a drive in the Harrisburg end of the field Elijah Faulkner got PCC on the board

Touchdown @PCC_FOOTBALL ! Elijah Faulkner breaks out for a 32 yard touchdown! 2 pointer is no good 6-0 over @HBGCougar_FBall 5:10 quarter 1 @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @BadgleyBruce @CaryMoyer @PremiunSports pic.twitter.com/BEhQW3cNyj

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

PCC inserted Jy’ire Walls for some offensive spark.  Walls immediately got the offense rolling and his nice scramble made it 13-0 early on in quarter two.

On the scramble it’s @PCC_FOOTBALL Jy’Aire Walls from the12. 13-0 now over @HBGCougar_FBall 10:28 quarter 2 @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce @WPIAL_Blitz @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/UOwqsvnKZ3

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

The remainder of the second quarter turned into a track meet.  First Harrisburg got on the board with a nice drive culminating with a Messiah Mickens TD run.  Just that quick, PCC answers with a Wall to Max Roman pitch and catch score.  Mickens then ran his 2nd of the quarter to make it 21-14 at the halfway point of quarter two.

Up and down the field we go in quarter two! Look at this Messiah Mickens 15 yard Touchdown run for @HBGCougar_FBall ! @PCC_FOOTBALL still up 21-14 4:57 until halftime of the @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica pic.twitter.com/DnBKSukuh2

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

A wild and wacky final 90 seconds got us to halftime 28-21 in favor of Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

HUGE turn of events as we go to half. @PCC_FOOTBALL takes advantage of good field position with a TD toss from Mills to Thomas. 28-14 Vikings Then @HBGCougar_FBall marches right down as QB Jayion Lewis gets around the end for a score. 28-21 at halftime of the @PIAASports 6A… pic.twitter.com/CcYLLysAPr

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

Harrisburg again gave PCC a short field to start the 2nd half. And again, the Vikings took full advantage with QB Walls 35-21 at the 7-minute mark of quarter three.

@PCC_FOOTBALL TD! Taking advantage again of a short field, QB Walls gets in from the 1 35-21 over @HBGCougar_FBall 7:01 quarter 3 @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @BadgleyBruce pic.twitter.com/ReUlQVety9

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

Billy Lech added a 36-yard field goal to make it 38-21 PCC at the 4:20 mark of quarter three.

@PCC_FOOTBALL recovers a @HBGCougar_FBall fumble and takes advantage Billy Lech a 36 yard Field goal makes it 38-21 over @HBGCougar_FBall 4:20 quarter 3 @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @BadgleyBruce @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/cQ1sbHgkgq

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

Harrisburg began to air it out to get back in the game. A 62-yarder to Quincey Brannon in quarter three, then a sparkling TD reception got the Cougars within 5 with 6:30 remaining

There is no quit in @HBGCougar_FBall 62 yards from Jayion Lewis to Quincy Brannon 2:42 quarter 3 @PCC_FOOTBALL still up 38-27 @PIAASports 6A semifinal @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @BadgleyBruce @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/ZwFbtta3mG

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

Oh my! Elias Coke lays out for this 30 yard TD for @HBGCougar_FBall ! @PCC_FOOTBALL hanging on to a 38-33 lead @PIAASports 6A semifinal 6:30 remaining @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @CaryMoyer @BadgleyBruce @SportscenterTop pic.twitter.com/SDLqR3QCaV

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 30, 2024

A desperate final drive by Harrisburg was thwarted by a PCC interception in the end zone.

The Vikings move on to face St Joe Prep in the 6A Cham[pionship next Saturday at 7PM.

 

In the PIAA Class 5A football semifinal game Friday night, Stone Saunders from the Crusaders threw three touchdowns leading Bishop McDevitt over Pine-Richland 28-14. The Crusaders advance to the state championship game where they will face Roman Catholic who defeated Rustin 41-17. 

First Quarter: 

Bishop McDevitt scored first. Nazir Jones-Davis, broke through for a 63-yard run followed by a four-yard touchdown. This gave the Crusaders an early lead. It was 7-0 Bishop McDevitt.

Second Quarter: 

McDevitt’s quarterback Stone Saunders, threw two touchdowns in the quarter. He threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Jontai Quick for his 200th career touchdown pass. Later, Saunders found Dominic Diaz-Ellis for another touchdown, making it 21-0  Bishop McDevitt before halftime.

Third Quarter:

Pine Richland’s Aaron Strader hit Jay Timmons for a 28-yard touchdown pass. Bishop McDevitt led 21-7.

Fourth Quarter: 

Saunders added a long 68-yard touchdown pass to Quick, which sealed the game for Bishop McDevitt.

Pine-Richland added a late touchdown pass from Aaron Strader to Dajuan Webb for 29 yards. 

With the loss, Pine-Richland finished the season, with an 11-2 record. McDevitt moves on to face Roman Catholic out of Philadelphia. 

Scoring summary:
Bishop McDevitt 28, Pine-Richland 14

Friday, November 29, 2024	1	2	3	4	Final
Pine-Richland	0	0	7	7	14
Bishop McDevitt	7	14	0	7	28

1st Quarter:
BM – Nazir Jones-Davis 3 yard run (Aidan Grella kick)

2nd Quarter:
BM – Jontai Quick 7-yard pass from Stone Saunders (Aidan Grella kick)
BM – Dominic Diaz-Ellis 8-yard pass from Stone Saunders (Aidan Grella kick)

3rd Quarter:
PR – Jay Timmons 28-yard pass from Aaron Strader (Grant Argiro kick)

4th Quarter:
BM – Jontai Quick 68-yard pass from Stone Saunders (Aidan Grella kick)
PR – Dajaun Webb Higgs 29-yard pass from Aaron Strader (Grant Argiro kick)

SHAMOKIN – Last Friday, on the same field that Saturday’s Class 4A quarterfinal was being played, Juniata’s Jasper Shepps caught three touchdown passes, hauled in an interception on defense, and was almost a one-man wrecking crew as the Indians benefited from five turnovers in a 27-7 upset of previously unbeaten Shamokin.

This week, with Southern Lehigh the opponent at Shamokin’s Kemp Memorial Stadium, Juniata found itself in the same situation that it put Shamokin in a week ago.

The Indians committed three turnovers, while Shepps was held to just 43 all purpose yards, and the Spartans’ Sean Steckert was the one-man wrecking crew as he ran for 219 yards and four touchdowns, going over the 2,000 rushing yard mark for the season in the process, and Southern Lehigh advanced to its first state semifinal in school history with a 45-7 win over the Indians.

“I just told them they are the best football team in Southern Lehigh football history so they should be proud of themselves but we’re not done yet,” said Southern coach Phil Sams. “Twelve days from today is the state final but now it’s all about Bonner Predergast and we have to get there first but we’ve worked so hard to get here, so let’s keep moving.

“We put our top defender, Andrew Olesh, on Shepps and that neutralized him and made them look other places. They still took some shots at him and they weren’t as fortunate today. Andrew did a great job locking him down. He’s not just a great offensive player but a great defensive player as well.”

Southern’s previous best result in the state playoffs was a quarterfinal appearance back in 2019.

The Spartans not only scored on all seven possessions in which their first team offense took the field, but also took advantage of two key turnovers in the first half to completely seize and ultimately keep the momentum.

The Indians received the opening kickoff, but on their second play from scrimmage, fumbled the snap, which the Spartans recovered at the Juniata 29. Two plays later, Colton Sams found Luke Kawczenski in the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown. The extra point was missed, and PATs and two-point conversions were about the only thing that went wrong for Southern Lehigh on the afternoon, as the Spartans successfully converted just 3-of-7 PATs or two-point attempts.

Southern Lehigh took a 12-0 lead on their next drive following a Juniata punt as Steckert scored the first of his four touchdowns on a three-yard run. A 39-yard completion from Sams to Darius Roman keyed that five-play drive.

Juniata then responded by driving all the way from their own 20 following a touchback – one of eight touchbacks on the day for the Spartans’ Noah Tapler – down to the Southern Lehigh one-yard line in 15 plays, chewing up the remaining half of the first quarter and over a minute of the second quarter. But on the 15th play of the drive, Javier Lopez fumbled just before reaching the goal line, and the Spartans recovered at their own 1-yard line.

Following a five-yard offside penalty on Juniata, Steckert flipped the field on the first official play of Southern Lehigh’s subsequent drive as he went for a 41-yard gain all the way to the Spartan 47. He would later finish the seven-play, 99-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown, extending the Spartans’ lead to 19-0 at the 9:01 mark of the second quarter, completing the 14-point swing.

“It sort of flipped the script from last week when Juniata got a turnover and scored and they did a great job, but we were fortunate enough to get that turnover and score, too,” said Sams. “We said if we stop them, and we get a touchdown early, we’re going to get the momentum in the game and hopefully put them away. Up front, our lines did a great job stopping them and offensively, we got a nice push all day for Sean Steckert. That run gave us a lot of confidence.”

From that point, the Spartans continued building on their lead while the Indians did not record another first down for the remainder of the first half. Sams completed passes of 45 and 11 yards to Luke Kawczenski on the Spartans’ next drive, the latter for a touchdown at the 5:41 mark of the second quarter to make it 25-0.

Steckert found the end zone for the third time on the afternoon with a 42-yard run with 2:46 left in the half, and then Sams hit Bryan Tobin in the end zone for a one-yard touchdown reception with just :21 left in the half to make it 38-0 at the break and put the game into the mercy rule for the entirety of the second half.

Juniata got the ball down to the Southern Lehigh 33 on their first possession of the second half after recovering a quasi-onside kick when the ball went off a Southern up-man on the kickoff. But, the Indians were stopped one yard shy of a first down on fourth down, and the Spartans took over at their own 26.

With the running clock, Southern’s starters played one more series and proceeded to put together a nine-play, 74-yard drive that took up nearly six minutes, and Steckert capped his day with a four-yard touchdown run and went over 2,000 yards for the season on the drive. He needed 41 entering the second half and picked up 51 of the 74 yards on the drive.

The Indians did manage to get on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter on a 58-yard pass from Wyatt Ehrenzeller to Connor Boreman at the 8:10 mark. But from that point, Southern Lehigh’s second team ran out the remainder of the clock as it picked up a pair of first downs with the running clock as the Spartans had 23 first downs in the game.

The Spartans will play next week for their first appearance in a state championship game as they face District 12 champion Bonner-Prendie in the eastern final.

Southern Lehigh 45, Juniata 7
Southern Lehigh (12-2) 12 26 7 0 – 45
Juniata (9-4) 0 0 0 7 – 7

First quarter
11:00 – (SL) Luke Kawczenski 15-yard pass from Colton Sams (kick failed), 2-29, :23
6:01 – (SL) Sean Steckert 3-yard run (pass failed), 5-67, 1:53

Second quarter
9:01 – (SL) Sean Steckert 15-yard run (Tapler kick), 7-99, 1:44
5:41 – (SL) Luke Kawczenski 11-yard pass from Colton Sams (pass failed), 5-73, 1:45
2:46 – (SL) Sean Steckert 42-yard run (kick blocked), 2-41, :48
:21 – (SL) Bryan Tobin 1-yard pass from Colton Sams (Tapler kick), 7-39, :42

Third quarter
1:29 – (SL) Sean Steckert 4-yard run (Tapler kick), 9-74, 5:52

Fourth quarter
8:10 – (J) Connor Boreman 58-yard pass from Wyatt Ehrenzeller (Lopez kick), 3-72, 1:33

Statistics
SL J
First downs 23 11
Rushes-net yards 33-214 31-65
Passing yardage 181 114
Passing 12-18-3-0 6-15-1-0
Fumbles-lost 1-0 3-3
Penalties-yards 5-55 5-55

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Southern Lehigh: Sean Steckert (22-219-4), Silas Adasavage (3-8), Elian Gonzalez (2-1), Adam Fritts (2-(-1)), Jake Trembler (1-3), Jayson Stock (1-2), Otto Young (1-0), Team (1-(-18)); Juniata: Lane Peiper (8-40), Wyatt Ehrenzeller (6-0), Javier Lopez (5-14), Ayden Dowling (4-8), Connor Boreman (3-16), Team (2-(-18)), Jasper Shepps (1-2), Gage Harlon (1-2), Isaac Ramirez (1-1)
PASSING: Southern Lehigh: Colton Sams (11-15-168-3-0), Adam Fritts (1-3-13-0-0); Juniata: Wyatt Ehrenzeller (6-15-114-1-0)
RECEIVING: Southern Lehigh: Andrew Olesh (5-46), Luke Kawczenski (3-71-2), Darius Roman (1-39), Otto Young (1-13), Sean Steckert (1-11), Bryan Tobin (1-1-1); Juniata: Connor Boreman (2-67-1), Jasper Shepps (2-41), Lane Peiper (1-7), Isaac Ramirez (1-(-1))

LOCK HAVEN – All season long, and even going back the last couple of seasons, Troy’s offense has thrived on big plays. A big part of the Trojans’ success has been due to their ability to put up chunk plays and largely run away from their opponent on the scoreboard, oftentimes before halftime.

On Friday, playing in the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2013, Troy instead used a methodical rather than explosive offense, and combined that with a stout and opportunistic defense to take the program where it has never gone before. The Trojans topped Bedford 42-16 in a Class 2A quarterfinal to advance to the state semifinals for the first time in school history. They will face the winner of tomorrow’s game between Riverside and Williams Valley next week for a trip to the state championship.

“We knew we wanted to come in and be physical and win the turnover battle and we did and we didn’t turn it over on offense, didn’t make mistakes and we did what we do” said Troy coach Jim Smith.

Troy had just four plays go for over 20 yards out of 54 total. But instead of the game largely being over by halftime as so many of the Trojans’ games have gone this season, Troy gradually wore down the Bisons, as three touchdowns in the third quarter put the game into the mercy rule late in the quarter.

“We told the kids all week that this is a team that doesn’t give up too many points. They pursue to the ball and are extremely fast, good tacklers and are hard to trick, so the fancy stuff was out and early on they blew up some of our fancy stuff so we just asserted ourselves,” said Smith.

The Trojans’ defense also picked up a pair of turnovers, including on Bedford’s first drive of the game, which set the tone for the remainder of the contest.

After Troy went three-and-out on its opening drive, Bedford took over at its own 14 following a punt and proceeded to pick up a pair of first downs. On third down from the Troy 41, Quincy Swaim was picked off by Joseph Frye, who returned it to the Bedford 49.

From there, the Trojans put together a 12-play drive capped by Evan Woodward’s one-yard touchdown run. Troy picked up five first downs on the drive, with no single play going for longer than eight yards.

The Bisons then picked up a pair of first downs on the first two plays of its subsequent drive, with Swaim picking up runs of 10 and 22 yards, but Bedford would get very little for the rest of the night from that point. The Bisons would pick up just two more first downs in the remainder of the first half, and Swaim, who had 80 rushing yards on just six attempts at that point, would finish with -2 yards on his remaining carries in the game.

“They had a really good scheme and a really good running quarterback with almost 1,800 yards coming in, so we decided we weren’t going to play with safeties. We had to keep everyone in the box, so we took our chance, put our best cover corner on their best receiver,” said Smith. “Early on they made a couple of big plays and our backside pursuit was over pursuing and their kid has great vision if they don’t stay home so he was hitting the backside seam. Once they saw that and we talked to them about it, they settled in and stayed home and that really took care of that.”

Bedford punted on that and its next drive, and Troy answered with touchdowns on both of its subsequent possessions, putting together two straight nine-plays drives, one for 85 yards and the other for 50 yards, while chewing up over 8:30 of clock.

Mason Smith tossed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Lincoln Chimics on a halfback pass to make it 14-0 with 6:23 left in the half, and Brendan Gillilland took a handoff on a counter and went 11 yards for the score with :55 remaining in the half to make it 21-0.

“We just had to keep our foot on the pedal. We knew things would open up eventually and we just had to keep going,” said Woodward. “Bedford did a great job and didn’t make things easy on us. Sometimes we were able to get those big plays and that saved us some energy on some long drives but we were able to complete the long drives tonight.”

Bedford was forced to punt on its first drive of the second half, and Troy took over at its own 29. On the third play of its drive, Gillilland burst through the middle of the line and found open space for the first time all night, going for a 52-yard touchdown run to extend the Troy lead to 28-0 and put him over 100 yards on the night. Gillilland would finish with 112 yards on the ground, the only player on either side to go over the century mark on the evening.

Following another three-and-out by the Bisons, Troy took over at its own 48 and went 52 yards in five plays capped by Woodward’s second rushing touchdown of the game, this one from 15 yards, to put the game into the mercy rule.

But the Trojans weren’t finished yet. Ben Warburton recorded Troy’s second pick of the game, as he intercepted Swaim at the Troy 20, and after an 18-yard return and 15-yard penalty on Bedford, the Trojans took over at the Bedford 47. With Troy’s starter in for one final drive, Woodward hit Frye for a 38-yard reception and then Kael Millard, the Trojans’ lumberjack fullback who had picked up several tough yards and also lead blocking earlier in the game, punched it in from three yards out to make it 42-0 at the 2:19 mark of the third quarter.

The Bisons scored a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter with both teams largely playing their JV players at that point. Bedford picked up 93 yards on its two scoring drives of their 239 total yards.

“This is uncharted territory for us,” said Smith. “I told the kids there’s a reason why the old-time pioneers everybody knows their names. They are not forgotten because they paved the way and this group of kids is paving the way for Troy. This is a big deal. Next week at this time, we’re going to know if we’re playing in the state final or not. We have to have a great week of practice.”

Troy 42, Bedford 16
Bedford (10-4) 0 0 0 16 – 16
Troy (14-0) 7 14 21 0 – 42

First quarter
1:14 – (T) Evan Woodward 1-yard run (Lykon-Leffler kick), 12-49, 4:43

Second quarter
6:23 – (T) Lincoln Chimics 15-yard pass from Mason Smith (Lykon-Leffler kick), 9-85, 4:39
:55 – (T) Brendan Gillilland 11-yard run (Lykon-Leffler kick), 9-50, 3:52

Third quarter
10:23 – (T) Brendan Gillilland 52-yard run (Lykon-Leffler kick), 3-71, :53
6:54 – (T) Evan Woodward 15-yard run (Lykon-Leffler kick), 5-52, 2:20
2:19 – (T) Kael Millard 3-yard run (Lykon-Leffler kick), 3-47, 1:40

Fourth quarter
6:24 – (B) Andrew Evans 16-yard run (Taylor run), 6-41, 3:16
2:35 – (B) Gabe Taylor 16-yard run (Taylor run), 2-52, 1:09

Statistics
B T
First downs 13 22
Rushes-net yards 30-180 50-323
Passing yardage 59 70
Passing 4-15-0-2 4-4-1-0
Fumbles-lost 0-0 0-0
Penalties-yards 3-44 5-30

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Bedford: Quincy Swaim (15-78), Gabe Taylor (6-38-1), Andrew Evans (4-55-1), Treg Nave (3-11), Owen Horne (1-1), Carter Kozielec (1-(-3)); Troy: Brendan Gillilland (13-112-2), Kael Millard (12-48-1), Evan Woodward (7-89-2), Mason Smith (7-28), Spencer Martin (3-27), Jayden Kutt (2-0), Joseph Frye (1-9), Ben Warburton (1-3), Evan Allen (1-3), James Roy (1-3), Marcus Frisbie (1-2), Garret Parks (1-(-1))
PASSING: Bedford: Quincy Swaim (4-15-59-0-2); Troy: Evan Woodward (3-3-55-0-0), Mason Smith (1-1-15-1-0)
RECEIVING: Bedford: A.J. Koontz (1-35), Treg Nave (1-15), Gabe Taylor (1-9), Owen Horne (1-0); Troy: Lincoln Chimics (3-32-1), Joseph Frye (1-38)

SHAMOKIN-Coming into Friday night’s PIAA first round game at Shamokin, it was no secret that Juniata wasn’t given much of a chance to win. Not only did the Indians prove the so-called “experts” wrong, they did so in convincing fashion. A defense that forced six turnovers and passing game that hit big plays throughout the first three quarters proved to be exactly the formula needed to pull off what many consider a surprise. Juniata advanced to the Class 4A quarterfinals for the second consecutive season thanks to a 27-7 win. District 11 champion Southern Lehigh (11-2) awaits the Indians next week.

“We read the newspapers too in Juniata County, and we have the internet,” Juniata coach Kurt Condo said. “Our guys just played their guts out. They deserve a little bit of respect, they have been resilient all year long. No one gave us a chance, and we took advantage of what they gave us, and our playmakers made plays. We have a lot of guys that just went all out tonight, and I love them. I love the commitment they’ve given all season, it’s great.”

Juniata (9-3) converted the first turnover into points midway through the opening quarter. Connor Boreman recovered a fumble, and on the very next play, quarterback Wyatt Ehrenzeller got his huge night underway by connecting with Boreman for a 26-yard touchdown pass against man coverage. Boreman hauled in three passes for 79 yards, while Ehrenzeller finished with 264 yards on 8-of-19 passing with four touchdowns and two interceptions.

“Boreman is just one of those guys that you trust,” Condo said. “I trust a lot of these guys, and you know they put forth the effort all throughout the offseason, and it shows up in big games like this.”

Shamokin (12-1) looked like it was about to even things up, but the Juniata defense put together an impressive goal-line stand. Quarterback Logan Steele was stopped a yard short of the end zone on a third down play, and then Zakem Clinton was stuffed on fourth-and-goal. Three plays after the Indians got the ball back, Ehrenzeller would strike again. This time, he would find Jasper Shepps, who beat his man, then won a foot race down the right sideline on a 97-yard touchdown pass to give Juniata a 13-0 lead with 3:12 left in the first quarter.

“It might be a school record,” Condo said of the long pass. “We were just trusting our guys. We let the playmakers make plays, I don’t know what else to say. The kids showed a lot of grit, a lot of determination, they’ve been working hard. I really felt like we’ve had a lot of experience the past couple of years in the playoffs, and know what to expect. We knew what it took to keep going this long into the season.”

Early in the second quarter, the lead would extend to 21-0 when Ehrenzeller dropped a beautiful ball into the hands of Shepps from 27 yards out in the left corner of the end zone. Shamokin would promptly respond on its next possession. Facing a 3rd-and-21 situation, Steele threw a short screen pass over the middle to Chase Pensyl, and the speedy receiver did the rest. Pensyl found space and sprinted 92 yards to pay dirt, getting the Indians back in it. Another potential scoring drive before halftime was hampered by a hurdling call in the red zone, and the threat fizzled with a turnover on downs.

Trailing by two scores at halftime, there was plenty of time left for Shamokin to make a second-half push. However, that mindset would change in a matter of seconds. A line-drive kickoff hit a Shamokin player at midfield, and Lane Peiper fell on it to give Juniata an unexpected takeaway. Right after, the Indians took a downfield shot, and it paid off. Shepps put an exclamation point on his huge night with another long-distance connection from Ehrenzeller. The 51-yard scoring strike once again gave Juniata a three-possession lead, and took away any momentum Shamokin had generated. Shepps finished with four receptions for 177 yards and three touchdowns.

“We were talking as we were going into half saying, ‘Listen, it’s going to be 21-14, and we’re going to get the ball back,’” Shamokin coach Marc Persing said. “We’re going to have to claw our way out of it, but if there’s a team around that can do it, it’s us. But it was just one thing after another, after another, but that’s why you play the game.”

Using an effective running game, Shamokin once again looked like it would make things interesting, but the mistake-prone Indians coughed it up again. Hunter Erb recovered a fumble at the 1-yard line to halt yet another scoring opportunity. Shamokin would commit four turnovers in the second half, and Juniata was effectively able to play keep away with some time-consuming possessions.

“Six turnovers, it doesn’t matter how good of a season you’ve had,” Persing said. “We tried to emphasize all week that Juniata doesn’t care what our record is. Juniata doesn’t care that we beat Jersey Shore last week or that we won the Coal Bucket. They weren’t bigger than us. They weren’t stronger than us, and they dominated us. So we have to look ourselves in the mirror and just say for tonight, they were the better football team. Coach (Condo) did a tremendous job game planning against us. We’ve survived by big plays all year, and it’s just the nature of how we lost tonight. It’s unfortunate, but it’s not indicative of this football team or the success we’ve had this year.”

Juniata 13 8 6 0-27
Shamokin 0 7 0 0-7

Individual Scoring
First Quarter
J-Connor Boreman 26 pass from Wyatt Ehrenzeller (Andel Lopez kick) 6:22
J-Jasper Shepps 97 pass from Ehrenzeller (run failed) 3:12

Second Quarter
J-Shepps 27 pass from Ehrenzeller (Lane Peiper run) 9:50
S-Chase Pensyl 92 pass from Logan Steele (Colin Steinhart kick) 6:19

Third Quarter
J-Shepps 51 pass from Ehrenzeller (kick failed) 11:50

Team Statistics
………………………J…………………S
1st downs………13……………….13
rush-yds……….41-119………….36-204
comp-att-int…8-19-2……………5-22-2
pass yds………264……………….129
total yds………..383…………….333
fumb-lost………2-0……………….5-4
pen-yds………….7-44…………….9-65

Individual Statistics
Rushing-
Juniata: Lane Peiper 13-57; Wyatt Ehrenzeller 8-51; Isaac Ramirez 2-13; Ayden Dowling 13-9; Javier Lopez 2-0; Team 1-(-1); Gage Harlon 2-(-10).
Shamokin: Zakem Clinton 12-102; Logan Steele 11-58; Jayce Ginck 11-44; Chase Pensyl 2-0.

Passing-Juniata: Ehrenzeller 8-19-2, 264 yds., 4 TDs. Shamokin: Steele 5-22-2, 129 yds., TD.

Receiving-Juniata: Jasper Shepps 4-177, 3 TDs; Connor Boreman 3-79, TD; Peiper 1-8. Shamokin: Pensyl 4-115, TD; Ben Delbaugh 1-14.

