WPIAL Friday Night HighLights for Week Seven

By: Bruce Markey
Saturday, October 12, 2013 | 9:34 AM

The nerves are a little more active when you hit the 'Stretch Run' of the high school football season as each game takes on more meaning. Some teams have been known to wilt and struggle under said pressure, while others thrive and succeed toward the second season. Here are the top performance from what was another rain free, yet a tad damp Friday night as these players put a damper on their opponents Week Seven.

Doug Altavilla and Nick Barca and Luke Smorey – Baldwin

Most of the time, we tip our cap to a players with an occasional acknowledgement of a pair of players from one team, but history is made on the HighLight  with a salute to three monster performances in one game from one team. Baldwin quarterback Doug Altavilla hit on 16 of 19 passes for 275 yards and five touchdowns, three of which went to receiver Luke Smorey who caught 10 passes for 173 yards and added a scoring run, plus Nick Barca rushed for 288 yards and scored on three rushing and two receiving touchdowns in the Highlanders 63-48 Class AAAA Non-Conference shootout victory over the visiting Fox Chapel Foxes.

Marcus Ubinger and Cory Owen – Peters Township

Usually when we have a running back and quarterback, its what they did with their legs and arm that stood out. With this Peters Township duo, they both got it done on the ground. PT running back Marcus Ubinger rushed for 194 yards and scored and had a short touchdown run while quarterback Cory Owen added 176 yards on the ground and four times, including what would be the game winning touchdown on a 32-yard fourth quarter jaunt as the Indians won a key Class AAAA Southeastern Conference contest with a 39-35 slugfest victory over the visiting Mount Lebanon Blue Devils.

Chad Kuhn – Kiski Area

Battered and bruised coming into the game, Kiski Area relied on their signal caller to help lead the way to a huge and somewhat surprising victory. Kuhn was near perfect in hitting on 12 of 15 passes for 154 yards, plus he rushed for 98 yards and scored on a pair of long touchdowns runs in leading the Cavaliers to a 34-14 victory over the visiting Penn-Trafford Warriors that forces a three-way tie between the two teams and the Hempfield Spartans in the battle for third place and a possible home playoff game in the Class AAAA Foothills Conference.

Riley Redman – Pittsburgh Central Catholic

In his first start of the season last week, Pittsburgh Central Catholic running back Riley Redman rushed for 223 yards in a victory over Pine-Richland. Here in Week Seven, is his game starting to slip? (tongue planted in cheek)  With Luigi Lista-Brinza still on the shelf with an ankle injury, Redman rushed for 187 yards on 26 carries and allowed Devin Faloon to do the heavy lifting of scoring three times as the Vikings rolled to a Class AAAA Northern Eight Conference championship with a 27-0 whitewash of the three-time defending champion North Allegheny Tigers.

Tory Delmonico – West Allegheny

A good boxer will rely on the ropes when thing aren't going well to help stay on his feet until he can comeback and deliver the winning knockout punch. Well, we're talking football here, not boxing, but there is a reason West Allegheny still wears the title belt. After being forced to the ropes in the first half by New Castle, Tory Delmonico helped the Indians remain undefeated with 144 yards rushing and tow second half touchdowns, including the game winning score on a 46-yard run in a 37-31 thriller over the host Red Hurricane that moves West A one win closer to the outright Class AAA Parkway Conference championship.

Tyler Mellors – Mount Pleasant

The king of all rushers in the history of Mount Pleasant football continues to sit on an undefeated throne. Tyler Mellors continued his historic career by rushing for 216 yards while scoring six touchdowns on runs of 3, 3, 12, 3, 1 and the capper, a 93-yard score on a night that he became the schools all-time leading rusher and allowed the Vikings to win the Class AA Interstate Conference championship in a 47-22 victory over the previously unbeaten and host Washington Little Prexies.

Tyler Balla – Greensburg Central Catholic

It was a rough start for Greensburg Central Catholic, who one month ago was staring at an 0-3 start. Now four victories later, GCC has put their early season struggles behind them and now control their own destiny for a playoff spot. Tyler Balla led the way with a HUGE game on the ground, rushing for 306 yards and one touchdown on a 35-yard run (plus a 2-point conversion reception) as the Centurions cruised after a slow start at home to beat the Charleroi Cougars 33-14 in a Class AA Interstate Conference fray.

Dravon Henry – Aliquippa

They call him Big Play Dre for a reason. He doesn't put up the gaudy numbers because his coach doesn't care about individual stats, but make no mistake this guy makes the plays when his number is called. On Friday, Henry rushed for 175 yards on a handful of carries, scored on a 97-yard run, on a 49-yard scoring pass from Darion Fields and returned an interception 65-yards for his third touchdown as the defending Class AA champions remained perfect with a 56-0 whitewash of the visiting Ellwood City Wolverines that sets up a Battle of the Unbeaten next week against Beaver Falls in the Midwestern Conference.

Alex Rouse – Beaver

In a game to keep Beaver in control of their own destiny in a playoff chase, quarterback Alex Rouse delivered on another large game. Fresh off a 330 yard passing game last week, Rouse hit on 15 of 19 passes for 251 yards and connected with Darius Wise on three touchdown tosses of 10, 2 and 77 yards as the Bobcats thumped the visiting Mohawk Warriors 49-7 in a win that moved them into the Top 4 in the Class AA Midwestern Conference as they control their own destiny into the final two weeks of the regular season.

Chris Smith and Alex Kalmar – Leechburg

We don't get a chance to salute Leechburg football that often, so it doubles our pleasure to give out a pair of kudos to that small AK-Valley school Friday night.   Chris Smith rushed for 180 yards and scored two touchdowns, including an 84-yard kickoff return to the house while teammate Alex Kalmar gained 159 yards on the ground and scored on an 8-yard run in the second quarter and a 6-yard run in the fourth quarter that was the clinched in a 31-22 win over the visiting Riverview Raiders that kept the Blue Devils playoff hopes in the Class A Eastern Conference alive for another week.

Tags: Aliquippa, Baldwin, Beaver, Greensburg C.C., Kiski School, Leechburg, West Allegheny