District 10   Week 5 Summary

 by Todd Warner

Class A Summary:   In the south, Kennedy Catholic pounded Cochranton, 34-7, to remain unbeaten in Region 1 play.  The Golden Eagles need wins over Lakeview and Linesville in their next two games to win the region title and an automatic playoff berth.  On a less positive note, KC looks to face the remainder of the regular season without junior RB Ross Gargano; a marvelous talent who made the All-PFN team as a 9^th grader in 2003.  While Gargano, who had ACL surgery last year due to a mid-season injury, is recuperating from this latest injury and getting healthy for the Eagles’ D10A title run---- KC will rely heavily on outstanding RB Lee Plotts to carry their offense. Defending D10A Champion Sharpsville crushed Conneaut Lake, 42-0.  The Blue Devils have to beat Linesville this week and West Middlesex next week to clinch an opportunity to defend their district crown.  It was a happy Homecoming at West Middlesex as Big Reds stayed in the playoff hunt by routing Lakeview, 36-7.  In the north, undefeated Fairview rolled past Eisenhower, 34-21.  The Tigers, who have never lost a Region 2 game, are still seeking admission to the coveted PFN Top Ten.  Fairview QB Kevin Stephenson, the top rated QB in all of D10A, ran for a score and passed for another and returning All-PFN RB Ty Perry scored a pair of TDs on short plunges.  Fairview built an early 14-0 and maintained control throughout against the tough Knights.  Keeping pace with Fairview and continuing the drive toward a Region 2 title clash on October 14^th, rugged Iroquois whipped Saegertown, 28-6.  Coach Phil Glass’ Braves simply had “two too many Barringer twins” for Saegertown.  The senior siblings, Dan and Steve, each scored two TDs.  QB Dan ran for two scores and rushed for 161 yards.  He also tossed a TD pass to brother Steve whose other score came on a short run.  Iroquois’ senior class was expected to give the school its best shot at a D10 title in years and so far, those kids have delivered.   Tied at 14 at the half, Cambridge Springs stopped Youngsville, 20-14, when Austin Tapper bulled 1-yard for the winning points in the final quarter.  The win was huge for the resurgent Blue Devils as they still have control of their playoff destiny---but they have to win all of their remaining Region 2 games.  Youngsville’s slim playoff hopes disappeared for good with the defeat.  Union City roared past winless Conneaut Valley, 50-15.  The Fightin’ Green Bears picked up their 3^rd win of the season with ease as they exploded out to a 36-6 first half lead and went with the reserves in the second half.

Class A Week 6 Key Games: In the south, Linesville tangles with Sharpsville.  The winner stays alive in the playoff race.  The loser is all but eliminated from contention.  In the north, Cambridge Springs must win at home against Eisenhower to stay within one game of co-leaders Fairview and Iroquois.

Class AA Summary: In the south, unbeaten co-leaders Wilmington and Reynolds continued their collision course toward a likely Region 3 title showdown on October 14^th.  Both teams feature very quick, physical defenses and that again was the story in Week 5.  Wilmington mauled Sharon, 23-0, and all but eliminated the Tigers from any hope of playing in the post-season.  The fierce Hound defense has given up just 38 points this season.  Reynolds handled Mercer, 23-7.  The Raiders have shown less offensive prowess than Wilmington, but their defense is right on par with the Hounds having yielded just 46 points so far.  It is now just about a foregone and definite conclusion that D10AA will have new champion this season.  That fact was sealed when Hickory knocked off Grove City, 14-9.  Last year’s PIAA Runners-up will be spectators during the upcoming postseason.  In a shocking meeting of previously winless, but normally powerful teams, Slippery Rock demolished Greenville, 31-0.  In the north, Region 4 leader Girard ran over Maplewood, 35-7.  It was another typical Yellowjacket win as Coach Mina George’s team rolled up nearly 400 yards on the ground in the rout.  Cat-quick RB Derrick Johnson rushed for 203 yards and scored twice as Girard kept their drive to the region crown on cruise control. In an offense-oriented classic, Northwestern rallied to beat Mercyhurst Prep, 43-42.  The Wildcats’ wild win kept them in the hunt for a playoff spot.  Northwestern got a bunch of PFN Stat Star performances in the entertaining game as well.  Outstanding junior QB Cody Cipalla threw 4 TD passes---all them to Tyson Harmon.  Harmon actually scored 5 TDs in the game as he added an 87-yard KO return for a TD to his four TD catches.  With less than 3 minutes to play, Northwestern trailed 42-35 when Cipalla connected with Harmon on a short TD strike.  The same duo then connected again seconds later on the decisive 2-point conversion pass.  MP has been the heart-break team in D10 this season and the Lakers saw an opportunity to pull this one out in the last 10 seconds slip away when a field goal attempt deflected off the crossbar.  Rallying from an 8-0 first quarter deficit, Seneca beat Harbor Creek, 27-16, and effectively wiped out any hope that last year’s D10AA runners-up had of returning to the postseason.  The Bobcats, for now, kept their slim postseason hopes simmering.  Seneca’s Angelo Salvage paced the offense with 209 yards rushing.  HC’s all-PFN “athlete” candidate Stephen Blose scored a TD and booted a pair of field goals.  Once-beaten North East hammered Fort LeBoeuf, 27-7, to stay in a tie for second place in Region 4 with Northwestern.  NE got three rushing TDs from Kyle Kirsch and an 84-yard scoring run from Joe Rizzo in beating the Bison.  The Pickers have a likely playoff deciding showdown in Albion this week against Northwestern.