MOUNT CARMEL-There were plenty of touchdowns to go around for Mount Carmel in a 49-20 win over Central Mountain on Senior Night. Seven different Red Tornadoes crossed the goal line, including two on punt returns, as Mount Carmel quickly and efficiently spread the wealth throughout the early part of the game. Central Mountain did score three times in the second half against reserves, but 301 yards of offense in a dominant first-half performance provided more than enough cushion for the Red Tornadoes to rest their starters.

“I thought we did a good job,” Mount Carmel coach John Darrah said. “It was a good Senior Night. We had all those different guys score touchdowns, so I was really happy with those guys, and all the work they put in during their career. Obviously, we wanted to play a little bit better in the second half with our young guys, but they definitely got some valuable experience against their older guys.”

Mount Carmel (6-2) struck on the opening play from scrimmage after Cooper Karycki had a touchdown nullfied by a penalty flag on the opening kickoff. Gavin Marshalek found Al Bailey wide open, and the senior fullback did the rest by outrunning the secondary for an 87-yard touchdown reception just 25 seconds into the game. Luke Blessing, another of the six seniors who found the end zone, scored on a 1-yard run to cap off the second possession. After suffering a knee injury in the opener against North Schuylkill, Blessing made the most of his five carries that included three runs of 12 yards or longer.

“We pretty much accomplished our goal,” Darrah said. “We wanted to get Luke a couple touches, get him out of here healthy, and we did that. I thought he looked good. He looked like himself running around, so I’m definitely excited and happy for him on Senior Night to get a touchdown.”

Morgante picked up a rolling punt on the far sideline, then worked his way back across the field, got a great block, and had an escort to the end zone on a 64-yard punt return with 3:25 left in the opening quarter. Midway through the second quarter, Jaylen Delaney, the only underclassman to score, contributed the second big play in the return game when he made a house call from 61 yards out that expanded the lead to 42-0.

“Special teams was definitely electric,” Darrah said. “We had the one called back as well on the opening kickoff, so we’ve definitely got a lot of athletes, it was all different guys making plays. That is definitely a weapon for us.”

The ground game was relied upon heavily last week in a near-miss at Danville, and Friday night it was the air attack that was let loose a little bit. Marshalek completed 5-of-9 passes for 180 yards, and found Chase Balichik for a 26-yard touchdown pass on a play that saw Balichik win a one-on-one battle in the end zone. Delaney also chipped in with 58 yards on two catches.

“All our guys are playmakers,” Marshalek said. “We could really just do anything we want with the ball, and passing the ball, we were picking up huge yards every time. We just kept using it, and it worked out for us in the first half.”

Central Mountain (0-8) offered little resistance defensively. Matthew Balichik closed out the first-half onslaught by scoring on a 15-yard run shortly after he took over for Marshalek at quarterback. The victory currently keeps Mount Carmel as the No. 3 seed in what will very likely be a six-team District 4 Class 3A playoff field. A winnable road trip to Milton is what lies ahead next week, before one of the most anticipated Coal Bucket games in at least a decade is on the horizon Week 10 against Shamokin.

“Yeah, I’m definitely happy with how we’ve been playing,” Marshalek said. “We’re picking it up every single week. We’re getting better and better every week as a team, and it has definitely shown since Week 1 for sure.”

Central Mountain 0 0 13 7-20
Mount Carmel 28 21 0 0-49

Individual Scoring
First Quarter
MC-Al Bailey 87 pass from Gavin Marshalek (Robert Schoppy kick) 11:35
MC-Luke Blessing 1 run (Schoppy kick) 5:42
MC-Jon Morgante 64 punt return (Schoppy kick) 3:25
MC-Chase Balichik 26 pass from Marshalek (Schoppy kick) 1:12

Second Quarter
MC-Andrew Lukoskie 18 run (Schoppy kick) 9:27
MC-Jaylen Delaney 61 punt return (Schoppy kick) 6:52
MC-Matthew Balichik 15 run (Schoppy kick) 3:02

Third Quarter
CM-Gavin Heverly 43 pass from Isaiah Maldonado (Mycah Carson kick) 8:42
CM-Jake Weaver 11 run (kick failed) 4:41

Fourth Quarter
CM-Kai Fravel 7 run (Carson kick) 8:20

Team Statistics
………………………..CM……………….MC
1st downs………….7……………………..15
rush-yds………….32-87………………31-179
comp-att-int……6-12-0………………5-14-3
pass yds…………..79…………………..180
total yds……………166………………..359
fumb-lost…………..3-0…………………1-0
pen-yds……………4-35…………………2-18

Individual Statistics
Rushing-Central Mountain: Jake Weaver 12-31, TD; Kole Corman 4-30; Kai Fravel 1-7, TD; Gavin Edmonston 3-6; Mason Masorti 1-6; Isaiah Maldonado 8-3; Cooper Bottorf 2-3; Dalton McDermott 1-1. Mount Carmel: Luke Blessing 5-44, TD; Aiden Deitz 8-30; Logan Shuder 7-30; Andrew Lukoskie 2-20, TD; Aidan Brokenshire 2-18; Matthew Balichik 1-15, TD; Cooper Karycki 4-12; Michael Kimsal 2-10.

Passing-Central Mountain: Maldonado 6-12-0, 79 yds., TD. Mount Carmel: Gavin Marshalek 5-9-0, 180 yds., 3 TDs; Brokenshire 0-4-2; Robert Schoppy 0-1-1.

Receiving-Central Mountain: Gavin Heverly 4-60, TD; Jase Seltzer 1-16; Fravel 1-3. Mount Carmel: Jayden Delaney 2-58; Chase Balichik 2-35, TD; Al Bailey 1-87, TD.

Photos by Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Repeating is never easy. It comes with the perfunctory pressure of getting everyone’s A-game. It means mentally getting up for each game, which can be a draining process, and is usually an arduous task.

Belle Vernon defied the old obstacles this season.

The Leopards made it look easy on Saturday afternoon in the PIAA Class 3A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School. Belle Vernon won its second-straight state title with a 38-7 victory over District 11 champion Northwestern Lehigh, which was making its first appearance in a state championship.

Belle Vernon closes a two-year stretch in which the Leopards have gone a combined 25-3.

In the championship, the Leopards were led by junior Anthony Crews, who scored twice, and Penn State-bound running back Quinton Martin, who rushed for 133 yards on just eight carries, averaging 16.6 yards a carry, the bulk of which came on a third-quarter 92-yard touchdown.

“I would never say (repeating) was easy and we may make stuff look easy, but we’re hard workers,” Crews said. “We knew the pressures repeating, and that added fuel to our fire. I’ll probably get emotion talking about it, but I’ll remember these guys forever.”

Midway through the third quarter, Martin took a handoff wide, and once he cut the corner, he ripped down the sideline 92 yards untouched for a 28-7 lead, which clinched it for the Leopards.

“That run coming out at halftime I felt that took down (Northwestern Lehigh’s) faith a little bit,” Martin said. “I wouldn’t say it sealed the game, but it made a big impact on it. It’s definitely not easy (repeating). Not many teams do it. I feel we had that one loss in the beginning of the year. I feel we had that mentality to not take anything lightly, just do your job, and we’re going to get the outcome we expected.

“We were everybody’s A-game and we expected that. We just had to work harder.”

Belle Vernon held a 21-7 halftime lead.

Trailing 14-0 with 10:05 left in the first half, Northwestern Lehigh got its first break. Belle Vernon fumbled a punt away, which the Tigers recovered at the Belle Vernon 37.

The Tigers wasted the chance, when on a fourth-and-one, Dalton Clymer, Northwestern Lehigh’s single-season TD record holder, tried slamming into the end zone to the left. Belle Vernon’s Adam LaCarte, who fumbled the punt, and Jake Gedekoh came crashing down, congesting that side of the field and stopping Clymer.

From there, the Leopards embarked on a 98-yard, nine-play drive that ended when quarterback Braden Laux snuck into the end zone from two yards out in what was a 14-point, gut-punch swing.

What could have been a 14-7 game turned into a 21-0 Belle Vernon lead with 1:48 left in the half.

Undeterred, Northwestern Lehigh managed to scratch back. The Tigers mounted a six-play, 68-yard series, culminating in quarterback Shane Leh’s perfectly arced pass in the corner of the end zone that fell into Landen Matson’s hands for a 17-yard score with 35 seconds in the half. What made the score possible was Leh’s 32-yard completion to Devon Hildebrand at the Belle Vernon 18.

Within their first two possessions, the Leopards scored more points than they did in their 9-8 championship victory over Neumann-Goretti last year.

Crews took the opening kickoff 78 yards for a TD, zig-zagging his way through the Northwestern Lehigh defense, and on a botched jet sweep, Crews struck again.

Laux handed Crews the ball on the jet sweep going left to right, but when Crews dropped the ball, it seemed everyone stopped for a moment. But Crews, showing great poise, picked up the loose ball, averted a few shooting Northwestern Lehigh defenders, found some space and outraced the overcommitted Tigers’ defense for a 62-yard touchdown and a 14-0 Belle Vernon lead.

Josh Snyder did a very good job in getting Northwestern Lehigh to its first state championship game. His team ran into a defending state champion that had blazing speed and could reel off explosive plays.

“They had a couple more players and playmakers, and they’re a good football team, they’re back-to-back state champions for a reason, kudos to them,” Snyder said. “There’s not a whole lot of holes in their football program, and for us to come out and compete with them, I feel good about that.”

Scoring Summary

Belle Vernon (13-1) 14 7 7 10-38

Northwestern Lehigh (15-1) 0 7 0 0-7

1st Quarter

BV – Anthony Crews 78 kickoff return (Preston Rathway kick good), 11:47

BV – Crews 62 run (Rathway kick), 7:52

2nd Quarter

BV – Braden Laux 2 run (Rathway kick), 1:48

NL – Landen Matson 17 pass from Shane Leh (Seth Kern kick), :35

3rd Quarter

BV – Quinton Martin 92 run (Rathway kick), 6:00

4th Quarter

BV – Rathway 44 FG, 10:08

BV – Jake Gedekoh 1 run (Rathway kick), 6:36

FULL GAME STATS

BEL/NWL

FIRST DOWNS 13/15

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 32-334/39-135

PASSING YDS (NET) 33/112

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 6-8-0/15-22-1

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 40-367/61-247

Fumble Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 4-40/1-3

Kickoff Returns-Yards 2-91/6-100

Interception Returns-Yards 1-0/0-0

Punts (Number-Avg) 2-35.5/5-40.6

Fumbles-Lost 1-1/2-1

Penalties-Yards 6-60/5-35

Possession Time 23:45/24:15

Third-Down Conversions 1 of 6/7 of 14

Fourth-Down Conversions 1 of 1/0 of 2

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 2-2/1-3

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall-of-fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com].

Photos by Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Jim Roth is in his 40th year at Southern Columbia. The legendary Tigers’ coach has seen everything. Well, almost everything. What Roth can tuck away for safe keeping, to be forever cherished for posterity, is Southern Columbia’s own version of “The Drive.”

Trailing by six, looking at the longest stretch of 99 yards a struggling team had to cross when nothing for them was working, the Tigers found a way.

Southern Columbia’s Carter Madden’s 12-yard score, and Isaac Carter’s extra point, with 42 seconds left gave the Tigers their seventh-straight PIAA Class 2A state championship and 14th overall by surviving a 21-20 scare over District 8 champion Westinghouse Friday afternoon at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

It was a rematch of last year’s Class 2A championship and for most of the game, it appeared the Bulldogs would avenge their loss and snap Southern Columbia’s streak. The Tigers had labored offensively, with one offensive touchdown, and staring at 99 yards with 6:19 to play.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Roth admitted. “There has never been one in a game like this. It is kind of neat, because we have been in a lot of these, and some people would ask what was different about this game, or that game, and you have to think about it a little bit.

“There’s not going to be any hesitation when they ask about this game. There were no games that came even close to how this game finished. Yeah, we have our ‘Drive.’”

As the Tigers huddled in the back of their end zone with their season at stake, Madden and his teammates were yelling “This is it, this is the drive.” At halftime, a very vocal Roth had challenged his team to show their collective character.

On this drive, in this moment, they did.

Working behind the offensive line of left tackle Dylan Stine, left guard Jude Bremigen, center Robert Long, right guard Brayton Lunger, left tackle John Quinton and tight end Jace Malakoski, the Tigers plowed their way downfield.

The pivotal moment of the 12-play drive came fourth-and-eight at the Westinghouse 45 with less than two minutes to play. Southern Columbia quarterback Blake Wise hit Kyle Christman with a 10-yard pass at the 35, that appeared to extend the drive. But a Southern Columbia holding call negated the play, and the Tigers were forced into a fourth-and-18 from their 45 with 1:41 left to play.

Then things got murky.

Wise was swallowed by the Westinghouse defense on the following play—and as the Bulldogs celebrated their first state championship walking off the field, a flag was pointed out on the far side.

Defensive holding—Westinghouse.

The 10-yard walk-off placed Southern Columbia right back where it was, facing another fourth-and-eight to the Westinghouse 45. On the same play they ran earlier, Wise connected with Christman for 11. Madden bolted left for 16, putting the ball at the Bulldogs’ 18 as the seconds ticked down. After a one-yard Garrett Garcia run got the Tigers to the 17, a Westinghouse encroachment call brought the miracle a little closer, to the 12.

That’s when Madden charged left behind sealing blocks from Stine, Garcia, and Wise, and scored a touchdown that will be remembered forever in the long, rich annals of Southern Columbia football.

“I got the inside reverse, and Stine sealed the edge, Garrett sealed the edge, and Wise came out to lead block,” Madden said. “My memory is this whole season with my senior friends.”

Wise leaves as the only high school quarterback in Pennsylvania history who won three straight state championships.

“Everyone knows pressure makes diamonds and I think we all had some doubts when we got called for that first hold,” Wise said. “We went out there and did our thing. When Carter scored, I can’t describe it. We believed.”

Even Roth himself had his doubts as the ball sat on the Tigers’ one.

“I’m thinking it’s a long shot quite frankly,” Roth admitted. “I knew we had the ability to do it. But we needed some people to step up and make some plays like we hadn’t been doing during the game. All you can do as a coach is expect your kids to come through as they had done in the past.

“But we have never been in that situation before.”

What set the stage was a Southern Columbia stop with just under seven minutes left. Westinghouse’s Lloyd Penn booted a 58-yard punt that rolled to the Tigers’ one with 6:19.

That’s what Southern Columbia was looking at 99 yards. Garrett Garcia started the drive with a 28-yard run. On a third-and-three at the 36, Garcia bulled his way for four to the Tigers’ 40.

Then, Louden Murphy almost broke one to the Westinghouse 47. Another Murphy 2-yard run, followed by the Bulldogs’ Sincere Shannon taking down Jake Hoy for no gain at the 45 set up the fourth-and-eight.

The rest will be marked for Southern Columbia history.

Westinghouse had been dominating much of the game.

With 3:38 left in the third quarter, Khalil Green hit the breaking K’shawn Hawkins for a 49-yard touchdown giving the Bulldogs their first lead, 20-14, after the failed two-point conversion.

Southern Columbia did not complete its first pass until late in the third quarter. Westinghouse controlled the third, running off 15 plays for 120 yards to the Tigers’ eight plays for 35 yards. Southern Columbia, thanks to an early Carter stop, were fortunate to come out trailing by six.

The teams went into halftime locked at 14-14. It started badly for Westinghouse.

Southern Columbia scored on its first drive—and Westinghouse’s first drive. Murphy went untouched for 83 yards just 55 seconds into the game to put the Tigers up early, 7-0. That was followed by Carter’s 68-yard pick-six for a 14-0 Tigers lead with 8:58 left in the first quarter.

“This is like a movie, we were down, and at halftime, our seniors had something to say, our coaches had something to say,” said Carter, who plans on kicking at West Point. “We struggled in the first half. Everyone who struggled in the first half stepped up in the second half when it counted.

“Coach Roth got really emotional down there when we kicked (the winning extra point). Westinghouse had the momentum. Coach Roth let us know we had to turn it around at halftime. I had no doubts about the winning extra point. I put my head down and did my thing.”

Down 14-0, the Bulldogs used a seven-play, 68-yard drive to get back into the game, when Green found Taymir O’Neal with a 10-yard touchdown pass with 5:42 left in the opening quarter. The score was made possible by junior receiver Lloyd Penn’s Lynn Swann-like 43-yard diving catch at the Tigers’ 21. Westinghouse tried a two-point conversion that was stuffed.

After a red zone stop by the Bulldogs, they charged back with an 88-yard, 10-play drive that ended when Green bolted into the end zone from five yards out, then connected with O’Neal again for the two-point conversion, knotting the game at 14-14 with 6:46 left in the half.

Southern Columbia was flagged six times in the first half for 60 yards and suffered two costly drops that were sure touchdowns. The Bulldogs had outgained Southern Columbia, 202-127. All the Tigers’ yards came on the ground, while 137 of Westinghouse’s 202 yards came through the air in the half. The Bulldogs were averaging 22.8 yards a catch.

For the game, Westinghouse outgained the Tigers 361 to 266, averaging 6.6 yards a play to Southern Columbia’s 5.3 yards a play.

“I can say we have had long drives, showed character and toughness when our backs were against the wall in state championship games,” Roth said. “But we’ve never been in a state championship game where we needed 99 yards with six minutes to go.”

Scoring Summary

Westinghouse (13-1) 6 8 6 0-20

Southern Columbia (15-1) 14 0 0 7-21

1st Quarter

SC – Louden Murphy 83 run (Isaac Carter kick), 11:05

SC – Carter 68 INT return (Carter kick), 8:58

W – Taymir O’Neal 10 pass from Khalil Green (run failed), 5:42

2nd Quarter

W – Green 5 run (O’Neal pass from Green), 6:46

3rd Quarter

SC – Braeden Wisloski 38 run (Arnold run), 2:51

W – K’shawn Hawkins 49 pass from Green (run failed), 3:38

4th Quarter

SC – Carter Madden 12 run (Carter kick), :42

FULL GAME STATS

WES/SCA

FIRST DOWNS 17/18

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 38-154/40-239

PASSING YDS (NET) 207/27

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 10-16-2/4-10-1

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 54-361/50-266

Fumble Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Kickoff Returns-Yards 3-39/4-70

Interception Returns-Yards 1-33/2-68

Punts (Number-Avg) 2-40.5/1-47.0

Fumbles-Lost 0-0/2-0

Penalties-Yards 11-75/9-95

Possession Time 23:56/23:44

Third-Down Conversions 7 of 12/5 of 11

Fourth-Down Conversions 0 of 2/2 of 4

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 2-2/1-3

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall-of-fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com].

MECHANICSBURG, PA — There is a long, storied history with the Aliquippa football program. Hall of Famers Mike Ditka and Darrelle Revis went there. Three-time Super Bowl champion Ty Law is a graduate of the school. The Quips have been to 10 PIAA state championships. They have won four state crowns (1991-2A, 2003-2A, 2018-3A, 2021-4A).

But none of those previous four state champions went undefeated.

These 2023 Quips were.

The Quips made history Thursday night by becoming the first undefeated Aliquippa state champion, easily handling stubborn District 2 champ Dallas, 60-14, in the Class 4A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

The previous four Quips state champs each had a flaw. In 1991, the Quips went 13-2, in 2003 they finished 13-1, in 2018 they were 14-1 and in 2021 they finished 13-1.

These Quips were a clean 15-0.

Aliquippa’s Penn State-bound junior tailback Tiqwai Hayes rushed for a game-high 222 yards and three touchdowns, senior tailback John Tracy picked up 135 yards rushing and two touchdowns, and sophomore defensive back QaLil Goode had three interceptions—one for a touchdown.

Aliquippa were on the brink of being the school’s first undefeated state champion last year, but lost to Bishop McDevitt, 41-18, ruining that chance. This time, Quips’ coach Mike Warfield sensed a far different focus about this team.

“Sometimes you have to walk with your chest pulled out and not be scared of that,” he said. “You can tell all week they were locked in. No talking in film study. We came up Wednesday night. We had a practice Wednesday night. We came back and watched film late last night. We got up in the morning, had breakfast, and I just wanted to flood them with football for two days.

“It showed. They were prepared. They knew their assignments. I’m proud of them. Like I say, sometimes when you win, you actually lose, and sometimes when you lose, you actually win. Like I said last year, there is no growth without pain. It was painful last year and we grew from that.”

Quips’ senior quarterback Quentin Goode goes out a winner. He felt the brunt of that McDevitt loss last year and wanted to rectify it with this last opportunity.

“I can’t explain it, ever since we were growing up, we always thought of ourselves as this special class that was able to do special things, and we did it,” Goode said. “This is it. It will hit me playing the last game with my seniors, but we went out with the best note you can go out on.”

The game was over by halftime.

Aliquippa took a 40-14 lead into intermission, scoring on three drives of 90 yards or more, intercepting the Mountaineers three times, including a pick-six, and Hayes doing almost anything he wanted, rushing for 179 yards and three TDs in the first 24 minutes.

The Quips took their first possession 91 yards over seven plays, which chewed up a quick 2:37 off the clock. Quentin Goode pulled the Dallas defense in with a play-action fake and hit Brandon Banks wide open for a 36-yard touchdown in the right corner of the end zone. The big play of the drive was a Tracy 30-yard run, which was followed by the Quentin Goode TD pass.

Dallas stumbled on the next drive, putting the Mountaineers in a bigger fix, when QaLil Goode picked off Dallas’ quarterback Brady Zapoticky at the Dallas 45 for the first of his three picks.

Three plays later, it was 16-0, thanks to the 35-yard chunk play from Cameron Lindsey. Hayes made Dallas pay with a seven-yard TD run, and with 5:28 left in the first quarter, the Quips had surged out to a 16-0 lead.

But here is where Dallas stayed in the game, for however brief. Down 16-0 midway through the first quarter, battling an explosive team that could run away with the game, the Mountaineers responded with a scoring drive when Zapoticky hit Gavin Lewis with a 39-yard touchdown pass. It temporarily took the momentum away from Aliquippa and forced the Quips to answer.

They did.

For the second time on its first three possessions, Aliquippa drove over 90 yards to score again.

In the first 12 minutes, Aliquippa amassed 228 yards of total offense, averaging 12 yards a play. By halftime, that total climbed to 347.

Hayes was near unstoppable. Through one quarter, he already had 93 yards rushing on 11 carries, averaging 8.5 yards a carry and two touchdowns. Much of that was a credit to the guys in front: left tackle Rico Miller, left guard Justus Starks, center Braylon Wilcox, right guard Mylez Greene, a freshman, and left tackle Kamari Mathews and tight end Jayace Williams.

If it wasn’t Hayes accelerating through the Dallas defense, it was QaLil Goode’s three first-half interceptions. Two led to touchdowns, one by QaLil Goode himself, taking a pick-six 87 yards for the final score of the half.

For Dallas, the state title loss was a rough one, considering the Mountaineers’ double-overtime state semifinal upset over McDevitt.

“We’ll start working on the next run tomorrow,” said Dallas coach Rich Mannello, who did an amazing job this season getting Dallas back to the state finals. “We had a chance before the half, and the pick all the way back, that hurt us. What I said to (his team) is this is hard to swallow right now, but they’re going to look back some day and look at this year and see how much they accomplished.”

Scoring Summary

Aliquippa (15-0) 24 16 13 7-60

Dallas (15-1) 7 7 0 0-14

1st Quarter

A – Brandon Banks 36 pass from Quentin Goode (Tiqwai Hayes run), 8:04

A – Hayes 7 run (Mekhi Green pass from Goode), 5:28

D – Gavin Lewis 39 pass from Brady Zapoticky (Rowan Laubach kick), 4:22

A – Hayes 34 run (John Tracy run), 1:04

2nd Quarter

A – Hayes 61 run (Jayace Williams pass from Goode), 9:15

D – Dylan Geskey 1 run (Laubach kick), 4:30

A – QaLil Goode 87 INT return (Quentin Goode run), 1:20

3rd Quarter

A – Tracy 15 run (pass failed), 9:09

A – Cameron Lindsey 9 run (Malachi Shegog kick), 6:11

4th Quarter

A – Tracy 46 run (DeShaun Ansa kick), 11:49

FULL GAME STATS

ALI/DAL

FIRST DOWNS 20/13

RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 40-406/27-47

PASSING YDS (NET) 168/137

Passes Cmp-Att-Int 7-14-1/9-26-5

TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 54-574/53-184

Fumble Returns-Yards 0-0/0-0

Punt Returns-Yards 0-0/1-7

Kickoff Returns-Yards 2-4/9-68

Interception Returns-Yards 5-176/1-47

Punts (Number-Avg) 1-31.0/2-49.5

Fumbles-Lost 1-0/1-1

Penalties-Yards 12-100/5-42

Possession Time 24:38/23:22

Third-Down Conversions 4 of 9/3 of 11

Fourth-Down Conversions 3 of 4/1 of 3

Red-Zone Scores-Chances 3-6/1-2

Joseph Santoliquito is a hall of fame, award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com]. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball [twitter.com].

Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball

WILLIAMSPORT – In South Williamsport’s two losses this season, the Mounties committed a total of nine turnovers.

Over the last two weeks, the Mounties avenged both of those losses with wins over two-time defending district champion Canton and a blowout win over Muncy in the District 4 Class A championship game last weekend to give the program its first district title since 2014.

And on Saturday night, in the Class A state quarterfinal, the Mounties flipped the turnover script, as they were the beneficiaries of four Cambria Heights turnovers, and South turned all four of them into touchdowns as the Mounties advanced to their first PIAA semifinal since 2014 with a 33-0 shutout over the Highlanders. The Mounties will meet defending Class A state champion Steelton-Highspire next week.

