Power Ratings 2A Semifinals
West Catholic 12-2 vs Southern Columbia 14-0….13.25 Southern Columbia
Tre Johnson moved into the starting role at quarterback, replacing the injured Zaire Hart-Hawkins to help lead the West Catholic past Richland Township at Central York High School. He was more than effective, connecting on 9 of 17 passes for 101 yards and a touchdown toss! A 23-7 third quarter blew the lid off this one as the Burrs rolled to a 35-7 victory over the District-6 champ. Richland doesn’t often see this kind of size or speed and it was evident, the way West Catholic’s O-Line threw them around for 257 rush yards, opening significant holes for Jacir Savoy to rush for 183 yards on 27 carries. West Catholic’s defense held Richland to 35 yards rushing (!), forcing 5 Ram turnovers. With the exception of road losses at Pottsgrove (12-2) in the opener by a point and Conwell Egan (13-1) by 8 points, the defense has been solid enough to help reach a 12 win season, their highest win total since 2010’s 13-2 team that defeated South Fayette 50-14 in the 2A final. Defending state champ Southern Columbia is next. Evidently the bye week didn’t help York Catholic who came in 12-0 and left after a 56-23 thumping at Shamokin High. The Tigers rolled up 622 yards of offense and a 42-7 lead at the half, with the 1st unit playing only two series of the 2nd half. The Fighting Irish had no idea what hit them, being held to 211 total yards with Gaige Garcia (5-10, 195, sr, 157/1552-season) rambling for 186 yards on 10 carries and brother Gavin (5-7, 160, Fr, 88/970-season) getting 5 totes for 108, almost all in the first half. Stone Hollenbach completed 8 of 10 passes for 249 yards and 3 touchdowns with 5 going to Julian Fleming for 148 yards and two touchdowns. West Catholic and SCA last met in 2015, also in the semifinal at Northern Lehigh where they lost 34-19. Southern had difficulty with West Catholic’s speed in that one but seven turnovers (5 interceptions) did them in, in a game that was much closer than the score reveals. This one might be tipped by the advantage Southern has at quarterback, where Hollenbach (6-3, 205, sr) completed 65 of 103 passes (63%) for 1253 yards. His Td-Pick ratio is 20 to 3, throwing primarily to Julian Fleming (6-3, 210, jr, PSU) who has caught 63 passes for 1300 yards.
Steel Valley 12-1 vs Wilmington 12-1….11.92 Steel Valley
Steel Valley won their fifth district title and second in the last three years, overwhelming South Side 48-6 in their third consecutive WPIAL final. Their talented tandem backs Todd Hill and Kam Williams were more than South Side could handle, rushing for 120 yards and 3 scores and 196 yards and 3 touchdowns respectively. Williams also had 104 yards in receptions. This is quite a pair with Hill at 1618 yards rushing and dual threat Williams at 1809 yards rushing plus 404 in receptions. The Ironmen like to pound it but are a threat up top with Ronnell Lawrence completing 60 of 121 for 1054 yards. His Td/Pick ratio is a concern at 12/12. Eshawn Carter caught 18 passes for 491 yards giving them multiple weapons to take the pressure off Williams and Hill. Their only loss was against Shady Side Academy (10-1) 56-36, who fell to South Side in the playoffs. Wilmington is also a power team that just likes to pound you, even more than the Ironmen as demonstrated in last week’s 56-14 thrashing of Ridgway-Johnsonburg where they rushed for 458 yards. 458 yards! They passed for 110. The overmatch was apparent at the start with Wilmington racing out to a 42-0 lead at the half. They played their second team the entire second half but still managed to score on every possession except the last. Their defense smothered RJ, holding them to 146 total yards, 91 rushing, 55 passing. Their only loss came by another District-10 powerhouse, undefeated 1A Farrell (13-0), who beat them 31-19. Farrell plays Sacred Heart in the semifinal. Wilmington’s undefeated team lost to Southern Columbia last year 48-0 in the 2A final while Steel Valley is looking to repeat the 2016 season where they won gold defeating Southern Columbia 49-7.