Class AA Week 6 Key Games:  In the south, Region 3 co-leaders Wilmington and Reynolds are on a collision course to meet for the crown on October 14^th.  But both must first pass tough road tests on October 7^th as Wilmington travels to Grove City; while Reynolds ventures into fabled Tiger Stadium to face Sharon.  In the north, the focus will be squarely on Albion where North East will meet Northwestern in a game that almost is sure to determine who gets the second playoff spot from Region 4.

Class AAA Summary:  Barring what would be a very stunning series of events, General McLane’s 34-21 win over Strong Vincent in front of more than 5,000 fans in Edinboro almost certainly gave the explosive Lancers the Region 5 title and top seed for the playoffs.  GM, now #8 in the PFN rankings, blew away from a 14-14 half time deadlock to hand the two-time defending D10AAA champs their first defeat.  Our preseason forecast projected McLane to go unbeaten in Region 5 play because the Lancers simply have a massive arsenal of weapons on offense, defense, and special teams.  One of those weapons is junior Drew Astorino, a lightning bolt who leads all D10 athletes with 13 TDs this season.  The tremendous all-around athlete burned SV badly in this showdown.  He scored three TDs---leaving the Colonels grasping at air on his 74-yard punt return; then hauling a pass from QB Ben Swank and slicing past and through the SV secondary on a 60-yard scoring play; and then with a less glamorous 5-yard TD run.  McLane RB Dan Skelton bolted 42 yards for another Lancer TD.  But the key to GM’s first win over SV in four tries over the past three seasons was probably the stellar work of the big guys up front.  McLane dominated the trenches against every opponent this season and they had the same level of success against the vaunted Colonels.  The Lancers are rock-solid up front and the leader is a rare four-year starter on the OL/DL.  A bonafide Division 1 prospect, two-way tackle Rob Stoner is a massive (290-pounder) with outstanding quickness who leads the Lancers line surge on both sides of the ball.  Oil City’s Dante Jones made the PFN Stat Star list when he bolted 86 yards for a TD on the games’ opening kickoff.  But, Oilers’ lead did not last and surprising Corry rallied for an 18-14 win over Oil City.  The Beavers got the game-winning score on Brandon Eck’s 7-yard TD burst midway through the final period.  Corry is currently in sole possession of 3^rd place in the Region 5 standings; but will need some great performances against the toughest teams on their schedule in the next several weeks if they want to stay in the top four and get a playoff spot.  That 7-6 loss to Meadville is week 4 could be one that really comes back to haunt the Beavers as the post-season race goes down to the wire in AAA.  Franklin upset Warren, 35-21, to further muddle the middle of the AAA standings and also propel the Knights, who started out very slowly this season back into playoff contention.  A game against an Erie East team that has gone two years without a win was just what the schedule doctor ordered for the struggling Titusville Rockets.  Erie East got a 173-yard rushing performance from RB Idaniel Graham, a terrific talent who typically accounts for about 90% of the winless Warriors offensive output.  But Titusville still pounded Erie East, 35-8, as a quintet of Rockets each scored a TD in the rout.  What in the world has Coach Mike Pendolino fed his Meadville Bulldogs for their last two pregame meals?  Two weeks into the season, many thought Meadville might among the worst football teams in Western PA (after being trounced by a combined 140-13 by General McLane, Strong Vincent, and Titusville).  But an upset of Corry in week 4 was followed by another success.  Meadville stunned AAAA Erie Central, 35-20, on Saturday.  That game did not mean anything toward the postseason, but Meadville has already gone through the ugliest part of their Region 5 schedule. So, if the Dogs can keep rolling with this new-found momentum and keep winning, they could sneak into the postseason.

Class AAA Week 6 Key Games:  Franklin at Meadville and Titusville at Warren results will separate the cluster of teams seeking the 3^rd and 4^th playoff spots in AAA.

Class AAAA Summary:    On Saturday, Cathedral Prep crushed Rochester (NY) Aquinas, 49-6, to show that they had fully recovered from the overtime loss to arch-rival McDowell.  On Friday, unbeaten but un-respected D9AAAA opponent DuBois made the long journey to Erie to face unbeaten McDowell.  In a game televised live on Erie’s Adelphia Channel 16, DuBois shocked McDowell, 33-21.  The Trojans brief venture into PFN’s Top Ten ended abruptly when the Beavers rallied from a 21-20 fourth quarter deficit.  With about 7 minutes to play, McDowell attempted a long field goal that would have increased their lead to 4 points.  But the high snap caused enough of a delay that the Beavers blocked the FG attempt and then ran back the loose ball to the McDowell 9-yard line.  Two plays later, DuBois got what turned out to be the winning TD on a short pass to a wide open tight end in the back of the end zone.

Class AAAA Week 6 Key Game:  A couple of great inter-region and inter-district clashes are on the board this weekend in Veterans Stadium as D6AAAA power State College faces Cathedral Prep on Friday.  Then, on Saturday, a huge crowd is expected to be on hand for McDowell’s meeting with AAA powerhouse Strong Vincent.