“We really battled turnovers all year so we know how important it is and we really strive to work on that and tonight we caused some and played clean,” said South Williamsport coach Chris Eiswerth. “We really had a lot of injuries around mid season and it was tough but it built a lot of character with the adversity they faced, but they worked through it and they’re different from what they were at the beginning of the year and they’re playing like that.

“It’s exciting because we had that taste (back in 2014) and we’ve won a lot of games and done a lot of great things but the guys really committed back in January and worked hard and I think they’re seeing the fruits of their labor,” said Eiswerth.

South asserted its dominance on the ground early on, as the Mounties received the opening kickoff and then proceeded to burn up over seven minutes on a 15-play, 69-yard drive capped by Ryan Casella’s one-yard touchdown run to go up 6-0.

From there, it was a parade to the end zone following turnovers, as South scored on its next four possessions, with all of them coming following takeaways from the Highlanders. Cambria Heights turned the ball over on four of its first five possessions, with only the end of the half breaking up that string.

The Highlanders put together what was a good-looking drive following South’s initial touchdown, as they drove from their own 36 to the Mountie 21-yard line, getting a nice 19-yard completion from Isaac Weiland to Stephen Nelen to set them up at the 21. But three plays later, Weiland was picked off by Dylan Scheller who returned it 54 yards all the way back to the Highlander 35.

South then proceeded to take eight plays to go those 35 yards, and Kaiser Kistner punched it in from seven yards out, following a defensive penalty on the PAT, South went for two and converted when quarterback Tadd Lusk took a naked bootleg in to make it 14-0 at the 9:32 mark of the second quarter.

The Mounties picked off Weiland again on Cambria Heights’ ensuing drive, with Kistner making the interception this time at the South 47. This time, South took just six plays to go 53 yards, capped by Kistner’s second touchdown run on the night from three yards out to make it 20-0. Casella picked up a pair of chunks on that drive with pickups of 16 and 14 yards to flip the field. Kistner would finish the night with a game-high 125 yards on 21 carries to go with his two touchdowns.

On Cambria Heights’ next possession, the Highlanders started at their own 10 following a fumble on the kickoff return but still managed to get it out to their own 46 and had a fourth-and-4. They successfully executed a fake punt, as Garrett Jasper took the snap and ran it down the right sideline for a 25-yard gain all the way to the South 29 before having it punched out of his hands, and the Mounties recovered at their own 25.

“We knew that they had some very good, very fast players – Jasper is a tremendous football player,” said Eiswerth. “They ran the toss well and got outside and we just had to contain them, but our kids took advantage of the opportunities and we finished drives, and our defense bent but didn’t break and that’s how we go about it.”

On the first play of their ensuing drive, Kistner flipped the field again with a 43-yard run, and three plays later, Lusk hit Landyn Gephart for a 29-yard touchdown reception just before halftime to make it 27-0.

Cambria Heights fumbled an attempted reverse handoff on its second play from scrimmage of the second half after receiving the second-half kickoff, giving South the ball at the Highlander 37-yard line. The Mounties then ran off eight straight plays, the final of which was a four-yard touchdown run by Lusk to make it 33-0 at the 7:06 mark of the third quarter.

That would be more than enough, as Cambria Heights turned it over on downs twice and was forced to punt on its other second-half possession.

South, which has now won 11 games for the first time since 2016, will appear in the state semifinals for the fourth time in school history, and for the first time since the Dom Bragalone-led team in 2014.

South Williamsport 33, Cambria Heights 0

Cambria Heights (10-4)       0  0  0  0 –  0

South Williamsport (11-2)    6 21 6  0 – 33

 

First quarter

4:37 – (SW) Ryan Casella 1-yard run (kick failed), 15-69, 7:23

 

Second quarter

9:32 – (SW) Kaiser Kistner 7-yard run (Lusk run), 8-35, 3:12

5:20 – (SW) Kaiser Kistner 3-yard run (kick blocked), 6-53, 2:22

:18 – (SW) Landyn Gephart 29-yard pass from Tadd Lusk (Ogden kick), 4-75, :33

 

Third quarter

7:06 – (SW) Tadd Lusk 4-yard run (pass failed), 8-37, 4:03

Statistics
                                                      CH                         SW
First downs                                    10                             20

Rushes-net yards                       37-151                     47-249

Passing yardage                            33                            67

Passing                                      2-7-0-2                     5-9-1-1

Fumbles-lost                                 5-2                           1-0

Penalties-yards                            3-27                          1-5

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Cambria Heights: Stephen Nelen (17-52), Trey Trybus (7-51), Garrett Jasper (6-46), Jaxxon Kline (3-6), Isaac Weiland (3-(-6)), Luke Mulraney (1-2); South Williamsport: Kaiser Kistner (21-125-2), Ryan Casella (18-87-1), Landyn Gephart (3-26), Tadd Lusk (2-9-1), Evan Barry (2-3), TEAM (1-(-1))

PASSING: Cambria Heights: Isaac Weiland (2-7-33-0-2); South Williamsport: Tadd Lusk (5-8-67-1-1), TEAM (0-1-0-0-0)

RECEIVING: Cambria Heights: Stephen Nelen (2-33); South Williamsport: Ethan Scheller (3-23), Landyn Gephart (1-29-1), Kaiser Kistner (1-15)

CATAWISSA – For the second straight week, Southern Columbia found itself in a grind-it-out battle on Friday in the 2A state quarterfinals. A week after being in a scoreless tie with Troy before scoring a pair of second-half touchdowns, the Tigers once again battled through a scoreless tie against Bald Eagle Area in the first half.

And once again, just like last week, a few second-half plays were the difference in the game. Last week, it was two long drives that took up nearly half a quarter each. This week, it was a single long drive and two big plays that were the difference as Southern Columbia won its 39th straight postseason game with an 18-8 win over the Bald Eagles. The Tigers advance to meet Dunmore in next week’s 2A state semifinal as their hopes for a seventh straight and 14th overall state title remain alive.

Once again, it was Southern’s defense that led the way. After pitching two straight shutouts in its last two playoff games, the Tigers did concede a late touchdown to the Bald Eagles but made things uncomfortable for Bald Eagle’s standout quarterback Carson Nagle for most of the evening, sacking him three times, and pressuring him several others, while holding Bald Eagle to just 27 rushing yards.

“Both our coverage and the pass rush were outstanding again tonight and that was the key because the name of the game for them was throwing the football,” said Southern coach Jim Roth. “If our defense keeps playing the way it has been, it makes life easy offensively because even when we’re not going well and we’re struggling to move the ball, when you can keep stopping a team and keep giving your offense the ball back, not only does it keep giving us opportunities but it makes it tough on their defense and they have to keep responding. I think that’s where we eventually started to hit some things that we were capable of.”

“I’m really proud of every kid on this team. We went toe-to-toe with the king,” said Bald Eagle coach Jesse Nagle. “We had a couple of missed tackles there, or we might have won. Like I told the team, I saw what type of people they’re going to become in life because adversity hit and they kept on responding and they kept fighting and I’m so proud of them.”

Although they managed just 80 yards of offense themselves in the first half, the Tigers held Bald Eagles to only 56 yards of offense in the opening half. About the only difference between the first half last week was the lack of mud on the field, as well as Southern committing a pair of turnovers, which the Bald Eagles were unable to capitalize on thanks to Southern’s stout defense.

After the scoreless first half, the Tigers got on the scoreboard first with an 11-play, 50-yard drive to open the second half, capped by a one-yard touchdown run by Garrett Garcia, who finished with 89 yards on 18 carries. The drive followed a 23-yard kickoff return by Brayden Andrews on a short kick to start Southern at midfield and featured all running plays.

Bald Eagle’s defense forced the Tigers into a three-and-out following Southern’s initial touchdown, and then stopped the Tigers on another three-and-out after the first drive was extended by a roughing the kicker penalty on a punt.

From there, it was time for Louden Murphy to take control of the game. Southern took over at its own 41 following a Bald Eagle punt on the first play of the fourth quarter, and after a holding penalty pushed them back 10 yards and an incomplete pass, Murphy took the ball on a handoff on a reverse and patiently waited around the line of scrimmage for blocks to materialize, then burst through the hole and broke a couple of tackles before turning on the jets and outrunning the rest of the defense for a 69-yard touchdown run to put the Tigers up 12-0 at the 11:03 mark of the fourth quarter.

The Bald Eagles then drove down to the Southern 39 before turning it over on downs. Three plays later, on the same reverse play as the previous one that produced a touchdown, Murphy once again took the handoff and this time sprung around the right end, helped by a block by quarterback Blake Wise, and found the corner and then turned on the jets once again to burst down the right sideline for a 55-yard touchdown, putting the Tigers up 18-0 with 6:31 remaining in the game, and giving him 143 rushing yards on the night on 12 carries.

“I thought the backs were running a little tentative in the first half,” said Roth. “Sometimes, you get in a game like this and guys will get a little tight and I didn’t think they were relaxed and cutting loose, but in the second half, I think they just ran more instinctive and just cut loose and went and they weren’t looking as much. Granted, there wasn’t a lot of room, but there’s a lot of times when there isn’t a lot of room and they still make something happen. We weren’t aggressive running the ball in the first half and looking a little too much, and they were good enough in the way they were pursuing defensively that it was hurting us. We just needed to play our game and be physical and aggressive, and that’s something we talked about at halftime and we did a better job in the second half.

“Overall, I’m pleased with how our guys responded, especially in the second half. That’s two weeks in a row now where we’ve been in a real battle and they showed some good character by coming out and stepping it up in the second half.

“They’re a great football team. They came out after halftime and made a couple of adjustments and then we readjusted after that and shut them down and then he (Murphy) was dead in the water but three guys unfortunately didn’t bring him down and that sometimes happens that way – that’s football,” said Nagle. “He just made a play, and we unfortunately did not. He’s a speedster and broke a couple of tackles and went. If we bring him down there, it’s fourth down and we get the ball back, so sometimes that happens but it doesn’t take anything away from our defensive effort. We shut them down almost, except for those two big plays.”

Refusing to quit despite being down by three scores, the Bald Eagles, which had run just eight plays in Southern territory in the game to that point, put together an 80-yard drive capped by Carson Nagle’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Cameron Watkins with 3:30 left. Gavin Burns then hit Kahale Burns for the two-point conversion.

Nagle completed 6-of-7 passes on that drive, and the Bald Eagles were also aided by a pair of defensive penalties by the Tigers. The junior signal caller put a cap on his outstanding sophomore season by completing 28-of-48 passes for 185 yards, despite being under duress for a good portion of the night from Southern’s pass rush. Even still, Nagle managed to eclipse the 3,500-yard passing mark for the season, and his touchdown pass gave him 38 for the season.

“They went man-under two and we were still making completions, but they have a great defensive line and they did a great job getting pressure after pressure,” said Nagle. “I think if we had a little more time we could have picked them apart but that’s what makes them so good, that front four.”

The Bald Eagles had appeared to recover an onside kick following their touchdown but were called for an offside penalty. Murphy ran back the second kickoff for a touchdown, but that was called back due to a holding penalty. Southern would go three-and-out and punt the ball back to Bald Eagle with 2:18 remaining, and Nagle drove the Bald Eagles from their own 25 to the Southern 18 in the waning seconds of the game, but the clock expired before they were able to score again.

Illustrating how tough Southern’s defense was once again on, the Tigers allowed 212 total yards for the game, but 102 of them came on Bald Eagle’s final two drives of the game – the 80-yard touchdown drive, and then its final possession down by two scores with just two minutes left. So, prior to the 6:31 mark of the fourth quarter – when they were already up 18-0 – Southern’s defense had allowed just 111 yards to a very prolific offense.

 

Southern Columbia 18, Bald Eagle Area 8

Bald Eagle Area (12-2)         0  0  0  8  –  8

Southern Columbia (13-1)    0  0  6 12 – 18

 

Third quarter 

7:09 – (SC) Garrett Garcia 1-yard run (run failed), 11-50, 4:51

 

Fourth quarter

11:03 – (SC) Louden Murphy 69-yard run (run failed), 2-59, :46

6:31 – (SC) Louden Murphy 55-yard run (pass failed), 3-61, 1:41

3:30 – (BEA) Cameron Watkins 15-yard pass from Carson Nagle (Burns pass from Burns), 7-80, 3:01

Statistics
                                                     BEA                       SC
First downs                                    17                            10

Rushes-net yards                       17-27                       39-281

Passing yardage                          185                             6

Passing                                    28-49-1-1                   3-9-0-0

Fumbles-lost                                 0-0                            5-2

Penalties-yards                            6-55                          9-87

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Bald Eagle Area: Cameron Dubbs (9-20), Carson Nagle (4-(-18)), Nicholas Wible (2-21), Cameron Watkins (1-6), TEAM (1-(-2)); Southern Columbia: Garrett Garcia (18-89-1), Louden Murphy (12-143-2), Carter Madden (9-49)

PASSING: Bald Eagle Area: Carson Nagle (28-48-185-1-1), TEAM (0-1-0-0-0); Southern Columbia: Blake WIse (3-9-6-0-0)

RECEIVING: Bald Eagle Area: Kahale Burns (10-45), Gavin Burns (9-64), Cameron Watkins (6-57-1), Beau Taylor (2-6), Wyatt Spackman (1-13); Southern Columbia: Garrett Garcia (2-5), Kyle Christman (1-1)

Photo courtesy of Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Nothing was going to stop them. From the first meetings in January to summer practice, to the first snap in balmy Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, nothing was going to get in the way of the St. Joseph Prep Hawks from winning another PIAA Class 6A state championship but time.

That time came Saturday night when Samaj Jones, Josiah Trotter, and the Hawks unloaded 365 days of frustration out on Harrisburg, 42-7, in the PIAA Class 6A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

Jones completed 9-of-10 for 262 yards and four touchdowns, while the West Virginia-bond Trotter made a game-high 13 tackles—11 in the first half.

The usually reserved Hawks’ coach Tim Roken even got a little emotional addressing his team after the victory, and there was a reason why.

“It was a long 356 days and there were a lot of sleepless nights, thinking about how we ended last year,” he said. “This is a group that made it a goal in January to make sure we finish the mission this time. These seniors made sure to play for last year’s seniors, and these underclassmen made sure these seniors went out the right way.

“I’m so proud of our coaches, how hard they work and the sacrifices they made. I told our guys last night when things weren’t going well early on, this group is relentless, and we saw that in the first game against St. Thomas Aquinas (in Ft. Lauderdale). We wanted to sharpen the edge and make sure we were playing our best football at the right time of the year.”

Jones felt he had to retrace his steps. He knows exactly what he was doing, what he did, and where he spent the final minutes of last year’s PIAA Class 6A state championship.

Jones, the St. Joe’s Prep 6-foot-1, 210-pound gifted junior quarterback, watched from the bench in 2021 when the Hawks lost to Mount Lebanon in the state finals. Jones was pulled from the game because the last time he threw a pass in 2021, it was aimed at the back of the Mt. Lebanon player’s helmet in frustration.

The memory burned in his mind for a year.

He was building for an explosion.

“This is everything I wanted, and I never wanted anything more than this. There were a lot of doubters out there,” Jones said. “There is a drastic change from where I was last year, that kid watching from the bench feeling sorry for myself, to who I am now.

“This was a statement. I have a ring now—and I earned it. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

It was the seventh state championship in the last decade for the Hawks, who are 7-2 in title games (winning in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022, losing in 2017 and 2021). The Hawks (12-1) have now won four of the last five 6A titles and five of the last seven since the PIAA instituted the Class 6A system in 2016.

The St. Joe Prep seniors graduate as three-time state champions in four years, with the 2021 loss to Mount Lebanon (35-17) serving as powerful motivation to get back this year.

Trotter had a difficult time last year with the state title loss. He had a difficult time watching the seniors walk off the field the last time without a state title—which is becoming a rarity at St. Joe’s Prep. Against Harrisburg (11-3), Trotter was a tackle machine, with his name called by the PA announcer on every other play.

“That bothered me losing last year and seeing our seniors walk off the way they did. It’s why I wanted to get back,” Trotter said. “I thank God for what we went through. We really felt like we had a fire; that we had something to prove. That fire came out in the first game of the season. That loss from last year didn’t send off the seniors in the right way. I wanted to send the seniors off the right way this time.”

On the first play of the game, Jones bolted through the middle of the field for a 65-yard touchdown, igniting the Hawks’ offense towards 420 yards of total offense and scores on their first five drives.

“That first play set the tone, it was a missed assignment on our behalf, but you can’t have MAs against teams like that,” Harrisburg coach Calvin Everett said. “This moment right here is really going to make us better moving forward. We’re a really young team. We have to grow from this and use this to come to this offseason and build, and build, and build. Hopefully, we’re going to be ready for the moment when it comes again.”

Harrisburg’s lone touchdown came against the Hawks’ second-team defense when Shawn Lee Jr. hit Kyle Williams for a 66-yard touchdown pass with 4:28 to play.

The Cougars’ first chance to score came with 7:51 left in the third quarter after Harrisburg’s Raytel Bryant intercepted Jones. Harrisburg drove to the Hawks’ four, though turned the ball over on downs when Hawks’ linebacker Nick McGlynn sacked Lee at the 10.

The Hawks turned that into a 42-0 lead when Jones hit Owen Garwood with a 16-yard touchdown pass with 10:49 left to play and the game well over.

The game was actually over by halftime.

St. Joe Prep scored on its first five possessions, surging out to a 35-0 lead, scoring on five of their first 16 plays. Its drive chart read: 1 play, TD; 8 plays, TD; 2 plays, TD; 2 plays, TD; and 3 plays, TD.

By halftime, the Hawks had outgained Harrisburg, 311-127, averaging 18.29 yards a play to Harrisburg’s 3.85.

On the Hawks’ first 11 plays, they scored three times, and gained 200 yards of total offense. After Samaj Jones’ 57-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Jones with 5:56 left in the half, the Hawks were averaging 19.5 yards a play. Of the Hawks’ first 13 plays, they only faced third down twice, one on a third-and-22 that Jones converted on a 44-yard completion to David Washington.

Samaj Jones was 7-for-7 for 263 yards and three touchdowns. Washington caught four of those passes for 123 yards, averaging 30.8 yards a catch while the game was somewhat competitive.

But it’s a game and a season that was really over before it started.

Nothing was going to stop Samaj Jones, Josiah Trotter, and St. Joseph’s Prep from winning the PIAA Class 6A state title in 2022 but time.

That time bomb imploded Saturday night.

Scoring Summary

St. Joseph’s Prep (12-1) 14 21 0 7-42

Harrisburg (11-3) 0 0 0 7-7

1st Quarter

SJP – Samaj Jones 65 run (Skyler Sholder kick), 11:41

SJP – Khaseem Phillips 10 pass from Jones (Sholder kick), 1:37

2nd Quarter

SJP – Brandon Rehmann 46 pass from Jones (Sholder kick), 11:05

SJP – Elijah Jones 57 pass from Samaj Jones (Sholder kick), 5:56

SJP – Phillips 3 run (Sholder kick), 2:11

4th Quarter

SJP – Owen Garwood 16 pass from Samaj Jones (Sholder kick), 10:49

H – Kyle Williams 66 pass from Shawn Lee Jr. (Messi Deounodji), 4:28

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Inches from history. Inches from making history. Inches from being haunted by missing history.

Inches is what separated Belle Vernon and Neumann-Goretti Saturday afternoon in the PIAA Class 3A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

On a third-and-one with :45 left to play, and inches from the go-ahead score, Neumann-Goretti quarterback Mekhi Wharton had the ball jostled from his arms, and Belle Vernon’s Aiden Johnson pounced on it at the one, giving the Leopards a narrow 9-8 victory and their first state championship in school history.

“We knew that they going to QB sneak it, they were running double tight (ends) and I lined up outside my tight end,” Johnson said. “I pushed the tight end back into the quarterback, and the quarterback dropped the ball, and I was scrapping for it. I found the ball from there.

“Our defense always keeps its composure. That’s a very good team, Neumann-Goretti. We made adjustments at halftime with our linebackers coming down and linemen moving shades. We tried to jam the box. I was on the left side (on Neumann-Goretti’s last play). I pushed the tight end into the quarterback, and the ball fell off of someone. I had the ball in my hands. I knew we had it then.”

It wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing game, though it was the most exciting finish of the first five games played during state championship week, simply because of what transpired in the last few minutes.

Neumann-Goretti (11-4) had been hanging on its defense the whole game. The Saints were clinging to an 8-3 lead when Belle Vernon (12-2) struck on a 16-yard touchdown toss from Braden Laux to Quinton Martin with :28 left in the third quarter.

With 6:40 to play, Yasir Williams’ interception gave the Saints new life at the Belle Vernon 48. The Saints converted two fourth downs, the big play coming when Wharton hit Qaasim Major on a fourth-and-five at the Belle Vernon two with less than a minute to play.

It looked as if Neumann-Goretti was going to go ahead, when on third down, Johnson forced the fumble and jumped on the loose ball.

“They made a great play when we tried running the quarterback sneak,” Saints’ coach Albie Crosby said. “Offensively, we just couldn’t really put together anything for ourselves. But I am super proud of my group. Defensively, we played an outstanding game.”

The Saints also played without star running back/defensive back Shawn Battle, a Boston College commit who was ineligible to play after being ejected from the state semifinals on a personal foul call.

Neumann-Goretti shut down the explosive Martin, holding him to 66 yards rushing on 20 carries, which translated into 3.3 yards a carry. The Saints finished with eight tackles for losses for minus 36 yards.

If it wasn’t Deshon Dodson, it was Samuel Hobbs, Koren Robinson, Daniel Adefolarin, Kyreese Bradley, Jabril Nuriddin, Khalil Hill, or Williams coming up and stuffing Martin at or behind the line of scrimmage.

“Their defense is surprising, because they literally go one series from a 3-4, to an 80, to a cover 4, to a cover 2, to a cover 1, and they did a really good job of providing two defensive looks even mid-series in there,” Belle Vernon coach Bob Humbert said about the Saints. “We had to check out a lot of plays. We really narrowed the scope down this week and just made sure we could audible out of plays to put us in the most successful situation. They did a really good job. We thought we could get the perimeter. Their inside backers scraped really well.

“What happened, in the end, was par for the course, with all of the craziness this year. It was meant to happen. This defense has always been there as the backbone of our team. They’ve always bent and never broke. I felt like the ending was fitting. (In the end) I saw a lot of kids in a pile and I saw our kids were more excited than them.

“When you see that, it’s always something good.”

Neumann-Goretti took an 8-3 lead into halftime.

The Saints’ defense dominated the first two quarters, with seven tackles for losses for combined minus 32 yards.

“We’re not trying to win the sexiest of the year with our offense, we try to capitalize on what we do,” Humbert said. “We tried to get the ball to Quinton in 50 different ways. They’re a tough defense. When you’re playing in a state championship, you’re going to get a really good team, and they were as athletic as any team we’ve seen all year.”

Getting as many hats on Martin would be the key for Neumann-Goretti, and it worked in the first half. Martin had 56 yards rushing over the first two quarters on 16 carries, averaging a scant 3.5 yards a carry.

“We had this game,” said Dodson, who’s 6-7, 310 pounds and is getting major attention. “I’ll remember the tackle I missed in the third quarter. The key was stopping their jet sweep, and then they tried the quarterback dive with the read option, and they had that one breakaway run. That flipped the whole game.”

The play Dodson was referring to was Laux’s 23-yard scramble down the sideline late in the third quarter on a third-and-10 at the Neumann-Goretti 39. On the next play, Laux hit Martin rolling out in the left flat for the only offensive touchdown of the game.

As a team, Belle Vernon had 205 yards of total offense, averaging 3.3 yards over 62 plays. Neumann-Goretti had problems moving the ball the entire game, save for the Saints’ last drive. The Saints finished with a mere 133 yards of total offense, averaging a meager 2.7 yards a play.

Wharton threw three interceptions, two on deflected passes, in the first half. The five Saints’ first-half possessions read: punt, INT, INT, INT, punt.

Yet, the Saints were leading 8-3 at halftime.

That came courtesy of a high snap recovered by Hobbs in the end zone, followed by a Hobbs’ two-point conversion with 5:56 left in the opening quarter. A big blow also occurred in the play when Belle Vernon kicker Willie Schwerha was hurt on the play when he tried to recover the high snap in the end zone.

The Leopards scored on their first possession on a Schwerha 24-yard field goal. That was aided by a dribbling Wharton punt that rolled 12 yards.

Neumann-Goretti’s defense was so stubborn that the Saints held Belle Vernon to minus-4 yards on the Leopards’ first 11 plays. After one quarter, Neumann-Goretti held Belle Vernon to a mere 7 yards of total offense, which translated into less than 1 yard on average (.54).

Offensively, however, Neumann-Goretti was only able to move the ball 68 yards of total offense in the first half, averaging 3.4 yards a touch, which was slightly better than Belle Vernon.

Scoring Summary

Neumann-Goretti (11-4) 8 0 0 0-8

Belle Vernon (12-2) 3 0 6 0-9

1st Quarter

BV – Willie Schwerha 24 FG, 8:01

NG – Samuel Hobbs fumble recovery in end zone (Hobbs run), 5:56

3rd Quarter

BV – Quinton Martin 16 pass from Braden Laux (run failed), :28

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Photo courtesy of Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Ryan Palmieri was still back in the locker room cleaning up after the mess that was Pine-Richland’s homecoming game against Seneca Valley back in September. Everyone was mulling around, struggling to piece their emotions together, when Rams’ coach Jon LeDonne pulled everything in with a terse passing comment to Palmieri, “You’re going to quarterback.”

That changed everything for Pine-Richland.

Led by the 5-foot-11,180-pound Palmieri, the Rams exploded on a 12-game winning streak, concluding with their third state title in school history, beating District 12 powerhouse Imhotep Charter, 28-14, in the PIAA Class 5A championship on Friday night at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

All Palmieri did was rush for a game-high 195 yards on 31 carries, make 5 tackles as a roving defensive back, going 4-for-4 passing for 85 yards and a touchdown, score on a 40-yard interception touchdown return, and score twice. In between that, he taught violin and sold popcorn.