Power Ratings 1A Semifinals
Lackawanna Trail 13-1 vs Juniata Valley 11-2….7.80 Lackawanna Trail
District 1-2 champ Lackawanna Trail made it to their third state semifinal defeating District-3’s perennial small school power Halifax (11-2) 28-6. Four year starting quarterback Nate Rolka and company kept things simple with the ability to run with their four headed attack of Rolka, Cody Moyle, Jeff Resto and Ray Melnikoff. Rolka threw for 43 yards but rushed for 162 with Melnikoff rushing for another 102. He’s rushed for 1156 on the year with Moyle at 772, Resto at 702 and Rolka at 678 yards rushing. A lot of the teams up that way just line up and say….here it is. The defense that allowed over 15 points once this year in a bitter 28-21 loss to conference rival Old Forge (8-3) was strong again against Halifax, holding them to 124 total yards. Their opponent this week is District-6’s Juniata Valley who survived the district final last week against United (9-5), 36-20. Don’t be fooled by the 14 point spread. The score was 20-14 United with seven and a half minutes to go in the game when the Hornets really stung them, nabbing two Pick-6’s, one returned 56 yards by Hunter Johnson the other by Kyle Derugen returned 53 yards. The win advanced them to the semifinals for the first time since 2003. They enter the playoffs with great aspirations, despite started the season 1-2, edged by playoff bound Everett (8-4, 2A) 32-26, then crushed by powerful Bellwood Antis (10-2) 41-7. Those were difficult losses knowing they concluded the 2017 season getting plastered by three time defending 1A state champ Bishop Guilfoyle. And everyone back there knows Bellwood Antis is the 2A historic power at 96-22 the last 10 years with newcomer Ligonier Valley. Point being, losing to BA was almost expected. And they evidently recovered coming in on a 10 game winning streak. This looks like a great old school football game, 3 yards and cloud of plastic pellets, where both just pound away at each other.
Farrell 13-0 vs Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 12-1….. .25 OLSH
Farrell cruised to another easy win last week routing District-9 kingpin Coudersport, 48-6. Coudy (8-5) came into this one with high aspirations, having defeated a strong Clarion Limestone (9-3) team 22-12, then destroying previously undefeated Smethport (11-1) 44-7 to avenge a one point regular season loss. Steve Kelly had a stellar performance against the Hubbers, rushing for 328 yards on 26 carries for 5 touchdown. Things were looking good, but they hadn’t played a team like Farrell with their powerful running attack supported by a capable passing attack. Nor had they seen the speed Farrell brings to every game. The score was 48-0 at the half with the Steelers generating 412 total yards and 15 first downs in the first half alone. They haven’t had a competitive game the entire year except for Wilmington who they defeated 31-19. All others were won by an average score of 53-7. All-time leading rusher Christian Lewis ran for 112 yards, taking his season total to 2035 yards, with quarterback Kyi Wright completing 8 of 8 passes for 180 yards. Jourdan Townsend caught six tosses for 174 yards, taking his season total to 1169 yards in receptions. This week sees Farrell facing a far more competent opponent in Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. They have an experienced team, especially at the skill positions and field a legitimate defense, well stocked with seniors allowing 7ppg! The offense is powerful at 41ppg with great skill players and a record setting quarterback in Tyler Bradley (6-4, 205, sr). He recently passed Phil Jurkovec of Pine Richland (8205) with his career passing total at 8328 yards. This year sees him at 3244 yards with a 63% rate, completing 201 of 303 passes. His Td to Pick ratio is 45 to 8! Austin Wigley (6-1. 200) is back as a starter after missing his junior year with an injury and starting as a sophomore. He has multiple skills, rushing for 832 yards on 157 carries while catching 24 passes for 408 yards. Bradley spreads it out well, throwing to Richard Banks (55/841, 5-8, 170, Quips trans 2 yrs ago), Andrew Schnarre (46/693, 5-8, 170), Rico Tate (32/589, 6-3, 190), Noah Campalong (19/277, 6-1, 205), and Sig Saftner (11/175, 5-10, 170). Third year coach Dan Bradley has them on a mission, fielding teams going 7-3, 9-2 and this year’s group at 12-1. Not bad for a school that just started playing football in 2010.