The Rams were sitting at 1-3.

The season changed on a dreary September Friday night with … “You’re going to the quarterback, that’s how coach (LeDonne) put it,” said Palmieri, basking in the victory on the cold stadium turf with his teammates. “That was it. I feel like we came together as a team. It wasn’t me. I played a little quarterback last year, but this year I took over and we started from there in Week 5.”

It was Pine-Richland’s fifth trip to the state finals (2003, 2014, 2017, 2020, and 2022). The Rams (13-3) are 3-2 in state title games. They stopped an Imhotep Charter team that was making its seventh trip to the finals (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2022, winning in 2015).

Senior left tackle Brady Carrigan, junior left guard Jonathan Smith, senior center Isaiah Kerns, massive junior right guard Ryan Cory (6-4, 290), and junior right tackle Logan Alexander created massive holes for Palmieri to flush through for big yards.

“After every game, we got in on Saturdays and watched the film so when our QB went down (Kanan Huffman), it was going to be either Ryan or sophomore (Vaughn Spencer), and I had a suspicion it would be Ryan,” said Cory, who had an excellent game and is receiving a ton of looks from Division I schools. “It wasn’t as much the skill difference as it was the leadership. I can’t thank Ryan enough for leading us, and he’s easy to block for. Imhotep said they prided themselves on their d-line. We respected that, but we prided ourselves on our offensive line. We just grinded them. We had to fight this year; they didn’t really have to fight at all.

“They didn’t know how to fight. We grinded them the entire game. They didn’t know how to go four quarters. We had more motor and more heart than them. We wanted it more.”

Pine-Richland had no problem moving the ball against the vaunted Imhotep defense. The Rams gouged the Panthers (10-3) for 380 yards of total offense and scored a season-high 28 points against them. The previous high against Imhotep was 20 points in an early-season 20-13 loss to Archbishop Spalding (MD) in September.

“I remember drawing up some plays right after the Seneca Valley loss,” LeDonne recalled. “I remember going back in the locker room and told Ryan, ‘You’re our guy.’ Those changes came right after that game. Ryan was still cleaning up in the locker room and I told him we would get back on Saturday morning and start drawing some stuff up.

“It all started from there.”

With 4:18 left in the third, Palmieri scored his third touchdown of the game, putting the Rams up, 21-7, on a one-yard plunge. Possibly the play of the game came when Palmieri’s underthrown 37-yard completion to Bradford Gelly kept the drive alive on a third-and-eight from the Pine-Richland 41.

Four plays later, Palmieri scored.

Imhotep answered with a touchdown, pulling within two scores, 28-14, with 7:02 left to play. But needing a turnover, Palmieri and the Rams drained the clock and with it what hopes Imhotep had left.

“The Palmieri kid played a great game and they had a great game plan, we just came up short,” Imhotep Charter coach Devon Johnson said. “I’m very proud of this team. We lost 20 seniors from last year and not too many people thought we would be back. I’m not happy with the final result, but I’m happy with the way my guys played and we’ll be back. We’ll be back.”

On the second play of the second half, Palmieri snapped a 7-7 tie with a 40-yard pick-six with 10:58 left in the third quarter. On the play, the pass was intended for Imhotep tight end Johann Hennigan, who ran into the ref interfering with his route. Imhotep quarterback Mikal Davis didn’t see it and threw to where Hennigan was supposed to be. Instead, Palmieri had a gift land in his hands and took off.

The teams went into halftime tied at 7-7.

At the outset, Pine-Richland’s no-huddle offense may have caught Imhotep by surprise in real-time. The Rams took the opening kickoff 65 yards over 14 plays, sitting literally inches from the goal line. But Pine-Richland stumbled when the Panthers’ defense tightened by the goal line and on fourth-and-goal, a high snap flew over the head of Palmieri, who was forced to flop on the loose ball at the Imhotep 19 killing the drive.

Imhotep wasted little time in capitalizing.

On the Panthers’ first drive, Mikal Davis hit a breaking Corey Downing for a 52-yard touchdown pass and a 7-0 Panthers’ lead with 2:34 left in the first quarter.

That didn’t deter the Rams, who answered with a 14-play, 76-yard drive that chewed up 7 minutes, 10 seconds. Palmieri tied it by slamming four yards up the middle with 7:18 left in the half. Over Pine-Richland’s first two drives, despite using its rapid-fire offense, it churned out 28 plays and ate up 13 minutes, and 25 seconds.

Imhotep was fortunate to reach halftime tied.

The Rams dominated the time of possession from 18:24 to 5:36. They ran off 35 plays to Imhotep’s 15 while holding a 164-109 edge in total yards.

Pine-Richland got the ball inside the Imhotep three-yard-line on two of its three drives in the first half and came away with one touchdown. The high snap on the first drive squashed that series, and Grant Argiro missed a 20-yard field goal attempt to end the Rams’ third drive and the first half.

It seemed only a matter of time before Pine-Richland would break the game open.

Scoring Summary

Imhotep Charter (10-3) 7 0 0 7-14

Pine-Richland (13-3) 0 7 14 7-28

1st Quarter

IC – Corey Downing 52 pass from Mikal Davis (Kenneth Wosesley kick), 2:34

2nd Quarter

PR – Ryan Palmieri 4 run (Grant Argiro kick), 7:18

3rd Quarter

PR – Palmieri 40 INT return (Argiro kick), 10:58

PR – Palmieri 1 run (Argiro kick), 4:18

4th Quarter

PR – Luke Rudolph 30 pass from Palmieri (Argiro kick), 10:36

IC – Davis 1 run (Wosesley kick), 7:02

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Photos courtesy of Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — A few months ago, Braeden Wisloski wasn’t supposed to be here in December. Neither was Wes Barnes or Blake Wise, or legendary Southern Columbia coach Jim Roth.

A few months ago, the Tigers were considered dead.

They were sitting at an uncharacteristic 5-3 after suffering their third double-figure loss of the season. Those are things that simply don’t happen to the Southern Columbia Tigers.

But they did.

Roth and Tigers got rectified as soon as Barnes returned after being hurt against Danville Sept. 23. Internally, the Tigers never wavered and landed where they always seem to land in December—in the PIAA Class 2A state finals.

This time, however, Southern Columbia wasn’t supposed to win. District 8 champion Westinghouse was undefeated, bigger, stronger, faster, able to offset anything the Tigers could do, and able to compensate for any mistakes.

It didn’t matter.

Southern Columbia continued its dominance, winning its sixth-straight PIAA Class 2A state championship and 13th state crown overall with a 37-22 victory over talented Westinghouse Friday afternoon at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

This may have also been one of Hall of Fame coach Jim Roth’s best coaching jobs. There was more upheaval than he’s used to this season, with a thinner team that was banged up for a portion of the year. The Tigers did get rocked three times, but Roth’s steady hand and his experienced coaching staff were not about to let that tip over the Tigers’ season.

“This team made strides and was playing at a different level from the Troy game on, and as I told the team after this game, this game was an image of the season, with the adversity we faced during the season,” Roth said. “We had to fight and battle. This was not as easy as a lot of (state championships), but probably a little more satisfying when you have to scratch and claw.

“We had to come a long way from where we were, but I give a lot of credit to our coaches. I talk about this every year. Our assistants do a great job coaching every year. When we go out and approach it next year, we’ll approach it like we had an average year. As soon as you take your foot off the pedal as a coach, kids aren’t stupid. They can sense it. Then you start getting kids that become complacent.

“That’s the thing I give a lot of credit to our coaches for because they coach our kids no matter what. We were coaching our kids like they were undefeated, even though a lot of people were doubting us after three losses. And the players bought in.”

Every day after practice, the Southern Columbia would break to the collective yell, “State champs.”

It’s an attitude Wisloski was not about to let go of.

“We came out and bombed it here, Southern Columbia football is never dead, so we lost three times, we still came out and dominated and that’s what we did here,” said Wisloski, who’s bound for Maryland and rushed for a game-high 158 yards on 19 carries, scoring on a 38-yard run in the third quarter and a 61-yard pass reception. “When we lost Wes Barnes, we were a little down in the Danville game. When he came back, we knew we would get back. We knew we needed to step it up.

“I didn’t know we were going to win, but I felt we could win. We felt we would come out in the second half and dominate.”

The Tigers had to wait a little longer than that.

Southern Columbia (13-3) was clinging to a 15-14 lead entering the fourth quarter. That set the stage for one of the game’s decisive plays when Southern Columbia quarterback Blake Wise surprised Westinghouse (15-1) and everyone else—with a 61-yard touchdown pass to Wisloski, who did the heavy lifting, twisting, and turning his way to the goal line.

On Westinghouse’s next possession, the Bulldogs fumbled the ball, giving Southern Columbia control again. This time, Louden Murphy bolted 35 yards up the middle untouched for what looked like a comfortable 29-14 lead with 8:47 left to play.

“We were not only playing 11 guys, but we were also playing a culture of winning, that’s a great football team over there,” Westinghouse coach Donta Green said. “We’ll lick our wounds and we’ll be back.”

Southern Columbia took a 7-6 lead into halftime. What was interesting about that was it came courtesy of a Westinghouse gift. With just under 10 minutes to play in the first half, Green opted to go for it on a fourth-and-three at the Westinghouse 26. Keyshawn Morsillo’s pass intended for Deshaun Blackwell down the middle was broken up by the Tigers’ Dominic Fetterolf.

Southern Columbia took full advantage of the fortunate field position. The Tigers needed eight plays and a draining 4-minutes, 46 seconds to travel 26 yards, and it was still dubious whether or not Tyler Arnold, the Tigers’ backup sneak quarterback, even crossed the goal line.

But on the second, and third efforts, Arnold fell into the end zone and Isaac Carter’s extra-point kick spelled the important single-digit lead for the Tigers.

“If I had the opportunity 10 out of 10 times, I would go for it,” Green explained. “Absolutely, 100 percent. I would bet on my guys 100 times out of 100. I felt at the moment we could get that first down. I’ll live with it. That was on me. I told every single one of the guys that was on me. That (Southern Columbia) touchdown was on me.”

Westinghouse began slow, but on the Bulldogs’ second drive, they got moving. With just under seven minutes to go in the first quarter, Morsillo ran off a 42-yard gain, bringing the ball into Southern Columbia territory for the first time. Kahlil Taylor closed the drive with a 22-yard touchdown run, though a missed extra point gave Westinghouse a temporary 6-0 lead.

By halftime, Wisloski had rushed for 99 yards on 11 carries, averaging 9 yards a carry, many of those yards coming in chunks between the tackles. Westinghouse’s Morsillo countered with 83 yards on six carries, averaging 13.8 yards a carry, many of which came on delayed draws.

Southern Columbia was uncharacteristically flagged four times in the first half for 20 yards, and the Tigers were a meager 1-for-6 on third-down conversions, though were successful on 2 of 4 fourth-down attempts. Westinghouse was 1-for-3 on third-down conversions and game-impacting 0-for-1 on fourth down.

Scoring Summary

Southern Columbia (13-3) 0 7 8 22-37

Westinghouse (15-1) 6 0 8 8-22

1st Quarter

W – Kahlil Taylor 22 run (kick failed), 6:37

2nd Quarter

SC – Tyler Arnold 1 run (Isaac Carter kick), 5:09

3rd Quarter

SC – Braeden Wisloski 38 run (Arnold run), 2:51

W – Taylor 54 yd pass from Keyshawn Morsillo (Davon Jones pass from Morsillo), 1:56

4th Quarter

SC – Wisloski 61 pass from Blake Wise (Carter kick), 10:34

SC – Louden Murphy 35 run (Carter kick), 8:47

W – Jones 47 pass from Morsillo (Jones pass from Morsillo), 3:08

SC – Carter Madden 9 run (Louden Murphy run), 2:04

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Photo courtesy of Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — It haunted them. Bishop McDevitt senior receiver Tyshawn Russell sat on the edge of his couch after last year’s state title loss to Aliquippa and replayed it 10 times the next morning. Crusaders’ senior two-way lineman Riley Robell couldn’t sleep at all, anxious to cut up the tape to see what he did wrong.

Hardly anything went wrong Thursday night, when McDevitt got redemption by beating Aliquippa, 41-18, in a rematch of last year’s PIAA Class 4A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School.

Both Robell and Russell played major parts in the Crusaders’ championship. Robell caused a fumble that resulted in a McDevitt touchdown and Russell had four touchdown receptions for a total of 121 yards receiving.

“I remember last year watching the game film 10 times (of the state championship), and I didn’t play offense that much last year,” Russell said. “Coming over to offense, I knew no one could guard me. I got my shot and I knew what I could do. I was hungry to get back here. We could have beaten them last year. We could have two right now, but I’m happy with one.”

This was McDevitt’s sixth appearance in the state championship (1995, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2021, and 2022). The Crusaders broke their four-game state title losing streak to capture their second state crown and first since 1995 when McDevitt was a Class 2A school.

The Crusaders (13-1) also snapped Aliquippa’s 24-game winning streak, which was the longest in the state. The McDevitt victory prevented the 2022 Quips from becoming the first repeat state championship in Aliquippa history and the first Quips’ team to be an undefeated state champion.

“I couldn’t sleep all night after we lost last year,” admitted Robell, who’s committed to James Madison. “As soon as I got the YouTube cut up in the Hudl, I had it up on my TV and just sat in my bed watching it over and over. I critiqued myself time and time again. I don’t think I ever watched a game as much as I watched that one.

“I can tell you every play, every step. I had it marked the whole way across. That game is burned in my memory. In between every play I played today, I was thinking about that game. This is the greatest feeling in the world. It didn’t matter how good they were. We felt we could do anything against them. I knew it was going to be hard-nosed football, it was a matter of who hit who harder.

“We hit harder.”

Aliquippa (13-1) turned the ball over three times during a four-possession span from midway into the second quarter to early in the third quarter. It translated into three McDevitt touchdowns and essentially the game.

Crusaders’ 6-2, 200-pound sophomore quarterback Stone Saunders completed 10 of 16 for 167 yards, five touchdowns—and three interceptions, equaling his season total.

“They just beat us tonight, they were the better team and I tip my hat to those guys,” Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield said. “We had a few turnovers at the beginning of the game and some bad decision-making, but they beat us. No excuses. It’s as simple as that.”

Senior tailback Marquese Williams sealed the victory for the Crusaders with a two-yard score with 5:27 to play, squashing the Quips’ late comeback bid when Tiqwai Hayes and Quentin Goode added cosmetic scores to make the game look closer than it actually was.

The Crusaders ran off 50 plays for 277 yards of total offense, averaging 5.5 yards a play, to the Quips’ meager 135 yards of total offense, averaging 2.4. Another staggering stat was the Quips only converted 1 of 10 third downs.

McDevitt never trailed. The Crusaders went into halftime holding a 20-6 lead, scoring 13 points off of two Quips turnovers.

By halftime, Saunders completed six of seven passes for 113 yards and three touchdowns (Aliquippa had only 21 yards passing at halftime).

Of Aliquippa’s seven first-half drives, the Quips punted four times, going 1-for-6 on third-down conversions, scored on one series, and had two turnovers, an interception and a fumble that resulted in McDevitt scores.

An early turning point came when McDevitt’s Ty Kephart stepped in front of a Goode pass and returned the interception 62 yards to the Aliquippa six with just over five minutes left in the half. A one-yard loss and a false start pushed the ball back to the 12, where Saunders found Russell for a touchdown in the back of the end zone.

After a parade of flags for the extra point, the Quips wound up blocking the extra point, giving the Crusaders a one-score 13-6 edge with 5:09 left in the half.

On the following possession, the Quips’ offensive problems continued. Robell forced Hayes to fumble at the Aliquippa 25 and the Crusaders capitalized when Saunders threw his third touchdown of the half, a 12-yard strike to Rico Scott for a 20-6 McDevitt lead.

McDevitt struck first and struck fast. On the Crusaders’ first play, Saunders hit a breaking Russell for a 70-yard touchdown pass. The play completely shocked the Aliquippa defense. Russell went untouched.

After three-straight drives of three-and-out for the Quips, they finally got a huge break when defensive back Brandon Banks made a diving interception on the sideline at the McDevitt 31.

That got the Quips’ offense going momentarily.

Aliquippa used nine plays to travel 31 yards over 4:30 to get within 7-6, the big play of the drive was when Hayes plowed three yards to the nine on a fourth-and-one at the McDevitt 12. After a one-yard loss, Goode lofted a 10-yard touchdown pass to Cameron Lindsey with :47 left in the first quarter. When McDevitt was flagged with an encroachment penalty on the extra-point kick, Warfield opted to try for two. McDevitt stuffed Hayes, preserving McDevitt’s slim 7-6 lead.

It’s the closest the Quips would get.

Scoring Summary

Bishop McDevitt (13-1) 7 13 14 7-41

Aliquippa (13-1) 6 0 6 6-18

1st Quarter

MC – Tyshawn Russell 70 pass from Stone Saunders (Gustavo Garcia kick), 10:20

A – Cameron Lindsey 10 pass from Quentin Goode (run failed), :47

2nd Quarter

MC – Russell 12 pass from Saunders (kick failed), 5:10

MC – Rico Scott 12 pass from Saunders (Garcia kick), 2:58

3rd Quarter

MC – Russell 28 pass from Saunders (Garcia kick), 10:12

MC – Russell 11 pass from Saunders (Garcia kick), 4:19

A – Tiqwai Hayes 45 INT return (kick failed), 2:07

4th Quarter

A – Goode 1 run (pass failed), 10:41

MC – Marquese Williams 2 run (Garcia kick), 5:27

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Photo courtesy of Matt Topper

MECHANICSBURG, PA — Taped up on a mirror in the Steelton-Highspire weight room sits a picture. It’s a resonating image of two chest-bumping Canton players with the final score emblazed in the background. It was a tough image for the Steelton-Highspire Steamrollers to get over after they lost in last year’s first round of the PIAA state playoffs.

As a motivating exclamation point, they made sure they walked by that image every day.

They won’t have to after Thursday afternoon.

The picture can come down, after Steelton-Highspire beat Union, 22-8, in the PIAA Class 1A state championship at Chapman Field at Cumberland Valley High School in a state final the Steamrollers believe was won a year ago.

It was won by a young group that didn’t want to relive the tears and angst of a three-and-a-half-hour bus ride home last year.

Strong defense, clutch plays by Jaeion Perry, and solid rushing from Ronald Burnette led Steelton-Highspire to its second PIAA 1A state championship in the last three years and fourth overall (2007, 2008, 2020, and 2022).

The Steamrollers’ defense had two interceptions, one in the end zone, finished with four sacks for minus-40 yards, had six tackles for losses for minus-60 yards, while Burnette scored all three Steelton-Highspire touchdowns, rushed for 126 yards and Perry had a game-high seven receptions for 120 yards and an interception.

Steelton-Highspire (14-1) surrendered one touchdown, while holding Union (13-4) to 172 total yards of offense.

“We didn’t want to forget that (Canton) loss, and it was a long, bad feeling, but that was a little of our motivation in the offseason, because it reminded them every day to continue to work,” Steamrollers’ coach Andrew Erby said. “We knew we would have to see Canton again to get here and it was crazy because it was a long bus ride home (last year).”

Burnette said the Canton image was motivating, though not in the way most would think.

“It was a reminder of why we had to get stronger and why we had to play harder, and you see how hard we worked to get here,” said Burnette, who scored on touchdowns of 3, 1, and 19 yards. “We won this around a year ago this time last year. We were right back in the weight room after that loss last year. We’ll get a break now after this.”

Burnette’s 19-yard fourth-quarter touchdown sealed the victory for the Steamrollers. Though, there were some tense moments.

With 2:21 left in the third quarter, it looked like Union would tie the score at 7-7 after Union quarterback Braylon Thomas snuck into the end zone from a yard out. What revived the drive was a 30-yard completion from Thomas to Dayne Johnke on a third-and-13 play at the Steelton-Highspire 31. But after Union scored, Union head coach Kim Niedbala opted to go for a two-point conversion.

It looked like Union would forge ahead after the Scotties made it, but an illegal shift penalty negated the try and when Union tried again for two, Thomas’ pass went incomplete.

Steelton-Highspire responded quickly.

The Steamrollers needed just three plays to put some distance between them and Union, when Burnette’s second touchdown with 1:07 left in the third gave them a 13-6 lead. Perry’s 33-yard return on the ensuing kickoff made the score possible. It was the second time a big play by Perry set up a Steamroller’s score.

“Defensively early on, we had to communicate better with each other, and we may have had some people a little nervous at first,” Perry said. “There was a lot of work that was put into this team. There was a lot of motivation after we lost in the first round last year. We wanted to prove we were better than that.”

Steelton-Highspire took a slim 7-0 lead into halftime, despite its statistical dominance. The Steamrollers outgained Union, 167-134, averaging 6.1 yards a play to Union’s 4.6. Steelton-Highspire also converted 3 of 6 third downs, to Union’s 2 for 5 on third down and 1 for 3 on fourth down.

The largest blot on Union’s first-half resume was going 0-for-3 in the red zone.

When it looked like Union was heading toward a tying score in the last minute of the half, Thomas threw an interception in the end zone to Bamm Appleby.

“Our kids battled, that’s a good football team over there and we have 26 kids,” Niedbala said. “Our kids battled, that’s all I can say. I knew what I had over here. I knew I had some athletes (when he left Mt. Lebanon to take over at Union). We were in it until late in the fourth quarter.”

On their first two drives, the Scotties reached the red zone, taking the first series to the Steelton-Highspire 5 when they broke down. The big setback was a holding call on a first-and-goal at the five, after Union’s Matt Stanley borrowed seven yards to convert a fourth-and-two at the Steamrollers’ 12.

The holding call pushed the Scotties back to the 15 and that’s where the first drive stalled.

On Union’s second series, the Scotties took advantage of a short field, reaching the Steelton-Highspire 16. The Steamrollers’ Marquis Beasley and Asa Kochvar pulled down Thomas at the 19, where Union’s second drive ended.

This time, Steelton-Highspire answered.

On a third-and-16 at the Steelton-Highspire 13, an early game-changing play came when Steamrollers quarterback Alex Erby flung a floater down field to Perry, who outjumped Union’s Mike Gunn and Dayne Johnke for a 40-yard reception.

The play tilted the field in favor of Steelton-Highspire, which used the momentum of the Perry catch to produce its first score when Burnette knifed in from three yards out.

“I won’t forget that bus ride home last year and I remember what was said to me last year, and that was in my head today,” Alex Erby said. “We kept working, we kept believing and this is what happened.”

And with Steelton-Highspire’s youth, it could happen again.

Scoring Summary

Steelton-Highspire (14-1) 0 7 6 9-22

Union (13-4) 0 0 6 2-8

2nd Quarter

SH – Ronald Burnette 3 run (Judah Hernandez kick), 7:53

3rd Quarter

U – Braylon Thomas 1 run (pass failed), 2:21

SH – Burnette 1 run (kick failed), 1:07

4th Quarter

U – Safety (Alex Erby intentional grounding), 11:13

SH – Burnette 19 run (Hernandez kick), 5:33

SH – Safety (Union holding penalty in the end zone), 4:02

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

ALTOONA – Mansion Park in Altoona is as well known for its wild weather as it is for being a classic venue for PIAA football games. The 6A Semifinal matchup between State College and Harrisburg would only add to the legion.  The first quarter of driving wind and rain turned into three-quarters of gale-force swirling winds that wreaked havoc on passing games and kicks.  Effective running games became the priority in moving the football due to the conditions.  After a lackluster first half, Harrisburg exploded on the ground in quarter three to advance to the PIAA 6A Championship topping State College 27-7.

Harrisburg running back Kyle Williams had a performance for the ages.  The Senior Temple commit ran around and through State College for four second-half TD’s.  The Harrisburg Defense always seemed to be in the right spot all game long   State College quarterbacks were pressured all game long and never seemed to have any time in the pocket to find open receivers.

The first quarter was dominated by the weather.  A driving wind-whipped rainstorm never let either offense get on track or comfortable.  Early in quarter two, State College mounted a drive.  D’antae Steffy got into the end zone for a Little Lions 7-0 lead.  Slippery turf and howling winds took their toll on the offenses for the remainder of the first half.  It remained 7-0 State College as we went to halftime.

Harrisburg took the second half kick and things began to click in the running game. With the offensive line leading the way, the Cougars moved the football.  Kyle Williams scored on a 33-yard TD run. Williams then added the two-pointer to give Harrisburg an 8-7 advantage. After a quick three-and-out, the Harrisburg offense struck again.  Williams plowed in from the one and ther was now a 14-7 Cougar lead. The State College offense again was stymied by the Cougar defense.  Harrisburg made it three TDs on three third-quarter possessions with Kyle William’s electrifying 49-yard TD run to make it 20-7.

Kyle Williams scored his fourth TD of the game for Harrisburg on a one-yard run in quarter four.  It then turned into a game of keep-away as the Cougars secured a 27-7 victory.  Harrisburg moves on to play powerhouse St. Joe’s Prep in the 6A Championship Saturday at 6 PM.  The loss was the only blemish to an outstanding season for State College.

Scoring Summary

Final	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	T
Harrisburg	0	0	20	7	27
State College	0	7	0	0	7

2nd Quarter

SC – D’Antae Sheffey 11-yard run (Ian Brandt kick good) 7:58

3rd Quarter

H – Kyle Williams Jr. 33-yard run (Kyle Williams run good) 9:36

H – Kyle Williams Jr. 1-yard run (pass no good) 3:53

H – Kyle Williams Jr. 49-yard run (run no good) 1:10

4th Quarter

H – Kyle Williams Jr. 1-yard run (Messi Deounodji kick good) 5:40

ALTOONA – One winning streak had to come to an end when Pine Richland and Cocalico played Friday night.  Both Pine Richland and Cocalico made miraculous transformations mid-season that propelled them into the PIAA 5A Semi-Final game. Pine Richland capitalized on its opportunities and held the Cocalico running game in check all game long.  The Rams earned a spot in the PIAA 5A Championship with a 34-12 victory at historic Mansion Park in Altoona.

QB Ryan Palmeri, RB Ethan Pillar, and RE Brad Gelly paced the Rams in the contest.  Palmeri tossed three TD passes and had a rushing TD.  Pillar was the force in the Rams’ ground attack and had a TD.  Gelly had two TD receptions including a 61-yarder on the second play of the game.

Pine Richard got the opening kick and took a 7-0 lead on the second play.  Palmeri hit Gelly down the middle to get things rolling for the Rams.  The second Pine Richland possession was a long, time-consuming drive that Palmeri finished with an eight-yard TD run.   It was 14-0 after one quarter.

Cocalico was never able to move the ball effectively in the first half.  The Pine Richland defense had eight and nine men at the line of scrimmage.  Effective pincer moves of the defensive ends and linebackers kept the Eagles’ running lanes clogged all night. Late in the second quarter, Pine Richland got the ball with good field position and took advantage.  Palmieri was able to hit Andrew Mellis on a 17-yard TD pass to make it 21-0 at the break.

Cocalico pulled out all the stops in the third quarter to try to get back in the game.  The Eagles faked a punt and it led to a TD as Josh Meyer dove in to make it 21-6 P-R.  The Rams would have none of that.  On the next possession, the Rams’ Ethan Pillar led the way down the field. Pillar’s one-yard run made it 28-6. And the back and forth continued in quarter three.  Aaron Longenecker broke off a huge run for Cocalico to set up his short TD run.  The score was 28-12 Rams as a two-pointer failed winding down quarter three.

Early in quarter four, Pine Richland iced the game. An almost identical TD pass from Palmeri to Gelly down the middle made the score 34-12.  It was only a minute in.  The remainder of the fourth quarter had the Pine Richland defense in control.  The Rams came away with an outstanding 34-12 win and a berth in the PIAA 5A Championship game for the 2nd time in four years.

ALTOONA – Southern Columbia’s quest for a sixth consecutive state championship is alive and well. A third straight road game proved to be nothing more than a small inconvenience, as the Tigers once again put together a fantastic second-half performance to break open a tight game. Southern (11-3) forced four turnovers, scored twice on defense, and got 100-yard games out of both Wes Barnes and Braeden Wisloski in a 42-14 win over Bishop Guilfoyle. District 3 champion Trinity (10-4) will await the Tigers in the PIAA Class 2A semifinals next week.

“What I talked to them about after the game is, it’s hard after that game last week against Mount Carmel,” Southern coach Jim Roth said. “That was not a typical district playoff game. It was bigger than that. I kind of felt even though this was a state playoff game – it’s obviously a big deal, and the goal is to win a state title, I felt emotional there could be a little bit of a drop-off. I thought we showed some effects in the first half. We weren’t really sharp and didn’t execute really well. But we fought and got our act together in the second half.”

With the game tied 7-7 at halftime, Southern made the first of many big plays in the second half when Colden Bloom recovered a fumble. On the very next play, Wisloski broke loose on a 20-yard touchdown run. After being limited to just 20 yards on seven carries in the first half, Wisloski finished with 113 yards on 13 carries and two scores that were complemented by a fantastic play on defense later in the game.

The game remained close until early in the fourth quarter. Leading just 13-7, Southern put together an eight-play, 74-yard drive that wore down the Marauders while opening up some separation on the scoreboard. Tyler Arnold converted a 4th-and-1 with a quarterback sneak and Wes Barnes capped off the drive by crossing the goal line from five yards out with 8:10 remaining. Barnes rushed 21 times for 149 yards and matched Wisloski by scoring twice.

“Can’t say enough about our running game,” Roth said. “People know we’re going to line up and run the ball. There’s really not much threat of a whole lot of balance with the pass right now in our offense, but yet our offensive line is doing a good job. The backs are blocking for one another, and of course, they’re running the ball really well.”

Karson Kiesewetter did his best to keep Bishop Guilfoyle in the game. The all-everything quarterback lined up in the backfield to score on a 1-yard run late in the second quarter, but he was generally held in check until late in the game when the outcome was already decided. Louden Murphy intercepted a pair of passes, and Wisloski provided the play of the night when he literally ripped the ball out of Kaden Wyandt’s hands, then promptly returned the fumble 75 yards to put the game away with 6:24 left.

“That was pretty crazy, you don’t see that stuff at this level anymore,” Murphy said. “I used to see stuff like that back in midgets, but I mean (Wisloski) is a playmaker, he’s something different.”

Wisloski put an exclamation point on his big night by scoring on a 23-yard run after Southern stopped Bishop Guilfoyle on downs. With Kiesewetter and the Marauders’ offense still firing away until their very last possession, Murphy stepped in front of a pass and headed the other way on a 95-yard pick-six with just over two minutes remaining. It was a fitting end for a defense that came through in the second half just like it did on a snow-covered field at Mount Carmel last week.

“I had to follow the guy across the play,” Murphy said. “I was a little late, but it kind of went to my benefit. I got to fly underneath. The quarterback didn’t even see me coming, so I just read it perfectly.”

Next week’s matchup against Trinity will mark the 22nd time Southern has appeared in the PIAA semifinals. The Tigers have an incredible 21-1 record in those games. Given where Southern was just five weeks ago, there were plenty of doubters outside the program that questioned whether or not this team would even make it out of the district. Now, they’re just one win away from what has become an annual march to the state championship game.

“It was the toughest regular season we’ve had in a long time,” Roth said. “The goal after losing to Mount Carmel in Week 8 was to keep improving. The main emphasis was the run defense. We felt if we played better to run defense, everything would fall into place. We got a couple of people back – mainly one guy in Wes Barnes and another guy we didn’t have previously in Isaac Carter, who’s been a really nice boost to our defensive front and we’re just playing our best football right now. That’s what we try to emphasize every year is to peak at the right time.”

Southern Columbia 0 7 6 29-42
Bishop Guilfoyle 0 7 0 7-14

Individual Scoring
Second Quarter
SC-Wes Barnes 1 run (Isaac Carter kick) 9:33
BG-Karson Kiesewetter 1 run (Michael Cacciotti kick) 3:02

Third Quarter
SC-Braeden Wisloski 20 run (kick blocked) 10:49

Fourth Quarter
SC-Barnes 5 run (Tyler Arnold run) 8:10
SC-Wisloski 75 fumble return (Carter kick) 6:24
SC-Wisloski 23 run (Carter kick) 4:50
SC-Louden Murphy 95 interception return (Carter kick) 2:28
BG-Dominic Yanoshak 35 pass from Kiesewetter (Cacciotti kick) 1:30

Team Statistics
…………………….SC……………BG
1st downs………16………………12
rush-yds……..46-335……26-88
comp-att-int..1-2-0……..11-26-2
pass yds……10………….249
total yds……345……….337
fumb-lost…..4-2…….2-2
pen-yds…9-73……4-31

Individual Statistics
Rushing-Southern Columbia: Wes Barnes 21-149, 2 TDs; Braeden Wisloski 13-113, 2 TDs; Carter Madden 6-63; Louden Murphy 3-10; Tyler Arnold 1-3; Team 1-(-1); Brayden Andrews 1-(-2). Bishop Guilfoyle: Karson Kiesewetter 18-50, TD; Kaden Wyandt 5-30; Cooper Rother 3-8.

Passing-Southern Columbia: Blake Wise 1-2-0, 10 yds. Bishop Guilfoyle: Kissewetter 11-26-2, 249 yds., TD.

Receiving-Southern Columbia: Barnes 1-10. Bishop Guilfoyle: Dominic Yanoshak 4-99, TD; Rother 3-84; Hamilton Gates 2-40; Trent Adams 1-23; Wyandt 1-3.

HARRISBURG – Coming into week eight action, the Mid Penn Commonwealth Title was a three-team race.  With Cumberland Valley’s loss Friday night, the State College Little Lions had a chance to take control of the League race Saturday afternoon vs Harrisburg at Severance Field.  Using a balanced offensive attack, a solid defensive effort, and flawless special teams, State College (8-0, 5-0) turned back an undermanned Harrisburg (5-2, 4-1) squad 20-6.

Little Lions QB Finn Furmenak managed the game very effectively and had one TD toss.  Placekicker Kajetan Kaszubowski had field goals of 33&25 yards with two extra points.

“This is a tough place to play,” said State College Head Coach Matt Lintal. “Any time you come in here (Severance Field) and get a win, it’s a great win.”  QB Finn Furmenak said, “We definitely had to do multiple things to keep them off guard today.”   “We wanted to use so many of our weapons so they would not know where the ball was going.”

State College struck first in the game.  The Little Lions intercepted a Harrisburg pass on the Cougars opening possession and turned it into a Field Goal.

Underway as @SCSDAthletics Kajetan Kazubowski nails a 25 yard field goal! 3-0 over @Hbg_Sch_Dist 7:21 quarter one @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce pic.twitter.com/etCGaS9AY0

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

Harrisburg’s next possession yielded a big play and points.  Watch this TD from QB Zakii Lewis to RB Kyle Williams. The Cougars were up 6-3 as we ended quarter one.

Check out this 68 yard TD from QB Zakii Lewis to Kyle Williams! @HBGCougar_FBall now up 6-3 over @SCSDAthletics 4:27 quarter 1 @BadgleyBruce @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica pic.twitter.com/kd5ATR51CE

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

The second quarter was a defensive slugfest.  State College finally got things going via the versatile Ty Salazar Ty’s nice punt return and a nifty reception set up a D’Andre Sheffey dive and a 10-6 State College lead.

Touchdown @SCSDAthletics ! Dantae Sheffey dives in from the 2. Big play on the @SCSDAthletics drive this Finn Furmanek to Ty Salazar reception. 10-6 over @HBGCougar_FBall 3:16 until halftime @Mid_Penn @BadgleyBruce @HSFBamerica pic.twitter.com/klrlNbFpQL

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

State College had one final shot before halftime and took advantage.  Furmanek hit Mike Gaul down the seam to make it 17-6 Little Lions at the half.

A fine 32 yard TD reception by @SCSDAthletics Michael Gaul ! Now up 17-6 over @HBGCougar_FBall as we are at halftime @HSFBamerica @Mid_Penn @BadgleyBruce @PremiunSports pic.twitter.com/eo9BYbFd9L

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

The third quarter featured the State College ball control offense grinding away the quarter.  Most of the fourth quarter featured the game of keep away ala State College as well.  The Little Lions closed out the scoring with a field goal and a 20-6 win.

JUST that close for @HBGCougar_FBall as we end quarter 3. After a scoreless 3rd we go to the 4th quarter @scasdathletics 17 @Hbg_Sch_Dist 6 @Mid_Penn @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce @PremiunSports pic.twitter.com/ZNKWLERjDx

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

Kaszubowski a 33 yard Field goal this time for @SCSDAthletics Now up 20-6 over @HBGCougar_FBall 5:22 left @BadgleyBruce @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica pic.twitter.com/fJPXQdyi72

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) October 15, 2022

 

 

 

 

Elijah Nesby scored the first three touchdowns of the game for the WPIAL’s Woodland Hills in the second game of the Saturday slate at Chambersburg’s Peach Bowl.

It ended up being much more difficult to close out William Penn and West Virginia commit Jaheim White.

The Wolverines eventually did hold off the Bearcats 28-24 in a nailbiter that came down to a goal-line stand.

Nesby broke away for a 69-yard score just 1:37 into the first quarter after the Wolverines held the Bearcats to a three-and-out. The Bearcats misplayed the ensuing kickoff, which Angello Reddix recovered for the Wolverines at the William Penn 20-yard-line. Nesby finished off that drive with a nine-yard plunge that made it 14-0 with 7:58 left in the first.

Nesby completed a 13-play, 71-yard drive with a seven-yard touchdown 44 seconds into the second quarter. That gave Woodland Hills a 21-0 lead before halftime and it seemed like the Wolverines (1-0) would run away with it.

“My lineman did a good job blocking,” Nesby said. “Every time I got the ball the safeties started coming down and I had to shake ‘em up. I got some good blockers on my team and I have to score for them.”

William Penn quarterback Sam Stoner hit David Warde for a 52-yard TD to make a comeback manageable at 21-8 with 9:35 left in the second quarter.

But Woodland Hills quarterback Austin Wells pushed it back to a three-possession lead at 28-8 when he darted for a 49-yard touchdown about a minute later. The Wolverines had it in the bag.

Not so fast. The Bearcats recovered a Nesby fumble at the beginning of the third quarter. White ran 41 yards for a score on the next drive. A converted two-point conversion made it 28-16.

Precious Jinyemiema then intercepted Wells which led to a 14-play, 63-yard scoring drive for the Bearcats (0-1). Stoner capped off the drive with a 2-yard rushing touchdown and all of a sudden it was 28-24 with 7:05 left in the game.

Woodland Hills then committed another turnover, a fumble that was recovered by Carmelo McKenzie at the Wolverines’ 40. Passes of 17 and 22 yards from Stoner to White set the Bearcats up in scoring position as time dwindled down in the fourth.

The Wolverines stopped four straight runs, the last from White with 6.9 seconds left in the game resulting in a turnover on downs.

“We had to keep our defensive metal up,” Nesby said. “We didn’t quit during the game. That’s all. We have to stick to the process.”

Nesby finished with 126 rushing yards and Wells passed for 84 yards and rushed for 62 yards and a score for Woodland Hills. Steven Jenkins had an interception.

For William Penn, White rushed for 124 yards and had 67 receiving yards, David Warde had 128 receiving yards, and Stoner passed for 222 yards.

Next up on Friday: William Penn travels to Hempfield and Woodland Hills to Gateway.

Scoring Summary

Woodland Hills (1-0) 14 14 0 0 – 28

William Penn (0-1) 0 8 8 8 – 24

1st Quarter

WH- Nesby 69 run (Mroz kick) – 10:23

WH-Nesby 9 run (Mroz kick)-7:58

2nd Quarter

WH-Nesby 7 run (Mroz kick) – 11:16

WP-Warde 52 pass from Stoner (White run) – 9:35

WH-Well 49 run (Mroz kick) – 8:34

3rd Quarter

WP-White 41 run (White run) – 7:02

4th Quarter

WP-Stoner 2 run (Warde pass from Stoner) – 7:05

John Shuster and Windber Area Football were coming off their first district title game appearance since 2017. The Ramblers hadn’t won since 2008. They faced top-seeded Westinghouse in District 5-8 Class 2A championship last season and fell in a heartbreaking 35-34 loss when a field-goal attempt went wide right at the end of regulation.

The Ramblers had 11 seniors on last year’s team but returned Shuster, who rushed for 1,284 and 22 touchdowns as a junior. Shuster and the Ramblers have been itching to start a new season and get that district championship loss out of their minds.

“We’re just trying to bounce back from last year and do our own thing this year,” Shuster said. “We want to take it farther.”

That frustration was released Saturday as Windber from District 5  blew out District 3 Fairfield 57-0 at the Chambersburg Peach Bowl. The lead ballooned to 35-0 by halftime with the Ramblers doing whatever they wanted on the ground. Shuster had 140 yards and three TDs. Colin Marx had 100 yards and a TD, and Luke Hostetler added another score on the ground.

With the running-clock rule in effect in the third quarter, Windber added to its advantage with a 39-yard touchdown run from Blake Klosky and Hostetler’s second touchdown of the day, this time from 23 yards. Lucas Rummel pounded it in for a four-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to expand the lead to 57-0.

Windber and Shuster, now the senior leader who recently picked up an offer from Clarion and has interest from Saint Francis, are aiming to keep the ground success up to get back to the district championship. Shuster hopes to rush for 1,000 yards or more in his fourth consecutive season.

Scoring Summary

Windber (1-0) 21 14 14 8 – 57

Fairfield (0-1) 0 0 0 0 – 0

1st Quarter

W-Shuster 22 run (Costa kick) – 10:26

W-Shuster 10 run (Costa kick) – 2:33

W-Hostetler 3 run (Costa kick) – :24.4

2nd Quarter

W-Marx 65 run (Costa kick) – 6:49

W-Shuster 34 run (Costa kick) – 1:15

3rd Quarter

W-Klosky 39 run (Costa kick blocked)-7:56

W-Hostetler 23 run (Chicarell run)-3:13

4th Quarter

W-Rummel 4 run (Chicarell run)-5:51

Mt. Lebanon coach Bob Palko had the game ball tucked under his arm, and looked back over his shoulder at his victorious team Saturday night at Hersheypark Stadium, after the Blue Devils’ historic 35-17 PIAA Class 6A victory over traditional powerhouse St. Joseph’s Prep.

What was it that made the Blue Devils so special, what was it that they had to overcome to get here?

“The belief, you look around and you see how many times St. Joe’s has been here, and it was believing we could play with them,” Palko said. “You go talent-for-talent, maybe we don’t, but with a group of kids together that believe in each other, it’s beautiful and we did it.”

The Blue Devils did.

They finished their best season in school history by winning their first state title by going 15-0, while ending St. Joe Prep’s reign as three-time state champions.

Mt. Lebanon did it with a solid ground attack, mixed with the smart decisions made by senior quarterback Joey Daniels.

Alex Tecza clinched the victory for Mt. Lebanon with a 2-yard run with 4:46 left to play, which put the Blue Devils up, 28-17, and then added another score for good measure.

“Prep is very physical and they have a lot of athletes on that team, and I think we started to believe we could do this and we had a lot of doubters,” Daniels said. “The hardest thing for us was ignoring all of the outside noise and getting it done, which we did.”

After a great start, Prep found itself in a hole. Mt. Lebanon scored on three of its first four possessions.

The Hawks gave up two Mt. Lebanon touchdowns on two of the Blue Devils’ first three plays. Initially, Mt. Lebanon’s Mike Beiersdorf took a slant pass from Daniels for 86 yards for a touchdown with 6:54 left in the opening quarter.

Then, Eli Heidenreich ran 13 yards untouched for a 14-7 Blue Devils’ lead with 6:11 left in the first quarter—amounting to two touchdowns in 43 seconds. Prep didn’t allow that in an entire game against Garnet Valley in the state semifinal game.

Mt. Lebanon’s two scores came in response to a Josiah Trotter 4-yard touchdown reception from Samaj Jones on the Hawks’ first drive of the game. Prep took the opening kickoff 74 yards over 10 plays that took 4:48.

Early on, Mt. Lebanon kept crashing the edges negating the Hawks’ perimeter speed.

On the first play of the second quarter, the Hawks suffered a major defensive breakdown when Daniels spotted a wide-open Jack Smith for just his fifth catch of the year—for 45 yards and it came on third-and-six at the Blue Devils’ 6.

Three plays later, Daniels hit a wide-open Tecza for a 6-yard TD with 10:15 left in the second quarter and a 21-7 Blue Devils lead.

“We knew this game would be a dog fight, and we put so much work to get here,” Tecza said. “We knew we were the best, and we knew we were the best, we were the only ones who knew we could get to this point.”

The Hawks answered when Jones directed a 10-play, 65-yard drive that ended with him barreling in from four yards out to pull Prep within 21-14 with 6:03 left in the half.

A huge sequence came in the closing seconds of the half when the Hawks were pressing for the tying score. Jones was stopped at the Mt. Lebanon 2 with less than :10 remaining, forcing St. Joe’s to try a 20-yard field goal that sailed wide left, with the Blue Devils going into the intermission up, 21-14.

“I think the problems we gave them is because we’re so versatile,” Tecza said. “You game plan against me, Eli will hurt you. You game plan against Eli, that opens things up for me and Joey.”

The Blue Devils’ Matthew Wertz played a major role, picking off a deflected pass in the third quarter, then grabbed another Jones pass with 6:32 left in the quarter, thwarting another Hawks’ drive.

“We thought we had to take their quarterback out of the game, and I think we did a pretty good job of it,” Palko said. “Our defense played really well. Offensively, we did some things formation-wise to put those guys in binds and we were fortunate.”

And history makers.

Scoring Summary

Mt. Lebanon (15-0) 14 7 0 14-35

St. Joseph’s Prep (11-3) 7 7 3 0-17

1st Quarter

SJP – Josiah Trotter 4 pass from Samaj Jones (Antonio Chadha kick), 7:12

ML – Mike Beiersdorf 86 pass from Joseph Daniels (Noah Bhuta kick), 6:54

ML – Eli Heidenreich 13 run (Bhuta kick), 6:11

2nd Quarter

ML – Alexander Tecza 6 pass from Daniels (Bhuta kick), 10:15

SJP – Jones 4 run (Chadha kick), 6:03

3rd Quarter

SJP – Chadha 26 FG, 1:55

4th Quarter

ML – Tecza 2 run (Bhuta kick), 4:46

ML – Tecza 4 run (Bhuta kick), 3:19

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Central Valley had not lost a football game since December 7, 2019—at the PIAA Class 3A state championship. Wyomissing Area had not lost a football game since November 27, 2020—to Central Valley, at the PIAA Class 3A state championship.

Central Valley had a 26-game winning streak, the longest in the state. Wyomissing had a 15-game winning streak, the second-longest in the state.

On a gray, overcast Saturday afternoon at Hersheypark Stadium, something had to break in the PIAA Class 3A state championship between two teams that have built a cross-state rivalry.

It was Central Valley (15-0) that was saved by a fourth-quarter play by its stellar tailback Landon Alexander to pull out a 7-0 victory to win its second-straight PIAA Class 3A state championship ending Wyomissing’s 15-game winning streak and second-straight bid at a state title.

It was the lowest-scoring state championship game since Farrell’s 6-0 victory over Southern Columbia in the 1995 Class 1A state championship. It’s also the first time Wyomissing (15-1) was shut out since a 49-0 washout by Middletown on November 16, 2017, in the first round of the 3A state playoffs.

Alexander finally broke what had been a 36-minute battle of wills, when he burst free down the sideline after breaking several tackles for a 28-yard touchdown with 9:54 left to play.

“I knew where the play had to go and with their defense, it was hard to run the ball, because they were moving and shifting, and a shout out to their defense, but I kept stretching and stretching it, and saw a little hole,” Alexander said. “I shrunk those pads and went in there. This is my senior year and winning back-to-back with boys that I’ve been playing with since I was younger, I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

After the Alexander touchdown, the Spartans bounced right back on the ensuing kickoff, when Drew Eisenhower scrambled 63 yards to the Central Valley 28. Wyomissing reached the Central Valley seven with 6:34 left, when Central Valley jumped offsides at the seven, pushing the ball to the Warriors’ three.

That’s when Pitt-bound 6-foot-3, 280-pound defensive tackle Sean FitzSimmons came knifing through the Wyomissing line on fourth-and-goal forcing Spartans’ quarterback Ben Zechman to fumble at the Central Valley 9, ending Wyomissing’s only serious threat of the game.

“I watched film all week and I knew their guard was back, and he was going to pull,” FitzSimmons recalled. “I knew big 74 (Wyomissing tackle Jven Williams) was going to come down and block it, so the guard could pull. I had to beat him off the jump, went right through, and got to the quarterback.

“This means a lot. This is like my family; these are my brothers and I got a little emotional there at the end. This means a lot winning (back-to-back).”

On third-and-five with 1:48 to play in the third quarter, Wyomissing senior defensive back Thomas Grabowski came up with the play of the game—to that point, snaring a one-handed interception at the Central Valley one. It staved off yet another Central Valley threat, and it preserved the scoreless tie entering the fourth quarter.

“I haven’t seen a film of the touchdown play, all I know is our defense did a great job and their defensive team, we couldn’t block them,” Wyomissing coach Bob Wolfrum said. “We got a few plays off early, but there was nothing we could do consistently. It’s really frustrating when there is nothing that you can call your own. We couldn’t. They got one play. We made a lot of great stops on defense.”

Alexander, who broke the school career rushing record with 3,929 yards rushing this season, finished with a game-high 231 yards rushing on 35 carries and the game’s only score, averaging 6.6 yards a carry.

The teams went into halftime scoreless, making it the first time this season that either team was held scoreless in the first half. The last time Central Valley was held scoreless in the first half came on November 16, 2019, in the WPIAL Class 3A championship, trailing 6-0 to Aliquippa, eventually to come back and win 13-12 in overtime.

“They were big upfront and we couldn’t get anything going up front, and on the touchdown run, we sealed the end off and (Alexander) made a great cut and he was off to the races,” Grabowski said. “I’ll always remember the brotherhood on this team. There’s nothing you can compare it to.”

Both Central Valley and Wyomissing were 1-for-6 on third-down conversions in the first half, while the Warriors eventually converted 5 of 14 third downs to Wyomissing’s 2 of 12. Central Valley had 313 yards of total offense, with just 17 yards coming through the air, while Wyomissing had 113 yards of total offense, 102 on the ground.

Central Valley, however, had its chances in the first two quarters that tested Wyomissing’s defense early—and the Spartans passed.

The Spartans won the toss and deferred, turning the ball over to Central Valley and Alexander. The Warriors took the opening kickoff to Wyomissing three-yard-line, where they were forced to try a 24-yard field goal by Serafino DeSantis, which was blocked by the Spartans’ junior defensive lineman Jamhi Jackson.

Alexander played a huge role on the opening drive, taking four-straight handoffs for 49 yards. By the end of the first quarter, he had 56 yards on seven carries.

The other key Spartan defensive moment came on the first play of the second quarter. Central Valley tried to convert a fourth-and-seven at Wyomissing’s 27. However, Antwon Johnson’s short pass to Jayvin Thompson was snuffed out by Spartan defensive back Nevin Carter at the Wyomissing 24.

Central Valley went from averaging 7.7 yards a rush, to 2.2 yards/per rush, with no first downs throughout the second quarter.