West Catholic 12-2 vs Southern Columbia 14-0….13.25 Southern Columbia
Tre Johnson moved into the starting role at quarterback, replacing the injured Zaire Hart-Hawkins to help lead the West Catholic past Richland Township at Central York High School. He was more than effective, connecting on 9 of 17 passes for 101 yards and a touchdown toss! A 23-7 third quarter blew the lid off this one as the Burrs rolled to a 35-7 victory over the District-6 champ. Richland doesn’t often see this kind of size or speed and it was evident, the way West Catholic’s O-Line threw them around for 257 rush yards, opening significant holes for Jacir Savoy to rush for 183 yards on 27 carries. West Catholic’s defense held Richland to 35 yards rushing (!), forcing 5 Ram turnovers. With the exception of road losses at Pottsgrove (12-2) in the opener by a point and Conwell Egan (13-1) by 8 points, the defense has been solid enough to help reach a 12 win season, their highest win total since 2010’s 13-2 team that defeated South Fayette 50-14 in the 2A final. Defending state champ Southern Columbia is next. Evidently the bye week didn’t help York Catholic who came in 12-0 and left after a 56-23 thumping at Shamokin High. The Tigers rolled up 622 yards of offense and a 42-7 lead at the half, with the 1st unit playing only two series of the 2nd half. The Fighting Irish had no idea what hit them, being held to 211 total yards with Gaige Garcia (5-10, 195, sr, 157/1552-season) rambling for 186 yards on 10 carries and brother Gavin (5-7, 160, Fr, 88/970-season) getting 5 totes for 108, almost all in the first half. Stone Hollenbach completed 8 of 10 passes for 249 yards and 3 touchdowns with 5 going to Julian Fleming for 148 yards and two touchdowns. West Catholic and SCA last met in 2015, also in the semifinal at Northern Lehigh where they lost 34-19. Southern had difficulty with West Catholic’s speed in that one but seven turnovers (5 interceptions) did them in, in a game that was much closer than the score reveals. This one might be tipped by the advantage Southern has at quarterback, where Hollenbach (6-3, 205, sr) completed 65 of 103 passes (63%) for 1253 yards. His Td-Pick ratio is 20 to 3, throwing primarily to Julian Fleming (6-3, 210, jr, PSU) who has caught 63 passes for 1300 yards.
Steel Valley 12-1 vs Wilmington 12-1….11.92 Steel Valley
Steel Valley won their fifth district title and second in the last three years, overwhelming South Side 48-6 in their third consecutive WPIAL final. Their talented tandem backs Todd Hill and Kam Williams were more than South Side could handle, rushing for 120 yards and 3 scores and 196 yards and 3 touchdowns respectively. Williams also had 104 yards in receptions. This is quite a pair with Hill at 1618 yards rushing and dual threat Williams at 1809 yards rushing plus 404 in receptions. The Ironmen like to pound it but are a threat up top with Ronnell Lawrence completing 60 of 121 for 1054 yards. His Td/Pick ratio is a concern at 12/12. Eshawn Carter caught 18 passes for 491 yards giving them multiple weapons to take the pressure off Williams and Hill. Their only loss was against Shady Side Academy (10-1) 56-36, who fell to South Side in the playoffs. Wilmington is also a power team that just likes to pound you, even more than the Ironmen as demonstrated in last week’s 56-14 thrashing of Ridgway-Johnsonburg where they rushed for 458 yards. 458 yards! They passed for 110. The overmatch was apparent at the start with Wilmington racing out to a 42-0 lead at the half. They played their second team the entire second half but still managed to score on every possession except the last. Their defense smothered RJ, holding them to 146 total yards, 91 rushing, 55 passing. Their only loss came by another District-10 powerhouse, undefeated 1A Farrell (13-0), who beat them 31-19. Farrell plays Sacred Heart in the semifinal. Wilmington’s undefeated team lost to Southern Columbia last year 48-0 in the 2A final while Steel Valley is looking to repeat the 2016 season where they won gold defeating Southern Columbia 49-7.