Central Valley (15-0) 0 0 0 7 7

Wyomissing Area (15-1) 0 0 0 0 0

Fourth-Quarter

Central Valley – Landon Alexander 28 run (Serafino DeSantis kick), 9:54

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Cade Yacamelli was losing sleep. Carter Green was sitting by himself in an empty parking lot urging his teammates forward. John Ruane was looking at game film and nodding his head, that this could be solved.

In mid-September, Penn-Trafford had lost its second-straight game, sitting at 2-2. Its star player, Yacamelli, was convinced things would eventually click. Its quarterback, Green, was telling his teammates in group chats “never again.” Ruane knew his team was far better than how they were playing.

Turns out that they were all right, when their ideas all merged on Friday night at Hersheypark Stadium, when the Warriors won their first PIAA state football championship, beating mighty Imhotep Charter, 17-14, in the Class 5A title in overtime on a Nate Schlessinger 24-yard field goal.

Yacamelli, bound for Wisconsin, rushed for 100 yards on 21 carries, and scored once, while Imhotep Charter sophomore tailback Tre McLeod pounded away for a game-high 185 yards on 28 carries, and Rahmir Stewart scored both Panther touchdowns, his second came with 7:29 left and seemingly gave Imhotep the game.

No one thought Penn-Trafford (13-2) would get to the state championship—let alone win it.

“We were 2-2 at one point this year, and I remember I came home one day and I was really frustrated, and I was getting no sleep,” Yacamelli recalled. “I knew what we had. It just wasn’t clicking for us. All of a sudden, we went back to practice, I talked to my coaches, I talked to my team, and stuff started clicking. And then some more, and some more. We kept getting better every week.

“This program is also built on being the underdog. Finally, we win something, and finally, people give us credit. They have D-I guys, and people have to start respecting this program and this is my last game, unfortunately, and of course, this is satisfaction and clarity.”

Imhotep went up 14-7 on Stewart’s five-yard run and two-point conversion with 7:29 left to play.

That’s when the Warriors responded with a 12-play, 56-yard drive, ending with Jack Jollie’s two-yard pass reception of Conlan Greene’s jump pass and Schlessinger’s extra point with :34 left in regulation.

Imhotep won the overtime toss and elected to defend. That resulted in Schlessinger’s field goal.

Everything fell apart for Imhotep in overtime. First, the Panthers jumped offsides, which pushed the ball back to the 15 (in high school each team gets the ball at 10 with four downs to score). After a Stewart five-yard run, a high snap placed the ball back at the 26. Imhotep, a team known for its potent ground game, couldn’t move—and the celebration began for Penn-Trafford.

On September 17, Penn-Trafford lost to rival Peters Township, 28-14, under a morass of penalties and mistakes. Monday, September 20 may have been the most important day of the Warriors’ season.

“The Monday after we lost to Peters Township and I said to the coaches on Saturday morning, we’re still good, we just can’t kill ourselves with penalties and turnovers,” Ruane said. “But saves us when those kids came in with an angry attitude and decided to fix it. They wanted to turn the season around. That Monday was eye-opening to all of us. We got on a roll and we haven’t looked back since.”

Imhotep (11-2) finally broke the scoreless tie with a 12-play, 67-yard drive—all on the ground. The Panthers only had to convert two third downs, before Rahmir Stewart scored on a fourth-and-6 when he swept outside untouched for the first score of the game with 3:29 left in the half.

Penn-Trafford responded with an eight-play, 65-yard drive. The big play was the twisting, turning 36-yard run by Yacamelli, placing the Warriors at the Imhotep two-yard line.

As the final seconds of the half were disappearing, Yacamelli plowed into the end zone from two yards out with just :04 left. Schlessinger added the extra point and the early difference.

“Imhotep are monsters but we felt our chemistry together, that was the difference, we believed in each other,” Green said. “I remember after the loss to Peters Township and I remember sitting in the car for 30 minutes that night and I went on a group chat with my team and said ‘never again.’ It helps having Cade.”

For the most part, Imhotep did a good job containing Yacamelli in the first half. The 6-foot, 205-pound senior carried 11 times for 68 yards, averaging 5.8 yards a carry.

Imhotep ruled the time of possession, 39 to 18. The Panthers rushed for 219 yards, but they were also penalized 12 times for 81 yards, many of those flags coming on third-and-short.

“At the end of the day, we had a chance to win, and we didn’t execute,” Imhotep coach Devon Johnson said. “It’s heartbreaking. But I’m proud of my guys. They fought all year. I told my team to walk off this field with their heads held high.”

Scoring Summary

Penn-Trafford (13-2) 0 7 0 7 3-17

Imhotep Charter (11-2) 0 6 0 8-14

2nd Quarter

IC – Rahmir Stewart 12 run (run failed), 3:29

PT – Cade Yacamelli 2 run (Nate Schlessinger kick), :04

4th Quarter

IC – Stewart 5 run (Stewart run), 7:29

PT – Jack Jollie 2 pass from Conlan Greene (Schlessinger kick), :34

OT

PT – Schlessinger 24 FG

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

As they walked off the Southern Columbia team bus on Friday morning, they were really hard to miss. Passengers looking down from planes could have spotted Gavin Garcia’s leopard-print suit and Connor Gallagher’s glittering gold disco ball ensemble from miles away.

It kind of personified the Tigers. They’re confident. They look good and they play well. They’re also tough to miss in December. Southern Columbia did what it always seems to do in Hershey in December, and that’s winning another PIAA Class 2A state championship.

On their 20th trip to the state finals, the Tigers (15-1) won their 12th overall and fifth-straight state championship, besting Serra Catholic, 62-25, at Hersheypark Stadium. The fifth-straight state title equals the Tigers’ state record five-straight state title runs from 2002-2006.

Garcia, headed to Kent State, led the way with 162 yards rushing and three touchdowns, and Braeden Wisloski scored four times.

“I have four-straight championships and I’m forever grateful for the coaching staff to believe in me as a freshman, and I was small, I mean really small,” Garcia said. “Hey, we’re a group that believes in one another and we’re confident. It’s why we wore the crazy suits coming here. It’s who we are.”

This was a different Tigers’ team than Southern Columbia teams of the past. Tigers’ legendary coach Jim Roth spoke about the adversity of injuries this Southern Columbia team faced and how they overcame those obstacles.

“The last two years we were able to maintain a level of success after losing so much outstanding talent in 2019,” Roth said. “I’ll remember this season was probably the most injuries we’ve experienced in any season. Our numbers are the lowest they’ve been in a long time. We had 38 active players to start this year. For years, we were in the 50s.

“Because of the injuries and lack of numbers, it was a really challenging year, not just in some games because of kids being out with injuries, but in day-to-day practice. When you don’t have big numbers, and some people are injured, you’re kind of struggling to run a scout team and do what you need to do in practice.

“As far as this senior group, they’re as loose and carefree as any that we’ve had. This group comes in and they’re relaxed and loose, but to be honest, I think the game got to us for a little while, where we just weren’t in the flow of games as we had been the last few weeks.”

As the game progressed, Southern Columbia returned to the high level that the Tigers are used to playing.

It looked like the game was over by halftime.

Southern Columbia received a push early. After taking the opening kickoff, Wisloski scored on a 1-yard run with 9:41 left in the first quarter. Serra Catholic (15-2) responded, using short passes to grind its way up the field.

The Eagles tied it at 7-7 when Max Rocco hit Terrell Booth with a 56-yard touchdown pass with 6:51 left in the opening quarter.

That seemed to wake up the Tigers, who answered with consecutive scores. One was Wisloski’s 63-yard touchdown reception from Blake Wise, on a third-and-19 play with 11:05 left in the half, followed by Garcia’s 32-yard TD run with 6:37 remaining the second quarter. A holding call negated Wisloski’s third touchdown, though it didn’t stop the Tigers.

It was Wisloski that made it possible for the Tigers to get that lost TD back, with an interception late in the second quarter, hauling in a deflection. It set up Garcia’s second score, a 5-yard bull rush through the middle of the Serra Catholic offense with :46 left in the half.

It was Garcia’s 40th rushing TD of the season and it gave the Tigers a seemingly commanding 28-7 halftime lead.

By then, Garcia had 106 yards rushing on 13 carries, averaging 8.2 yards a carry. Southern Columbia had outgained the Eagles, 239-99 in total yards, and more importantly, had made Serra Catholic completely one dimensional.

Serra Catholic had minus-48 yards rushing and averaged minus-4.4 a carry.

The Eagles ran off 28 plays in the first half—nine of the 28 were for negative yards.

In the third quarter, the Tigers got a jolt. Southern Columbia had won its previous four state titles by an average of 44.5 points a game. Serra Catholic posed a different threat. The Eagles jammed the line of scrimmage and attacked the gaps, momentarily shutting down the Southern Columbia rushing attack.

Gallagher, a 5-11, 165-pound senior defensive back, came up with a crucial play with 6:17 left in the third quarter when he intercepted a pass at the Southern Columbia four, just when it looked like Serra Catholic was showing signs of life.

On the next possession, Serra Catholic did. The Eagles scored on a 30-yard Rocco-to-Jayvon Holt connection with 2:48 left in the third quarter—on fourth-and-21.

The third quarter featured a number of uncharacteristic Southern Columbia errors. The Tigers had a 31-yard Garcia touchdown run called back for holding, and Serra Catholic responded with a Rocco-to-Zack Weber 80-yard score on a scrambling third-and-10 play with :09 left in the third quarter.

In that third quarter, Southern Columbia was outgained, 117-17, and the Tigers had a total of three touchdowns called back due to penalties during the game.

Garcia’s third touchdown, a 21-yard haul with 6:15 to play, clinched it in a wild fourth quarter that saw six touchdowns scored.

“As time went on, we started to relax and play a high level of football that we’re capable of playing,” Roth said. “You look at Gavin, and he’s one of those guys that we had in the past, that when they were challenged, they made big plays. We’ll miss that moving forward.”

Scoring Summary

Serra Catholic (15-2) 7 0 12 6-25

Southern Columbia (15-1) 7 21 0 34-62

1st Quarter

Southern Col. – Braeden Wisloski 1 run (Isaac Carter kick), 9:14

Serra Cath. – Terrell Booth 56 pass from Max Rocco (Caden Bauer kick), 6:51

2nd Quarter

Southern Col. – Wisloski 63 pass from Blake Wise (Carter kick), 11:05

Southern Col. – Gavin Garcia 32 run (Carter kick), 6:37

Southern Col. – Garcia 5 run (Carter kick), :46

3rd Quarter

Serra Cath. – Jayvon Holt 30 pass from Rocco (kick failed), 2:48

Serra Cath. – Zack Weber 80 pass from Rocco (kick failed), 0:09

4th Quarter

Southern Col. – Wisloski 4 run (run failed), 11:50

Southern Col. – Garcia 21 run (run failed), 6:15

Southern Col. – Wisloski 7 run (Carter kick), 4:14

Southern Col. – Matt Masala 2 run (Carter kick), 2:54

Serra Cath. – Booth 82 pass from Rocco (kick failed), 1:04

Southern Col. – Louden Murphy 70 run (Carter Madden pass from Carter kick), :33

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on Twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

A freshman willed his team to victory in what amounted to the biggest game for every player on the field up to this point in their careers in the PIAA Class 4A championship Thursday night at Hersheypark Stadium.

Tiqwai “Tikey” Hayes rushed for 139 yards and three touchdowns, and also picked up a crucial first down by a hair, to lead Aliquippa to a 34-27 victory over Bishop McDevitt for its second PIAA championship since 2018.

The WPIAL champion Quips (13-1), a 1A school enrollment-wise, won their 12th game in a row and handed the District 3 champion Crusaders (12-2) their second loss of the season.

The PIAA’s “Competition Formula” could force the Quips into 5A in 2022, but that’s a story for a little bit later.

Aliquippa and Hayes, who picked up an offer from Penn State a few weeks ago, ran behind an athletic, gargantuan offensive line and tallied 225 yards on the ground while the Crusaders only mustered 50 rushing yards. Hayes’ fellow back John Tracy rushed for 78 yards and a score.

“They’re just big guys,” Hayes said about his offensive line. “There’s a full five of them like I don’t know what you can do about them. If I didn’t have them I’d be getting stuffed every play. And they’re fast. It’s crazy.”

That line features 6-7, 365-pound Tyrese Jones; 6-4, 345-pound Naquan Crowder, 6-4, 325-pound Jason McBride; 6-2, 280-pound Neco Eberhardt; and 5-10, 200-pound Braylon Wilcox. That’s over 1,500 pounds of strength coming at you every play.

Just as importantly, the beef along the line translated to the defensive side of the ball as the Quips neutralized the Crusaders’ talented running back duo of Marquese Williams (12 carries for 38 yards) and Cyncir Bowers (3 carries for 14 yards).

But it wasn’t all fun and games for Aliquippa as the big plays from Bishop McDevitt’s stable of playmakers kept it in the game.

The Crusaders came out on fire, scoring just 55 seconds in when freshman QB Stone Saunders, who has offers from Maryland and Michigan, hit Old Dominion commit Mario Easterly for a 59-yard touchdown on a drag route that Easterly took to the house.

The Crusaders recovered their own ensuing kickoff at the Aliquippa 27 and Williams ran it in from 16 yards to finish the drive. Bishop McDevitt led 13-0 just 2:13 into the game.

The Quips then got to work behind the offensive line and Hayes burst for a 42-yard score with 5:57 remaining in the first to make it 13-7.

Sophomore backer Cameron Lindsey got his mitts on a Saunders pass on the next drive and returned it for a 29-yard touchdown, giving the Quips their second score in 58 seconds and the lead at 14-13.

Saunders hit Kamil Foster for a 55-yard strike 1:01 into the second quarter and the Crusaders regained the lead.

Tracy finished a drive with a 2-yard gash with 5:16 left in the half to tie it 20-20, which would hold as the halftime score.

Aliquippa embarked on another drive toward the end of the third quarter and faced a 4th-and-7 from the Bishop McDevitt 26-yard-line. The Quips went for it and quarterback Quentin Goode made an incredible throw to Cyair Clark, who made an incredible catch at the 4.

The Crusaders, notably a huge stick by linebacker Ryan Russo on second down, held firm and forced another fourth down. The Quips converted again as Hayes pounded it in from the 1 to make it 27-20 on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Hayes added his third touchdown from 8 yards out with 9:21 left in the game after a big catch-and-run from Clark, who finished with 75 receiving yards.

The Crusaders didn’t back down as Saunders hit Williams, who tiptoed down the sideline, for a nifty 18-yard touchdown with 3:02 left to make it a one-possession game at 34-27.

On the final drive, the Quips faced a 4th-and-1 from the 43 with 2:36 left and Hayes picked up the first down by an inch, effectively ending the game as the Crusaders had used all of their timeouts.

Saunders finished with 237 passing yards and three touchdowns and Easterly had 126 receiving yards and the touchdown for the Crusaders, who continue their quest for their second state title and first since 1995.

“It was a great four years I had here,” Easterly said. “To be in a state championship my senior season was great. I had a fun experience all season. Just fell a little bit short. I’d love to win that, but we lost to a really good football team and we were even with them.

“We faced a good LaSalle team Week 1 and took a tough loss. Ever since then we were on a steamroll. We got better every week and made it to the state championship. Like I said things didn’t go our way. It’s alright; they have a lot of young talent coming back so hopefully, they can do it better next year.”

As previously mentioned, Aliquippa would be a Class 1A school based on its enrollment. The Quips success as a football program bumped them to 3A and eventually 4A. Now they’ll be headed to 5A after this state championship unless they win an appeal. So how do they stick with, and beat, these bigger schools with much deeper rosters?

“Hard work and a lot of conditioning,” Hayes said. “If we didn’t have our conditioning coach, I don’t think we’d be able to play with some of these guys. It’s all conditioning and it helps a lot.”

And where does Hayes, a state champion as a freshman, go from here?

“Keep moving forward,” he said. “Get a good offseason in. Chill, lift weights. Come back faster and better than I ever was.”

That’s a scary thought.

 

STATS:

Bishop McDevitt

Passing: Saunders 13-26-1–237 (3 TD).

Rushing: Williams 12-38 (TD), Bowers 3-14, Saunders 4-(-9).

Receiving: Easterly 4-126 (TD), Foster 2-61 (TD), Williams 3-24 (TD), Scott 2-15, Kinsey 1-9, Bowers 1-2.

Penalty: 6-39.

Punt-avg: 4-32.8.

First downs: 10.

Fumbles-lost: 1-0.

 

Aliquippa

Passing: Goode 9-12-0–127.

Rushing: Hayes 32-139 (3 TD), Tracy 18-78 (TD), Martinez 2-4, Goode 1-2, Clark 1-2.

Receiving: Clark 3-75, Thornton 3-22, Martinez 2-27, Banks 1-3.

Penalty: 9-52.

Punt-avg: 5-27.4.

Fumbles-lost: 0-0.

 

Scoring summary

Aliquippa 14 6 0 14 — 34

Bishop McDevitt 13 7 0 7 — 27

1st Quarter

BM-Easterly 59 pass from Saunders (Chiha kick) – 11:05 (0-7)

BM- Williams 16 run (Chiha kick failed) – 9:47 (0-13)

A-Hayes 42 run (Gyadu-Mantey kick) – 5:57 (7-13)

A-Lindsey 29 int return (Gyadu-Mantey kick) – 4:59 (14-13)

2nd Quarter

BM-Foster 55 pass from Saunders (Chiha kick) – 10:59 (14-20)

A- Tracy 2 run (run failed) – 5:16 (20-20)

4th Quarter

A-Hayes 1 run (Gyadu-Mantey kick) – 11:57 (27-20)

A-Hayes 8 run (Gyadu-Mantey kick) – 9:21 (34-20)

BM-Williams 18 pass from Saunders (Chiha kick) – 3:02 (34-27)

CATAWISSA – It didn’t take long for Southern Columbia to take control of Richland Friday night in Catawissa. The visiting Rams committed a pair of costly turnovers in the opening quarter, and the home Tigers dominated all facets of the game to roll to a 62-20 victory.

The win advances Southern Columbia in the PIAA Class 2A State Playoffs, where the team will play in the State Semifinals next week. Richland’s season comes to a close in the quarterfinal round. The Rams close out the season with an overall record of 11-3.

Richland won the toss and chose to defer to the second half in hopes of slowing down the Southern Columbia offensive attack in the early going. Unfortunately for the Rams, it took just two plays from the Tigers to find pay dirt and strike first in the contest. Following a kickoff out of bounds and a chunk play by running back Braeden Wisloski, senior running back and Kent State-bound Gavin Garcia ripped a 57-yard run to put Southern Columbia on the board just 20 seconds into the game.

Southern’s rushing attack kept Richland off balance all night, as the Tigers rolled to 408 yards on the ground on just 35 attempts for an 11.6 yard-per-carry clip.

“Our line did a great job tonight,” said Garcia of his team’s rushing attack. “Every single run we were coming back in the huddle saying ‘Wow. There are holes everywhere..’ The line being able to make those holes for us with the elite backfield that we have really shown us how good we really can be.”

Following the opening drive by the Tigers, Richland drove right down the field themselves to knot things back up at seven points apiece. The Rams used a much more methodical drive – marching down the field on a four-minute drive that consisted of eight plays.

The scoring drive culminated with a four-yard run by senior quarterback Kellan Stahl. Stahl scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in the game.

Southern Columbia’s rushing attack continued to rip off big plays on the team’s second drive. On the second play from scrimmage, Garcia ripped off a 20-yard run that put him over the 2,000 rushing yard mark on the season. Garcia’s impressive stats on the ground this season have him running for nearly nine yards per carry while averaging over 150 rushing yards per game.

Wisloski also ripped off a 16-yard run on the drive before Garcia scored two plays later on a 17-yard run.

The game-changing moment came on the following drive. Richland possessed the ball down 14-7 and needed to maintain pace with the Southern Columbia offense. On a 2^nd-and-7 from their own 37-yard line, Richland QB Kellan Stahl launched a pass deep down the near sideline. The ball was intercepted by Southern defensive back Conner Gallagher whose tight coverage led to the easy pick.

Southern once again drove the field without attempting a single pass. The Tigers went 69 yards on seven plays – capped off by a 2-yard rushing score by Wes Barnes – to go up 21-7.

On the ensuing kickoff, disaster struck yet again for the visiting Rams. A fumble on the kick return was recovered by Gallagher once again. On the first play following the fumble, Southern Columbia quarterback Blake Wise dropped back and delivered a dime to Garcia on his first pass attempt of the night to give the Tigers a 28-7 lead with still 36 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.

“On that interception, I just looked up and the ball was right there,” said Gallagher. “On the fumble, Carter Madden punched it out and I was at the right place at the right time. We were all trying to strip the ball and that time it worked out.”

The quick swing in momentum certainly gave Southern enough breathing room and seemingly took the wind out of Richland’s sails. The Rams regained possession and went three-and-out on a sack and back-to-back incomplete passes.

Southern once again tacked on a touchdown when Garcia scored from 26 yards out. In all, Garcia accounted for six Southern Columbia touchdowns in the game; five coming on the ground and one through the air. He finished the night with a game-high 206 rushing yards.

“If you get (Gavin Garcia) started, he’s just so good at that second move.” said coach Jim Roth of his D1-bound senior. “Generally, if we’re giving him that initial hole he can get to the next level and its just so hard for guys in that second and third level to tackle him in the open field. He has a ton of burst.”

Richland continued to compound mistakes on its next drive. On just the second play of the drive, multiple Southern Columbia defenders converged on Stahl and the ball popped free. Linebacker Garrett Garcia scooped the ball up and took it back for a score to put Southern up 41-7 just three and a half minutes into the second quarter.

With the game seemingly out of reach already, Richland put together a nice drive to close the half which gave them a bit of life considering they were receiving the second-half kickoff. Stahl recorded his second rushing score of the game after the Rams drove 80 yards 11 plays. Stahl finally began connecting with his receivers on the drive as he went 5-for-7 for 54 yards through the air on the drive.

In the second half, Richland failed to score on its first two opportunities and Southern finally put the game in the mercy rule on a five-yard run by Gavin Garcia. Both teams tacked on late touchdowns, Southern on a 56-yard run by Wisloski and Richland on a five-yard run by Lanigan McCulty.

In all, coach Roth was happy with how his team dominated in all phases of the game.

“The thought coming in was that if our offense could do what they’ve been doing, and we didn’t give up the big play, that would be key.” said Roth “The way the offense was playing tonight, our defensive effort was more than sufficient. The offensive line did a real good job, and all three backs ran well.”

Southern Columbia (13-1) advances to the PIAA Class 2A State Semifinals with the win where the team looks to face Northern Lehigh (11-3). The Bulldogs topped West Catholic 48-24 in their quarterfinal matchup.

 

Southern Columbia 62, Richland 20 

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Richland                                 7  7  0  6 – 20

Southern Columbia             28  20  7  7 – 62

First Quarter

SC—Gavin Garcia 57-yard run (Isaac Carter PAT Good), 11:40.

R—Kellan Stahl 4-yard run (Griffin Larue PAT Good), 7:41.

SC—Garcia 17-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 5:29.

SC—Wes Barnes 2-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 0:54

SC—Garcia 25-yard reception from Blake Wise (Carter PAT Good), 0:36

Second Quarter

SC—Garcia 26-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 9:24.

SC—Garrett Garcia 7-yard fumble return (PAT No Good), 8:36.

SC—Gav. Garcia 11-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 4:08.

R—Stahl 1-yard run (Larue PAT Good), 0:34

Third Quarter

SC—Gav. Garcia 5-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 4:19.

Fourth Quarter

SC—Braeden Wisloski 56-yard run (Carter PAT Good), 11:46.

R—Lanigan McCulty 5-yard run (PAT No Good), 4:20.

TEAM STATISTICS         R                 SC

First downs                             20                12

Total yards                              305             464

Rushes-yards                         32-117        35-408

Yards passing                        188             56

Passing (comp.-att.-int.)       16-34-1      3-4-0

Fumbles-lost                           4-2              1-0

Penalties-yards                      0-0              5-31

 

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Richland: Sam Penna 3-49, Stahl 12-27 2TD, Tucker Lindrose 4-22, Grayden Lewis 9-20, McCulty 1-5 TD, Draveyn Plachy 1-3, Joe Penna 1-0, TEAM 1-(-9). Southern Columbia: Gav. Garcia 12-206 5TD, Wisloski 12-147 TD, Barnes 8-54 TD, Trevor Yorks 1-3, TEAM 2-(-2).

PASSING—Richland: Stahl 14-27 163 yards INT, S. Penna 2-7 25 yards. Southern Columbia: Wise 3-4 56 yards TD.

RECEIVING—Richland: Larue 8-98, S. Penna 3-30, Demont Johnson 2-27, Luke Feichtel 2-25, Lewis 1-8. Southern Columbia: Gav. Garcia 2-43 TD, Barnes 1-13.

HARRISBURG –  Everyone knows that the Mid Penn Commonwealth regular season schedule is a grind like no other in PA.  State College and Harrisburg kept the grind alive with a Saturday Severance Field matinee.  Both teams did a great job playing to their strengths all game long.  And in the end, it came down to the Harrisburg (8-1) Defense stopping a State College (4-5) two-point try with 12 seconds left to preserve a hard-fought 15-13 Mid Penn Commonwealth win.

This is Freshman QB Shaun Lee’s team in Harrisburg.  Shaun put the Cougars on his back all game long. Shaun threw, ran, kicked, did everything he needed to bring home the win.  Big, strapping Brady Bendik was the cornerstone of the ball control State College offensive all game long.

State College got on top first via the AIR in quarter one.

@statehighfball recovers a @HBGCougar_FBall on the @HBGCougar_FBall 31 First play it’s QB Owen Yerka to Jashaun Green for a 7-0 Little Lions lead 4:37 quarter one @EPAFootball @PremiunSports @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/dBH84XBYCC

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

Harrisburg took advantage of a State College turnover to draw even in quarter two. We went into halftime tied at seven.

@HBGCougar_FBall cashes in on a turnover. This time Kymir Williams interception turns into this Shawn Lee to Kyle Williams TD @hbgcougarcoach ties it at 7 with @SCSDAthletics 9:05 until halftime @statehighfball @EPAFootball @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/0eo4mpz9SK

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

@statehighfball plays a smart ball control first half. @SCSDAthletics tied with @HBGCougar_FBall 7-7 at halftime @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @PremiunSports @SportsByBLinder @Cawley_TV @turbittabc27 @KalistaAndrew @hbgcougarcoach @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/iCKX9v48NC

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

Both Defenses played well in quarter three.  We were still tied at seven going to quarter four.

@SCSDAthletics playing bend don’t break D to perfection today Another @HBGCougar_FBall drive comes close but no score @statehighfball still tied with @hbgcougarcoach at 7 with 8:55 quarter 3 @EPAFootball @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/oaRNXHpDnx

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

Justin Cook a sweet INT for @HBGCougar_FBall tied at 7 with @SCSDAthletics 6:50 quarter three @EPAFootball @EdOBrienCFB @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/jNnUcJHufu

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

Early in quarter four, Harrisburg pulled on top.  The game-winner proved to be a two-pointer by converting Offensive Lineman Tyshawn Hand-Black to make it 15-7.

@HBGCougar_FBall Mahkai Hopkins bulls his way across #55 Tyshawn Hand Black with the 2 pointer and it’s 15-7 over @SCSDAthletics with 10:53 remaining @EPAFootball @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/KtNEILQ8QO

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

State College got the ball in Harrisburg territory late in the game.  They drove down deep and scored with :12 left.  Then it came down to the game-tying two-point try which came up short.  Harrisburg came away with a very critical Conference and District win 15-13.

:12 left Jack Morris in at QB for @SCSDAthletics dives across but @HBGCougar_FBall still up 15-13 @EPAFootball @PremiunSports @HSFBamerica @SportsByBLinder pic.twitter.com/HWcs09qzvt

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

:12 left And the all important 2 pointer to tie the game for @SCSDAthletics is… NO GOOD! @HBGCougar_FBall hangs on in a real barn burner 15-13 over @statehighfball. Just does not get any better gang @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @PremiunSports @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/fuDNd6wDzs

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) October 23, 2021

SUNBURY – As the Shikellamy marching band stood on the field prior to Friday night’s season-opening football game between the Shikellamy Braves and the Central Mountain Wildcats, everything seemed normal.

It was a typical hot and humid night in late August as the teams prepared to get their seasons off on the right foot, but about mid-way through the Shikellamy Alma Mater, a torrential downpour broke loose and completely changed the gameplan for each team.

“We knew the field was going to be a situation, but we had no idea what we were getting into,” said Central Mountain coach Shanon Manning, “We knew the field conditions were not going to be in our favor. We knew it wasn’t going to fit well with what we wanted to do. We knew it would be a tight game and we were going to have to grind. We were having a discussion in the locker room (during the weather delay) that this game might end 6-0.”

Despite the incredible amount of rain pouring down on the field, Coach Manning’s Wildcats were able to move the ball down the field on a 12-play drive that ate up over six minutes of the opening quarter to take an early 6-0 lead.

The score came on a 12-yard reception by senior wideout Tyler Weaver on a pass from fellow senior, quarterback Brett Gerlach.

As the Wildcats lined up for an extra point attempt, officials stopped the game due to lightning in the area which resulted in a roughly 45-minute weather delay.

Following the delay and a missed extra point, the Shikellamy offense finally saw the field for the first time in the 2021 season with a chance to drive the field and take the lead. Despite a solid drive that saw the Braves pick up a pair of first downs, the drive ended with the home team punting following an illegal touching penalty on a third-down play.

The Braves’ defense was strong all game, holding the Central Mountain offense to less than 100 total rushing yards in the entire game, as well as forcing four punts and a pair of turnover on downs. Senior Defensive End, Kaden Hoffman also picked up a sack in the game in a crucial moment in the final quarter.

“We didn’t come out to play defensively,” said Coach Jim Keiser, “The second half is what our defense should have been from the start. We weren’t reading our keys, we weren’t getting to the ball where we were supposed to. We weren’t flying to the ball as we should.”

With the score still sitting at 6-0 at the half, Shikellamy found itself with another chance to get the game all square, but the Braves were forced into a three-and-out.

Following that drive, each of the Braves’ subsequent drives in the game ended with a turnover. In all, the team lost four fumbles, had one interception, and also turned the ball over on downs once.

“Turnovers and penalties, that was the story of the game,” said Coach Keiser. “Stuff that we thought we had cleaned up but just didn’t get it done tonight. Give them credit though. They played a heck of a football game. They’re a good team.”

Shikellamy’s best chance at a touchdown came in the early fourth quarter. Junior Running Back, Isaac Schaffer-Neitz ripped off a 56-yard run to close the third quarter and put the Braves on the Central Mountain 37-yard line to start the final 12 minutes of action.

Unfortunately for the Braves, the next four plays resulted in a net gain of two yards, and the home team turned the ball over on downs at the Central Mountain 35-yard line.

With just over three minutes remaining in the game, the Wildcats put it away with another touchdown that gave the visitors a two-score lead. On third-and-five at the Shikellamy nine-yard line, Gerlach rolled left on a designed quarterback run play and scored to put Central Mountain up 12-0.

Gerlach led the Wildcats in rushing with 44 yards on the ground on 16 carries.

Schaffer-Neitz led all rushers in the game with 98 yards, while Hoffman led Shikellamy pass-catchers with 17 yards through the air coming on a long catch and run in the third quarter.

“I thought our kids did a great job running the football tonight,” said Coach Keiser. “We’ve got some guys back on the line, but most of them are pretty new. They didn’t do a bad job, but we’ve got some things to clean up. I thought our kids ran the ball well though.”

Shikellamy out-rushed the Central Mountain offense in the game, racking up 129 team rushing yards to Central Mountain’s 98.

Gerlach paced the Central Mountain offense in the win, adding 113 passing yards to his team-leading rushing total. He also played a big role on defense, adding a sack and a pair of fumble recoveries.

“Brett (Gerlach) did a great job on both sides,” said Coach Manning, “He managed the ball well on offense and he was critical on defense as well.”

Weaver led all pass-catchers in the game with 49 receiving yards and a touchdown.

“It wasn’t pretty,” said Coach Manning, “The kids were great continuing to gut through it. They had a lot of reasons not to, but they kept playing.”

Central Mountain starts off the season at 1-0 and will host Shamokin this coming Friday evening. The Indians play Lewisburg today following a delay due to a lighting issue.

Shikellamy (0-1) stays at home to take on Milton (1-0) who is coming off a 39-28 victory over Nativity BVM.

Central Mountain 12, Shikellamy 0

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Central Mountain                 6  0  0  6  — 12

Shikellamy                             0  0  0  0  — 0

First Quarter

CM—Tyler Weaver 12-yard reception from Brett Gerlach (PAT No Good), 5:52.

Fourth Quarter

CM—Gerlach 9-yard run (PAT No Good), 2:12.

TEAM STATISTICS              CM              S

First downs                             11                9

Total yards                              211             173

Rushes-yards                         37-98          30-129

Yards passing                        113             44

Passing (comp.-att.-int.)       8-14-0        3-8-1

Fumbles-lost                           4-0              5-4

Penalties-yards                      5-32            5-27

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Central Mountain: Gerlach 16-44 TD, Ryan Pentz 11-44, Connor Foltz 4-12, Julian Wilt 2-4, Weaver 1-0, TEAM 3-(-6). Shikellamy: Isaac Schaffer-Neitz 14-96, Coltyn Sempko 5-29, Gage Wolfe 3-17, John Peifer 1-2, Braydon Wertman 3-(-5), TEAM 4-(-10).

PASSING—Central Mountain: Gerlach 8-14 113 yards, TD. Shikellamy: Wertman 3-8 44 yards, INT.

RECEIVING—Central Mountain: Weaver 3-49 TD, Foltz 3-44, Micah Walizer 2-20. Shikellamy: Kaden Hoffman 1-17, Peifer 1-15, Wolfe 1-12.

It looked safe. Jersey Shore couldn’t move the ball. The Bulldogs had minus-66 yards rushing. They had 97 yards of total offense, based on their last two drives.

Still, a bolt of fright ripped through Thomas Jefferson Saturday night in the PIAA Class 4A championship at Hersheypark Stadium.

What appeared comfortable for 47 minutes and 39 seconds suddenly appeared scary. Twenty-one seconds later, sitting 21 yards away, the fear vanished in a 21-14 victory for the Jaguars’ second-straight PIAA Class 4A state title.

Junior Conner Murga led the Jags with 114 yards on 24 carries, including a touchdown, but it was his fumble—and his fumble recovery that made the difference.

“I wouldn’t say we were scared,” Murga said. “It’s been one of the greatest games I’ve ever been a part of. The fumble took a toll on me, but I had to forget the last play and I made up for it on defense what I couldn’t do on offense.

“These close games are what I live for. We blew so many teams out that we might have gotten a little relaxed. We made some mistakes, but in the end, we all came together and we won.”

As the final quarter began, Thomas Jefferson appeared in control. Jersey Shore had just 8 yards of offense, and based on 33 plays, the Bulldogs were averaging less than a yard a play (.24). Yet, Jersey Shore was hanging around, thanks to a 51-yard interception return by senior linebacker Dalton Dugan with 2:44 left in the third quarter. Dugan actually gained more on the pick-six than the Bulldogs had in the game at that point (not helped by the Bulldogs’ negative-21 yards of offense in the third quarter).

But Thomas Jefferson responded.

On the ensuing drive, the Jaguars drove all the way to the Jersey Shore 1-yard line, but another interesting twist occurred, when senior linebacker Gabe Packer forced Murga to fumble and Jersey Shore’s Hayden Packer flopped on the loose ball at the Thomas Jefferson 2.

The opportunity blew up for the Bulldogs.

Risking the game with just under 6 minutes to play, on fourth-and-one at its 11, Bulldogs’ coach Tom Gravish opted to go for it. The plan backfired horribly, when Jersey Shore quarterback Branden Wheary was stuffed at the line of scrimmage and the ball popped free, which was recovered by Murga (making up for the earlier fumble) at the Jersey Shore 4.

One play later, Thomas Jefferson’s DeRon VanBibber bulled into the end zone from the four with 5:48 left to play, resulting in the game-winning score.

Jersey Shore added a late score when Wheary hit Owen Anderson with a 1-yard TD pass with :34 left.

Then, it got really interesting.

On the ensuing kickoff, Jersey Shore recovered an onside kick at the Thomas Jefferson 48. Wheary then winged a 27-yard completion to Cayden Hess at the Jags’ 21, giving Jersey Shore a first down with :21 left at the 21.

Four incompletions later and it was over—and the Jags could breathe.

“It was pretty nerve-wracking there in the end, but I knew we could get a stop,” said Thomas Jefferson senior quarterback Jake Pugh, who completed 13 for 29 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown. “Our defense gave up only 7 points all night, and we would like to have won this easier.

“But we have a bunch of characters on the team and this is something that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Thomas Jefferson took a 14-0 lead into halftime. The Jags stymied any offense Jersey Shore tried to generate. The Bulldogs’ six first half possessions went like this: loss of downs, punt, punt, punt, punt and punt.

For the half, the Jags had outgained Jersey Shore, 199 to 29, averaging 5.85 yards a play to 1.07. The real telling number came on the ground, where the Jags pushed back Jersey Shore for negative-35 yards.

Thomas Jefferson, however, only led 14-0, on a first-quarter Murga 3-yard run and Preston Zandier’s second-quarter 28-yard TD reception from Pugh.

“Hey, the bottom line is that we won,” Pugh said.

(Summary) FINAL STATS

Jersey Shore (10-1) -0-0-7-7-14-

Thomas Jefferson (10-1) -7-7-0-7-21-

First-Quarter

Thomas Jefferson – Conner Murga 3 run (Jack Sella kick), 5:56

Second-Quarter

Thomas Jefferson – Preston Zandier 28 pass from Jake Pugh (Sella kick), 11:52

Third-Quarter

Jersey Shore – Dalton Dugan 51 INT return (Cam Allison kick), 2:44

Fourth-Quarter

Thomas Jefferson – DeRon VanBibber 4 run (Sella kick), 5:48

Jersey Shore – Owen Anderson 1 pass from Branden Wheary (Allison kick), :34

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Nothing lasts 37 years anymore. Nothing. Concrete football stadiums decay. Bronze monuments tarnish in time. Yet, in Southern Columbia, Jim Roth keeps going to practice every afternoon. He’s been doing it for close to four decades.

The high school coaching legend does it based on a simple tenet: He likes what he’s doing.

Roth likes it so much no one ever in the history of Pennsylvania state high school football has done what he achieved on Saturday, winning a state-record 456 victories in his 37th year as a head coach, breaking the old mark of the late legendary Berwick coach George Curry, who accrued 455 coaching victories over 46 years.

The record-breaking victory could not have on a larger stage than Saturday’s PIAA Class 2A state championship, which Southern Columbia captured for the fourth-straight time with a 42-14 victory over District 10 champion Wilmington at Hersheypark Stadium.

Southern Columbia won its 11th state championship (Roth is 11-8 in state title games) and extended its winning streak to a state-high 60-straight victories.

The Tigers were once again powered by all-everything junior tailback Gavin Garcia, who rushed for a game-high 217 yards on 13 carries, scoring four touchdowns and catching three passes for 98 yards.

Southern Columbia amassed 462 yards of offense, averaging 13.2 yards a play, while holding the far larger Wilmington offense to 252 yards of total offense, averaging 4.13 yards a play.

This coming despite Southern Columbia giving up almost 80 pounds on the defensive line. Wilmington’s offensive line averaged 279 pounds coming into the game, as opposed to the 201-pound average of the Southern Columbia defensive front.

Size, nor anything else, was about to get in the way of Roth grabbing the state record.

Roth implemented a game plan and he expected his team to follow it, as it always does.

But what motivates anyone to do something for 37 years?

“I like what I do,” Roth explained rather simply. “It’s something I enjoy. I started as an assistant in 1980 and in 1984 I took over as a head coach. I always looked at it one year at a time. People would ask if I thought I would accomplish this many wins, or a state record in wins or whatever? I would tell them that I’m always the one who looks at the task at hand.

“Myself and our staff are that way. They never wavered. They never dropped off, even after all those good players that we had the previous three years. We coached those players like they had to still had to prove themselves.

“That’s been a real key to our success. We’ve been able to keep the kids hungry. Kids can get complacent, but our staff has been able to keep them on track. It’s not about the number of wins. I’m actually kind of glad the school did most of the honor stuff when the record was tied, because it wasn’t as involved.

“To be honest, I’d rather not have the recognition for most wins. It’s part of football, where there are so many moving parts and there are so many people involved. Obviously, if you’re the head coach, they’re going to pin those wins on you. But it’s about the program and being blessed to have the dedicated coaches that I have had, and the kind of kids and the community support that we’ve received over the years.”

Southern Columbia never trailed, but the Tigers were temporarily threatened.

With 4:17 left in the third, Wilmington’s Caelan Bender hauled in a 17-yard touchdown pass from Mason Reed to pull the Greyhounds to within 21-14.

The Tigers responded by scoring 21 unanswered points, starting with the ensuing drive. Southern Columbia needed just three plays to gather some cushion when Garcia ripped 74 yards for a TD in putting Southern Columbia up by two scores once again, 28-14, just 55 seconds later.

Southern Columbia tacked on two more fourth-quarter scores to secure Roth his record-breaking victory.

(Summary) FINAL STATS

Southern Columbia Tigers (11-1)-14-7-7-14-42-

Wilmington Greyhounds (10-1)-0-7-7-0-14-

First-Quarter

Southern Columbia – Gavin Garcia 1 run (Isaac Carter kick), 7:30

Southern Columbia – Garcia 65 pass from Liam Klebon (Carter kick), 3:18

Second-Quarter

Wilmington – Darren Miller 12 run (Daniel Hartwell kick), 11:44

Southern Columbia – Garcia 89 run (Carter kick), 2:30

Third-Quarter

Wilmington – Caelan Bender 17 pass from Mason Reed (Hartwell kick), 4:17

Southern Columbia – Garcia 74 run (Carter kick), 3:22

Fourth-Quarter

Southern Columbia – Jake Davis 79 pass from Klebon (Carter kick), 9:28

Southern Columbia – Wes Barnes 2 run (Carter kick), 3:49

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Under the deluge of mercy-rule victories, and an undefeated record stood Brandon Graham. The 6-foot, 195-pound Central Valley senior was easy to lose in the Warriors’ grand quest of winning the school’s first PIAA state football championship.

The starting point guard for the basketball team, Graham was convinced by his pals to play football his senior year for the first time since seventh grade. When a couple of the Warriors’ defensive backs went down a few weeks ago, Graham’s role increased further to a whole new station as a safety—a position he never played.

So, naturally, Graham played a vital role in Central Valley winning its first state title, intercepting two passes and coming up with a key third-down reception in leading the Warriors to a 35-21 victory over District 3 champion Wyomissing Area Friday night at Hersheypark Stadium in the PIAA Class 1A championship.

The Warriors put the exclamation point on their historic 12-0 season, winning 11 of their 12 games by mercy-rule and finding Graham.

“We compete at practice and guys hold each other accountable, and Brandon is really close to this senior group,” Central Valley coach Mark Lyons said. “Brandon knew his touches would be limited. He knew his offensive touches would be limited. I knew Brandon since grade school, and I knew there was a fire in him. I’m happy those guys talked him into playing.”

Two weeks ago, when junior Bryce Wilson was injured, the Central Valley coaching staff handpicked Graham to start in his place. Graham got some reps in the Warriors’ state semifinal victory over Bedford. But he was still feeling his way at safety.

“I played cornerback in grade school, but I never safety,” said Graham, laughing. “I play point guard in basketball, so I catch on to things fast. I just got in my zones and being a ball hawk.”

Trailing 14-7 at halftime, Central Valley used the first play of the third quarter to tie it, 14-14, on Landon Alexander’s 18-yard touchdown run off the right side. The score was set up by a Bret Fitzsimmons’ 36-yard kickoff return to open the second half.

The Warriors took the lead for good on their second drive of the third quarter, going 80 yards over eight plays. The big play of the series was a 41-yard, over-the-shoulder, diving catch by Akron-bound Myles Walker, which brought Central Valley to the Wyomissing 27. Four plays later, the Warriors bolted ahead, 21-14, on an Amarian Saunders two-yard run with 6:14 left in the quarter.

But Central Valley did not help itself. The Warriors were flagged three times in the third quarter for unsportsmanlike penalties and one personal foul. The personal foul came on the last play of the third quarter, on a third-and-18 play when it looked like the Central Valley defense would get off the field after Spartans’ quarterback Zach Zechman was hit late out of bounds.

The Spartans, however, were fortunate to shut down that Wyomissing chance when Graham intercepted the first of two Zechman fourth-quarter passes.

Central Valley turned the Graham pick into Saunders’ second touchdown and a 28-14 lead with 7:18 left to play.

Though just when the Warriors thought they were on the way to their first state championship, Wyomissing’s Jordan Auman put a temporary damper on the celebration by going 77 yards with the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown with 7:04 remaining.

That score set up the play of the season.

With the momentum of the game in the balance, Warriors’ Harvard-bound quarterback Ameer Dudley rolled right and hit Graham with a 14-yard pass on third-and-7 from the Central Valley 37.

The first down extended the drive and drained the clock, setting up Alexander’s game-clinching four-yard TD run with 2:32 left. The score was helped along when Wyomissing jumped offsides with 2:37 left, and Central Valley sitting at the Spartans’ 9 on fourth-and-two.

At halftime, Wyomissing had Central Valley in an unusual spot for the first time this season, trailing at intermission, 14-7.

The Spartans scored on their first two possessions, when senior Aidan Cirulli booted first-quarter 40- and 44-yard field goals. The Spartans used a time-draining, ground attack, holding the ball for 16:12 of the first half (to 7:48 for Central Valley) and ran off 34 plays to Central Valley’s 20.

The Spartans slammed Central Valley for 88 yards rushing in the first half, and more importantly they converted 5 of 9 third-down attempts and were 1-for-1 on fourth down.

Central Valley’s first score came on a fourth-and-13 play at the Wyomissing 17, which resulted in a Jayvin Thompson touchdown reception.

Other than that, Wyomissing kept Central Valley’s superior speed in check, simply by keeping the Warriors’ offense off the field.

(Summary) FINAL STATS

Wyomissing Area (9-1) 6-8-0-7-21

Central Valley (12-0) 0-7-14-14-35

First-Quarter

Wyomissing – Aidan Cirulli 40 FG, 3:55

Wyomissing – Aidan Cirulli 44 FG, :41

Second-Quarter

Central Valley – Jayvin Thompson 17 pass from Ameer Dudley (Serafino DeSantis kick), 5:07

Wyomissing – Darren Brunner 3 pass from Zach Zechman (Evan Niedrowski run), :17

Third-Quarter

Central Valley – Landon Alexander 18 run (DeSantis kick), 11:43

Central Valley – Amarian Saunders 2 run (Ben Walmsley kick), 6:14

Fourth-Quarter

Central Valley –Saunders 2 run (DeSantis kick), 7:18

Wyomissing – Jordan Auman 77 kickoff return (Cirulli kick), 7:04

Central Valley – Alexander 4 run (Walmsley kick), 2:32

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

Damein Hammonds and Odell Greene each have a faint recollection of what it was like. The Steelton-Highspire senior tandem were barely waist high when they were shivering in the Hersheypark Stadium stands over a decade ago.

That, they remember.

There was one thing about that chilly December day in 2008—the Steamrollers won the Class 1A state title (35-16 over Clairton).

On a grey Friday afternoon, under considerably warmer conditions at Hersheypark Stadium, Hammonds and Greene forged their own memories, leading Steelton-Highspire to a 32-20 victory over District 7 champion Jeannette in the PIAA Class 1A state finals.

Greene rushed for a game-high 195 yards on 35 carries, including a second-quarter touchdown, and Hammonds clinched the game on a 74-yard interception return with 1:27 left to play as Jeannette was driving for the go-ahead score.

“To be honest, I can’t even put this into words,” Hammonds said. “I never thought I would hear that, ‘Steelton-Highspire, state champions,’ but all of the work we put in, it all paid off.

“I just know if my team needs a play, I want to be there to make it.”

Hammonds was.

Trailing 24-20, with 1:27 left, Jeannette had the ball at the Steamrollers’ 26, when the 6-foot-2, 175-pound Hammonds stepped in front of a Robert Smith Sr. pass and returned it 72 yards to save the game.

“They called a screen and lined up heavy to my side, so there were signs they were coming my way,” Hammonds said. “I was here the last time (Steelton-Highspire) won the state championship. I was a little kid freezing my butt off. This is a good feeling. And it’s lot warmer.”

Winning can be warming.

It also cut Greene a few breaks. The senior tailback had fumbled twice in the fourth quarter, one that almost set up Jeannette’s go-ahead score, and another costly fumble that gave the Jayhawks another chance.

“The fumble there at the end, that was a bad mistake by me, because I should have tucked the ball (on the interception),” Greene said. “I’ve known Damein since birth and have played with all of these guys since pee-wee football. It’s great to win it with them, but Damein is my best friend and he really came through for me and our team.”

Steelton-Highspire coach Andrew Erby is in his late-30s, but looks as young as his players. The state championship concludes a trying season for Erby, who has had to juggle things like every high school football coach across the country with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jeannette held two leads, 7-0 and 14-7, before Steelton-Highspire responded with 17 unanswered points to take control of the game.

“This is special, it’s special for our community and this started way back in March,” Erby said. “This is a group of people who were willing to work together, and I had a feeling we could get here in the beginning of the season.

“The hard part was the hard work done behind the scenes. There was a lot that went into this and we said after this how much of a blessing it was to play. These kids will remember the adversity they went through as a life lesson to never give up.

“I think that’s what I’ll take away from this.”

(Summary) FINAL STATS

Steelton-Highspire (10-0) 7-7-3-15-32

Jeannette (10-2) 7-7-0-6-20

First-Quarter

Jean. – Brett Birch for 34 yards from Robert Smith Sr. (Robert Smith Sr. kick), 6:15

SH – Mehki Flowers for 50 yards pass from Alex Erby (Bryan Hernandez kick), 3:10

Second-Quarter

Jean. – Smith 4 run (Smith kick), 6:17

SH – Odell Greene 1 run (Hernandez kick), :18

Third-Quarter

SH – Hernandez 22 FG, 3:58

Fourth-Quarter

SH – Daivin Pryor 79 INT return (Hernandez kick), 6:28

Jean. – James Sanders 47 pass from Smith (kick failed), 5:57

SH – Damein Hammonds 72 INT return (Pryor run), 1:27

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been covering high school football since 1992 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on twitter @JSantoliquito. Follow EasternPAFootball.com on Twitter @EPAFootball.

(Hershey) Jeanette and Steel High were no strangers to the Hershey Park PIAA stage on Friday.  These two set the championship table in the 11AM start of our two day smorgasbord of Pennsylvania football. This opening act did not disappoint.  A furious fourth quarter had Steel High capturing its third PIAA Championship in school history 32-20 over a valiant Jeanette team.

Odell Greene was a battering ram on the ground for the Rollers racking up 195 yards and a TD on the ground.  The Rollers Defense had two sparkling pick sixes.  One by Daivin Pryor and the other  by Damien Hammonds that iced the game late in the fourth quarter.

Jeanette got on the board first with a nifty pitch and catch at the 6:15 mark of quarter one.