Power Ratings 1A Semifinals
Lackawanna Trail 13-1 vs Juniata Valley 11-2….7.80 Lackawanna Trail
District 1-2 champ Lackawanna Trail made it to their third state semifinal defeating District-3’s perennial small school power Halifax (11-2) 28-6. Four year starting quarterback Nate Rolka and company kept things simple with the ability to run with their four headed attack of Rolka, Cody Moyle, Jeff Resto and Ray Melnikoff. Rolka threw for 43 yards but rushed for 162 with Melnikoff rushing for another 102. He’s rushed for 1156 on the year with Moyle at 772, Resto at 702 and Rolka at 678 yards rushing. A lot of the teams up that way just line up and say….here it is. The defense that allowed over 15 points once this year in a bitter 28-21 loss to conference rival Old Forge (8-3) was strong again against Halifax, holding them to 124 total yards. Their opponent this week is District-6’s Juniata Valley who survived the district final last week against United (9-5), 36-20. Don’t be fooled by the 14 point spread. The score was 20-14 United with seven and a half minutes to go in the game when the Hornets really stung them, nabbing two Pick-6’s, one returned 56 yards by Hunter Johnson the other by Kyle Derugen returned 53 yards. The win advanced them to the semifinals for the first time since 2003. They enter the playoffs with great aspirations, despite started the season 1-2, edged by playoff bound Everett (8-4, 2A) 32-26, then crushed by powerful Bellwood Antis (10-2) 41-7. Those were difficult losses knowing they concluded the 2017 season getting plastered by three time defending 1A state champ Bishop Guilfoyle. And everyone back there knows Bellwood Antis is the 2A historic power at 96-22 the last 10 years with newcomer Ligonier Valley. Point being, losing to BA was almost expected. And they evidently recovered coming in on a 10 game winning streak. This looks like a great old school football game, 3 yards and cloud of plastic pellets, where both just pound away at each other.
Farrell 13-0 vs Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 12-1….. .25 OLSH
Farrell cruised to another easy win last week routing District-9 kingpin Coudersport, 48-6. Coudy (8-5) came into this one with high aspirations, having defeated a strong Clarion Limestone (9-3) team 22-12, then destroying previously undefeated Smethport (11-1) 44-7 to avenge a one point regular season loss. Steve Kelly had a stellar performance against the Hubbers, rushing for 328 yards on 26 carries for 5 touchdown. Things were looking good, but they hadn’t played a team like Farrell with their powerful running attack supported by a capable passing attack. Nor had they seen the speed Farrell brings to every game. The score was 48-0 at the half with the Steelers generating 412 total yards and 15 first downs in the first half alone. They haven’t had a competitive game the entire year except for Wilmington who they defeated 31-19. All others were won by an average score of 53-7. All-time leading rusher Christian Lewis ran for 112 yards, taking his season total to 2035 yards, with quarterback Kyi Wright completing 8 of 8 passes for 180 yards. Jourdan Townsend caught six tosses for 174 yards, taking his season total to 1169 yards in receptions. This week sees Farrell facing a far more competent opponent in Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. They have an experienced team, especially at the skill positions and field a legitimate defense, well stocked with seniors allowing 7ppg! The offense is powerful at 41ppg with great skill players and a record setting quarterback in Tyler Bradley (6-4, 205, sr). He recently passed Phil Jurkovec of Pine Richland (8205) with his career passing total at 8328 yards. This year sees him at 3244 yards with a 63% rate, completing 201 of 303 passes. His Td to Pick ratio is 45 to 8! Austin Wigley (6-1. 200) is back as a starter after missing his junior year with an injury and starting as a sophomore. He has multiple skills, rushing for 832 yards on 157 carries while catching 24 passes for 408 yards. Bradley spreads it out well, throwing to Richard Banks (55/841, 5-8, 170, Quips trans 2 yrs ago), Andrew Schnarre (46/693, 5-8, 170), Rico Tate (32/589, 6-3, 190), Noah Campalong (19/277, 6-1, 205), and Sig Saftner (11/175, 5-10, 170). Third year coach Dan Bradley has them on a mission, fielding teams going 7-3, 9-2 and this year’s group at 12-1. Not bad for a school that just started playing football in 2010.
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