Touchdown Jeannette! Roberto Smith Jr. hits @birchbrett for a 34-yard touchdown pass. Jeannette 7 Steel-High 0 1st quarter 6:15 @Jhawkathletics @jeannettecsd @jeannettefootb1 @andrewerby @rollersfootball @rollerathletics @shcoachslade pic.twitter.com/mDeJ4UNcOf

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Steel High tied it up on their next possession with a nice run Mehki Flowers

Oh my! Watch Mehki Flowers take this one 50 yards to the house for @RollersFootball to tie up the #piaa 1A title game at 7 with @Jhawkathletics 3:10 quarter one @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce @small_play @RollerAthletics pic.twitter.com/7fMfJklcYP

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Toby Cline who had 149 yards receiving on the day set up a score by Robert Smith to put Jeanette back on top.

This fine catch and run by Toby Cline sets up a Roberto Smith TD to put @Jhawkathletics up 14-7 over @RollersFootball #piaa 1A Championship 6:17 until halftime @RollerAthletics @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce @small_play @WPIAL_Blitz pic.twitter.com/KtPJY8Eigr

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Steel High had a huge drive to end the first half.  Odell Greene punched it across to tie the score at 14 as we went to the break.

 

Touchdown Steel-High! Odell Greene 1-yard touchdown run. Jeannette 14, Steel-High 14. 1st quarter :18 @odellgreene_4 @Jhawkathletics @jeannettecsd @jeannettefootb1 @andrewerby @rollersfootball @rollerathletics @shcoachslade pic.twitter.com/AvNZwVsW00

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Most of the third quarter was a back and forth between the defenses.  Steel High finally put together a drive.  The Jeanette defense stiffened so Bryan Hernandez booted it through to put Steel High in front for good.

A nice Mehki Flowers run sets up this 22 yard Bryan Hernandez Field Goal for @RollerAthletics Now up 17-14 over @Jhawkathletics 3:51 quarter three #piaa 1A Championship @HSFBamerica @BadgleyBruce @RollersFootball @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play pic.twitter.com/Ybx4GQwVrU

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Each defense slammed the door until midway through the fourth.  And it was the Steel High defense that got the points  Check out this pick six by Daivin Pryor

Steel-High’s Daivin Pryor intercepts Roberto Smith Jr. pass and goes 80 yards for the score. 6:28 remaining in game Steelton-Highspire leads 24-14 @Jhawkathletics @jeannettecsd @jeannettefootb1 @andrewerby @rollersfootball @rollerathletics @shcoachslade pic.twitter.com/gRowT9N55T

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

Jeanette did not go down without a fight.  Smith hit James Sanders to make it 24-20 at the 5;56 mark.  But the dagger was put in by Steel High’s Damien Hammonds pick six. The 32-20 triumph by Steel High was the Third PIAA title in school history.

 

Steel-High’s Damein Hammonds 75-yard interception puts the Rollers up 32-20 1:27 remaining in game @Jhawkathletics @jeannettecsd @jeannettefootb1 @andrewerby @rollersfootball @rollerathletics @shcoachslade @deucegetloos pic.twitter.com/T2IrHvvwVS

— EasternPAFootball (@EPAFootball) November 27, 2020

 

HOLLIDAYSBURG – The 5A Semi-Final between Governor Mifflin and Pine Richland turned into an instant classic.  Jump on board this roller coaster ride as Pine Richland heads to Hershey with a 48-44 win Saturday afternoon.

Our @BruteAthApparel “Player of the Game “ was @PRRamsFootball Miguel Jackson. Miguel will get a custom commemorative hoodie from @BruteAthApparel @small_play @EPAFootball pic.twitter.com/XV2Us4zWbN

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

@GMSDAthletics on the board first! Brandon Strausser with the dive. @GovMifflinSD interception on the games opening play started the drive 7-0 Mustangs over @PRRamsFootball #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/NMBr0JWSAx

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Nick Singleton won’t be denied! @GMSDAthletics now up 14-0 over @PRRamsFootball 4:29 quarter one #piaa 5A semifinal. Drive set up be another Rams turnover @EPAFootball @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/q3GwbXRZac

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Another @PRRamsFootball turnover @GMSDAthletics up 14-0 quarter one #Piaa 5A semifinal pic.twitter.com/DJzqQxrfNF

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Right up the gut! Brandon Strausser makes it @GMSDAthletics 21 @PRRamsFootball 0 9:28 until halftime #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer @small_play pic.twitter.com/hHaOk8TTbI

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

On a 4th and 4 @PRRamsFootball Charlie Mill takes the bubble screen 40 yards for the score. @GMSDAthletics still up 21-7 7:49 until halftime #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/Tfklst00PC

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Following an interception @PRRamsFootball capitalizes with a Brooks Eastburn TD @GMSDAthletics still leads 21-13 5:51 until halftime #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer @small_play pic.twitter.com/WBOG9bdbUr

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

On a 4th and 3 Luke Miller comes all the way across the field for @PRRamsFootball the two pointer is no good @GMSDAthletics still up 3:54 until halftime #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer @small_play @WPIAL_Blitz pic.twitter.com/vEjNDveGxp

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

A HUGE drive for @GMSDAthletics to finish the first half Strausser dives across for @GovMifflinSD 28-19 Mustangs over @PRRamsFootball at the break @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @small_play @WPIAL_Blitz @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/03XccC2EOn

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

@GMSDAthletics takes advantage of another @PRRamsFootball turnover With a Connor Maryniak sneak @GovMifflinSD now up 34-19 7:59 left quarter three #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play pic.twitter.com/3VV5bYXfoM

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

A Greg Suber interception turns into a Brandon Strausser TD for @GMSDAthletics ! 41-19 over @PRRamsFootball 6:34 quarter three #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @CaryMoyer @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play pic.twitter.com/A5WsvnPtcH

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Quickly @PRRamsFootball strikes back 29 yards Cole Spencer hits Eli Jochem Its @GMSDAthletics still in front 41-26 in the #piaa 5A semifinal 5:11 quarter three @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @CaryMoyer @small_play pic.twitter.com/Ij2gBUtsER

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Here come the Rams! Spencer to Jochem 48 yards this time. @GMSDAthletics still on top 41-33 over @PRRamsFootball #piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @CaryMoyer @small_play pic.twitter.com/ywxZFR9O2A

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Wes Grillo good from 27 yards to make it @GMSDAthletics 44 @PRRamsFootball 41 with 3:06 left #piaa 5A semifinal. It just does not get any better than this! @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/UfNP0ELooU

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

Look at this Cole Spencer 46 yard TD to give @PRRamsFootball a 48-44 lead over @GMSDAthletics Incredible! #Piaa 5A semifinal 2:12 left @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/2HeNm4zu9w

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

And that does it from Holidaysburg @PRRamsFootball prevails 48-44 over @GMSDAthletics in a whale of a #Piaa 5A semifinal @EPAFootball @HSFBamerica @WPIAL_Blitz @small_play @CaryMoyer pic.twitter.com/oLi0qlTDMX

— Bruce Badgley (@BadgleyBruce) November 21, 2020

 

 

Steelton-Highspire kicker Bryan Hernandez knocked in a 36-yard field goal with 38 seconds remaining and the Steamrollers held off Bishop Guilfoyle 16-14 in a PIAA Class 1A semifinal Saturday afternoon in a cloudy Steelton.

Steelton-Highspire moves on to face Jeannette in the PIAA Class 1A championship Friday at Hersheypark Stadium at 11.

The District 6 champion Marauders (7-3) struck first when Keegan Myrick returned a fumble 40 yards just 15 seconds into the game.

Bishop Guilfoyle had a chance to score again on a drive sparked by a 35-yard strike from quarterback Konner Kiesewetter to Haiden Garner that put them at the 13. The Marauders ended up settling for a 20-yard field goal that was missed with 3:30 left in the first quarter.

The District 3 champion Steamrollers (9-0) put together a drive all the way down to the Marauders’ 14-yard-line until a fumble halted the drive. The Marauders ran out the clock to end the first quarter.

Steel-High defensive back Daivin Pryor made a broke up a deep pass from Kiesewetter to Garner on second-and-17 early in the second quarter and Bishop Guilfoyle was forced to punt.

An illegal procedure penalty gave the Rollers good field position. Odell Greene and Mekhi Flowers picked up chunks of yardage on the ground to put Steel-High in the red zone. The drive was again halted by a turnover as Myrick picked off Alex Erby at the three-yard-line.

A heavy dose of Myrick on the ground and a pass interference call had the Marauders within striking distance with less than 2:00 in the half. Steel-High linebacker Amari Williams halted the drive with a sack on third down and the ensuing fourth-down conversion failed. The Rollers took over at their own 34.

Erby hit Flowers for a 21-yard gain before being picked off by Karson Kiesewetter. Bishop Guilfoyle ended the half with a 7-0 lead.

The third quarter began with punts by each team and a failed fake punt by Bishop Guilfoyle.

On the next drive for Steel-High, Erby completed a seven-yard pass to Flowers to convert a fourth down. Multiple rushes by Greene put the Rollers on the 11-yard-line when the third quarter ended.

Flowers finally pounded in a four-yard touchdown for the Rollers to tie it 7-7 with 11:03 left in the game.

After struggling in the first three quarters with four turnovers and a deficit, Steel-High head coach Andrew Erby knew his team had it in them to come back.

“Being down a touchdown in a football game is nothing compared to some of the things we had to go through mentally and physically this season,” Erby said. “Real life lessons will teach you how to handle those things and gel and lean on each other.”

The Rollers forced a punt on the next drive and took over at their own 17. After a three-yard loss, Flowers made the play of the game. He took a screen from Erby 86 yards to the house to give Steel-High a 13-7 lead with 6:28 left. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty forced them to go for two, which was unsuccessful.

“I knew we had to get on the board,” Flowers said. “I told my coaches to get the ball in my hands. I’ll do whatever to make it work. I executed the play exactly how I wanted and it resulted in an 86-yard touchdown.”

“He shows up and makes separation,” Steel-High head coach Andrew Erby said. “Today he very well showed that he may be the best player in the state to make a play like that.”

The Marauders weren’t done.

Konner Kiesewetter hit Karson Kiesewetter for a 48-yard gain to the Steel-High 24. Myrick finished the 73-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown run with 3:54 left. Bishop Guilfoyle was back up 14-13.

The Rollers took over at their own 42. Erby converted a crucial fourth-and-six with a seven-yard pass to Tyrone Moore. The drive came down to a fourth-and-12 from the 28 with :52 left. After both teams took timeouts, Erby launched a ball downfield to Flowers. It fell incomplete, but a pass interference was called on Bishop Guilfoyle.

Bryan Hernandez calmly drilled a 36-yard field goal to give Steel-High a 16-14 lead with 38 seconds left.

The Marauders again fought back when Konner Kiesewetter hit Garner for a 45-yard gain to the Steel-High 19. The 36-yard field goal attempt to win the game went wide left with 11 seconds remaining. The Rollers held on.

“It takes a lot of work from our safety plan to our athletic trainer to everybody meeting across the board,” Erby said regarding a season during a pandemic. “It’s been a lot of work and a lot of people who supported these kids so it’s just awesome.”

“We tell our team every day to give maximum effort until the clock hits zero,” Flowers said. “We do that every game. That’s the difference between us and other teams. We fight until the end.”

Now the Steamrollers head to Hershey with a state title on the line.

 

Bishop Guilfoyle  7 0 0 7 – 14

Steelton-Highspire  0 0 0 16 – 16

FIRST QUARTER

B – Keegan Myrick 32 fumble recovery (Deven Wyandt kick) 11:38

FOURTH QUARTER

S – Mekhi Flowers 4 run (Bryan Hernandez kick) 11:03

S – Flowers 86 pass from Alex Erby (pass failed) 6:28

B – Myrick 3 run (Wyandt kick) 3:54

S – Hernandez 34 field goal 0:42

 

Scene on the field after Steelton-Highspire’s 16-14 victory over Bishop Guilfoyle @EPAFootball @small_play pic.twitter.com/T1FvydLb4d

— Sean McBryan (@SeanMcBryan) November 21, 2020

ALTOONA – It’s been nearly two full years since Southern Columbia was seriously challenged in a game. In the 2018 District 4 championship game, the Tigers led Mount Carmel by just five points at halftime, 13-8, before Gaige Garcia returned the second half kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown, which greatly shifted the momentum of that game, which Southern would go on to win 39-14.

That game, just two days shy of exactly two years ago on Saturday – on Nov. 16, 2018, was the last time Southern didn’t win with the mercy rule being invoked, and also was the last time the Tigers had a single-digit lead at halftime until Saturday.

Taking on Richland in the PIAA playoffs for the second straight year, this time in the quarterfinals after last year’s record-setting Tiger squad beat the Rams in the semifinals, Southern led by just five points at the half, just like two years ago against Mount Carmel, after Richland scored three second quarter touchdowns to erase a 20-point lead that Southern had built after the first quarter.

But just like two years ago, it was a big play on special teams that shifted the momentum, and Gaige’s younger brother, Gavin, followed the big special teams play with a big defensive play less than a minute later, and those two plays provided Southern’s answer to the first bit of adversity it faced this year and the Tigers went on to top Richland 57-30 to advance to the state semifinals next week.

Southern head coach Jim Roth admitted he was as curious as anyone how his team would react to being in a close game, since it’s been so long since the Tigers were in one.

“I didn’t know how we were going to respond. My wish was to not even get in such a situation and just play these next three games without being challenged,” Roth joked. “But you’re going to play good football teams this time of year and we knew this team was capable of giving us a challenge with everything they have.”

But like they did back in the aforementioned game in 2018 and so many times before that, Roth’s team answered the bell, and by doing so recorded the Tigers’ 58th straight win dating back to 2017, now just eight shy of the state record of 66 held by Clairton from 2009-13. The win also brought Roth within one win of the state record of 455 career wins, held by George Curry.

Yet, those marks were the last thing on anyone’s mind at halftime, as Richland had an opportunity to potentially take the lead as the Rams received the second half kickoff trailing by just five, but Southern forced them into a three-and-out. Richland punted and Jake Davis returned it 51 yards to the Richland 9-yard line. Two Gavin Garcia rushes later, he had a one-yard touchdown to extend Southern’s lead to 35-22.

Just :31 and two plays from scrimmage later, Garcia came in for a rare appearance on defense and jumped a short sideline route to pick off the pass, shed a tackle and return it 20 yards for a touchdown, which, after a two-point conversion, gave the Tigers a 43-22 lead.

“Most of our players only play on one side of the ball for the most part, but there are times when we’ll do something like that,” said Roth. “We had a few players nicked up with injuries so we put Gavin and Wes (Barnes) in and they’re both outstanding defensive players so if we need to go to them, they’re available and they can go out and do a tremendous job on that side of the ball as well.”

Davis would make another big play on Richland’s next drive as he ended a nine-play drive by the Rams by picking off a pass at the Southern 26 and returning it to near midfield, where the Tigers took over and scored again on Braeden Wisloski’s 33-yard touchdown to go up 50-22.

“Because of how well our defense has played, that was my biggest concern at halftime was ‘how are we going to handle this?’” said Roth. “Are we going to lack confidence or are we going to go out and play inspired football, and that’s what we ended up doing and that speaks to the character of the team and it showed what they’re capable of doing if we do face another situation like this.”

Early on, it looked like it may be a repeat of so many of the Tigers’ previous 57 consecutive wins and within the mercy rule by halftime, as Barnes scored three first quarter touchdowns to put the Tigers up 20-0 after the first quarter.

The Tigers recovered an onside kick on the opening kickoff, although it wasn’t intended to be one but rather a squib that didn’t travel very far, and Barnes capped a six-play drive with a nine-yard touchdown run.

On Richland’s ensuing drive, the Rams went for it on fourth-and-2 from their own 40 and were stuffed by the Tigers, and Barnes then capitalized on just one play with a 40-yard dash for a touchdown.

“(Southern’s potent offense) plays into it (in deciding to go for it), but that’s who we are,” said Richland coach Brandon Bailey. “If it’s fourth-and-2 and we believe we can make it, we’re going to go for it, so it’s really not a change from we do throughout the season. Certainly their ability to score all the time and wanting to keep them off the field does impact that decision but we got for it a lot on fourth down.”

Richland went three-and-out on its next drive and punted, and Southern got backed up to their own 36 due to a penalty and negative play. On second-and-27, Barnes hauled in a screen behind the line of scrimmage and then proceeded to shed about a half dozen would-be tacklers on his way to a 64-yard touchdown.

But unlike most of Southern’s opponents over the last several years, the Rams answered the Tigers’ initial surge and fought back. They forced Southern to punt after a three-and-out on their next drive – another rarity for the Tigers – and proceeded to put together a 12-play, 73-yard drive capped by a 29-yard touchdown pass from Kellan Stahl to Griffin Larue.

Southern answered right back on its ensuing drive as it recovered another onside kick and took just six plays to find the end zone again, this time on Wisloski’s first touchdown of the game, a one-yard plunge to go back up 27-7.

But from there, Richland countered with a 27-yard touchdown run by Grayden Lewis, which followed a 35-yard pickup earlier in the drive, and a 17-yard connection from Stahl to Larue.

The Tigers’ next drive then stalled on downs at the Richland 37. The Rams took over with just :40 remaining in the half, and on their first play, Stahl hit Larue down the right sideline on a jump ball that Larue was able to take away from Davis, who had him well defended. Richland then faked the PAT and instead, Stahl found Jordan Ford for the two-point conversion.

“We made some stops there in the second quarter and our kids played really hard. Offensively, we were able to settle down and let the speed of the game come to us,” said Bailey. “We’ve got a good offense and we were able to identify some weaknesses and what they were giving us and we were able to score three touchdowns in that second quarter.”

“They made some plays. Their scheme makes it tough sometimes to consistently shut down the offense because they’re doing a lot of different things and are giving you a lot of variety,” said Roth. “Some of those plays they broke and scored points on were some of the same plays we stopped effectively for most of the game so it was just a matter of a loss of consistency there in the second quarter with our execution and you have to give them some credit as well.

“But the most rewarding thing about this win is the way we responded. It was obviously the first time we were challenged all year. It was a tough game emotionally. It was very eventful, a lot of things going on.”

After Southern answered with its three straight touchdowns in the third quarter, on just the fourth play of the fourth quarter, following a Richland drive stalling at the Southern 6, Garcia burst loose for a 78-yard touchdown run to put the Tigers up 57-22 and invoke the mercy rule, much later in the game than usual for Southern.

Richland scored a late touchdown on Sam Penna’s 24-yard touchdown run with under a minute to play.

“We came here intending to win the football game. We knew they had a bunch of really good players and we felt we had a lot of good players,” said Bailey. “We knew we’d have to play a mistake-free game and we did for a while but that third quarter got away from us a bit. When we went back down by three scores that certainly made it difficult.”

Southern Columbia 57, Richland 30
Southern Columbia (10-0)   20 7 22 7 – 57
Richland (8-2)                      0 22  0  8 – 30

First quarter
9:57 – (SC) Wes Barnes 9-yard run (kick blocked), 6-53, 2:03
6:46 – (SC) Wes Barnes 40-yard run (Carter kick), 1-40, :11
3:27 – (SC) Wes Barnes 64-yard pass from Liam Klebon (Carter kick), 3-53, 1:45

Second quarter
7:55 – (R) Griffin Larue 29-yard pass from Kellan Stahl (Facci kick), 12-73, 4:16
4:23 – (SC) Braeden Wisloski 1-yard run (Carter kick), 6-57, 3:32
2:30 – (R) Grayden Lewis 27-yard run run (Facci kick), 6-74, 1:53
:30 – (R) Griffin Larue 63-yard pass from Kellan Stahl (Ford pass from Stahl), 1-63, :10

Third quarter
9:47 – (SC) Gavin Garcia 1-yard run (Sharrow pass from Klebon), 2-9, :36
9:06 – (SC) Gavin Garcia 20-yard interception return (Klebon run)
3:00 – (SC) Braeden Wisloski 33-yard run (Carter kick), 7-56, 3:00

Fourth quarter
10:57 – (SC) Gavin Garcia 78-yard run (Carter kick), 3-89, :56
:35 – (R ) Sam Penna 24-yard run (Jordan pass from Penna), 10-67, 4:40

Statistics
                                                      SC                        R     
First downs                                   18                          20
Rushes-net yards                      41-347                  40-205
Passing yardage                           87                        186
Passing                                     3-5-1-0                14-30-2-2
Fumbles-lost                                1-0                        0-0
Penalties-yards                         10-109                    7-55

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Southern Columbia: Gavin Garcia (17-196-2), Wes Barnes (14-120-2), Braden Wisloski (4-37-2), Matt Masala (2-7), Connor Gallagher (1-6), Trevor Yorks (1-1), Ian Yoder (1-0), Liam Klebon (1-(-20)); Richland: Kellan Stahl (20-60), Grayden Lewis (7-76-1), Sam Penna (4-45-1), Allen Mangus (3-11), Evan McCracken (3-4), Draveyn Plachy (1-6), Jordan Ford (1-5), Griffin Larue (1-(-2))

PASSING: Southern Columbia: Liam Klebon (3-5-87-1-0); Richland: Kellan Stahl (14-29-186-2-2), Sam Penna (0-1-0-0-0)

RECEIVING: Southern Columbia: Wes Barnes (1-64-1), Gavin Garcia (1-19), Jake Rose (1-4); Richland: Griffin Larue (9-141-2), Sam Penna (2-20), Grayden Lewis (1-12), Ryan McGowan (1-12), Evan McCracken (1-1)

By BILL ALBRIGHT 

EasternPAFootball.com Senior Writer

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MILL HALL — For the second game in a row, the Jersey Shore football team struggled early before coming on strong down the stretch to keep its unbeaten streak intact. 

One week ago, the Bulldogs scored seven points in the first period that held up for a 7-0 lead over Shikellamy heading into the fourth quarter. While the Shore offense sputtered, the defense didn’t, as the Bulldogs trimmed the Braves 16-0. 

Friday night, the Dawgs fell behind not once, but twice during the game before finishing strong for a 21-9 win over arch-rival Central Mountain at Malinak Stadium. 

The Bulldogs once again had their problems taking advantage of scoring opportunities, giving up the ball on downs no less than three times inside the red zone. 

Central Mountain opened up the scoring by putting together a nice drive that resulted in a 29-yard field goal courtesy of the foot of Tyler Weaver. With the Wildcats holding the 3-0 lead, it was the first time this season the Bulldogs trailed at any point in a game. 

Obviously awakened by facing their first deficit of the season, the Bulldogs promptly marched down the field, and with slightly more than a minute remaining in the opening period, Shore led 7-3 thanks to a Brandon Wheary-to-Owen Anderson 10-yard scoring strike. For Anderson, it was his first of three touchdowns in the game. Wheary finished the game with 13 completions on 27 attempts and the one TD. 

Not to run away and hide, the ‘Cats clawed right back at the Dawgs on Military Appreciation Night when standout running back Ryan Pentz got the edge on a sweep play and outraced the Shore defenders for a 61-yard touchdown. 

With the Pentz score, CM held its second lead of the game at 9-7, but from that point on, it was all Orange & Black. 

Anderson gave Shore the lead for keeps with a 2-yard burst to paydirt before he all but put the game on ice as a Shore “W” when he fielded a CM punt and 37 yards later set the final at Shore 21, Central Mountain 9. For his efforts, Anderson completed his scoring trifecta by tallying a six-pointer rushing, one receiving, and one on a kick return. 

Now 6-0, Shore will open District IV Class AAAA playoffs either Friday or Saturday, while Central Mountain (4-3) also qualified for the post-season and will face Hollidaysburg at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mansion Park in Altoona in a District VI Class AAAAA contest.

Jersey Shore 7 0 7 7 — 21 

Central Mountain 3 0 6 0 — 9

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MILL HALL — After opening the 2020 season with a pair of wins over Shikellamy (33-6) and Selinsgrove (7-3), Central Mountain ran into another unbeaten team in Jersey Shore (3-0). They fell by the lopsided final of 55-7 to the Bulldogs.

Returning home Friday night for another PHAC conference outing against Milton, CM head coach James Renninger and his Wildcats were hoping to turn things around following the loss to arch-rival Jersey Shore. Their hopes came to fruition when the Wildcats dominated winless Milton by the 49-6 final to move to 3-1.

Although it took 48 minutes of clock time to complete the game, it only took 8:08 to put the handwriting on the wall as the Wildcats scored 21 points in the first 3:52 of the game. This blew things wide open.

The Wildcats scored twice in the first five minutes on a 32-yard reception by Cayde McCloskey from quarterback Brett Gerlach After a 37-yard blocked punt return by Tyler Weaver, the ‘Cats quickly built up their lead to 21-0. Quarterback Brett Gerlach hit Peyton Johnson for a 40-yard catch and run with just less than four minutes left in the period.

Already riding a 21-point lead, the Wildcats increased their lead to 28-0 when Ryan Pentz weaved and sprinted 40 yards to make the house call with 8:23 left in the first half.

Showing some signs of positive things, the Black Panthers scored a touchdown with 33 seconds left before the break to make the halftime score Central Mountain 28, Milton 6 on a Wade Young-to-Xavier Minium TD pass that covered 64 yards.

Keeping the momentum they had gained in the first half, the Wildcats got a quick six points. Kaden Falls made a house call of his own. He took the kickoff to begin the second half on his own 16 and 84 yards later had his six-pointer. The Wildcats showed their domination thanks to a four-yard TD run by Micah Walizer. This put the game into Mercy Rule mode at 42-6 with five minutes left in the third period.

The Central Mountain reserves closed out the scoring and set the final at 49-6. Brady Myers hit Connor Fultz with a 25-yard scoring aerial.

In addition to his touchdown, Weaver put the foot in football as he was perfect in PAT attempts with a 7-for-7 effort.

Individual leaders for the Wildcats were Gerlach with six completions on seven attempts for 162 yards, while Pentz finished with 89 yards rushing that included his touchdown.

Milton (0-4) 0 6 0 0 — 6

Central Mountain (3-1) 21 7 14 7 — 49