Week 9’s don’t-miss high school football matchups for A-K Valley

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, October 25, 2017 | 7:30 PM

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Class 5A Big East Conference

Armstrong (5-4, 3-4) at Kiski Area (1-8, 1-6)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Armstrong topped Connellsville, 57-22. Kiski Area fell to Class 5A No. 1 Penn-Trafford, 54-19.

The buzz: The Cavaliers celebrate senior night hoping to snap a four-game losing streak. The River Hawks hope to make it two in a row to close the regular season.

Key players: Armstrong signal-caller Dawson Porter has thrown 14 touchdowns and is 28 yards away from 1,000 for the season. Cavaliers quarterback Bryson Venanzio tossed two touchdowns and finished with 126 yards through the air against Penn-Trafford.

About the River Hawks: Armstrong closed David “Red” Ullom Field, the former Kittanning home, with a big offensive output against the Falcons. The River Hawks led 36-0 at halftime, and their 57 points were a season best.

About the Cavaliers: Kiski Area ranks 15th in Class 5A in points per game at 17.0, while it has surrendered an average of 54.3 points in a tough gauntlet against the top three teams in the Big East: McKeesport, Gateway and Penn-Trafford.

Class 4A Northwest Nine Conference

Indiana (1-7, 1-6) at Highlands (4-4, 3-4)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Indiana fell to Mars, 33-7. Highlands was defeated by Class 4A No. 1 South Fayette, 49-14.

The buzz: Highlands celebrates senior night hoping to cap conference play on a high note. The Golden Rams hope to avenge a 52-42 loss to the Indians in last year's finale.

Key players: Indians quarterback Luke Thomas threw for 125 yards last Friday against Mars. Seth Cohen hopes for one more solid game for Highlands. The junior has 1,741 passing yards and 22 touchdowns this season.

About the Indians: Indiana is hoping to stop a three-game losing streak in which it gave up an average of 50.3 points in losses to conference foes Knoch, South Fayette and Mars. The Indians' lone win of the season came against Ambridge, 20-0, on Sept. 29.

About the Golden Rams: Despite being eliminated from playoff contention last week against South Fayette, Highlands has a chance Friday to finish above .500 for the fourth time in the past five seasons.

Class 3A Allegheny Conference

Burrell (1-8, 0-6) at Deer Lakes (1-7, 0-6)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Burrell suffered a 27-6 nonconference loss to East Allegheny. Deer Lakes fell to Shady Side Academy, 35-6.

The buzz: Something has to give as both teams enter the game 0-6 in conference play. Burrell won last year's meeting 21-13.

Key players: Bucs junior Logan Bitar went over 1,000 yards rushing for the season with his 127 against East Allegheny. Josh Solomon has been an offensive threat all season for the Lancers, and he scored a rushing touchdown last Friday against Shady Side Academy.

About the Bucs: Burrell is trying to end a season-long losing streak after a 39-12 Week Zero victory over Springdale. Luke Kastelic, a junior, is second on the team in tackles this season with 53, and he has two interceptions.

About the Lancers: Backup quarterback Ethan Bender threw 20 passes and completed 10 for 227 yards against Shady Side. Deer Lakes hopes to fare better against Bitar after Shady Side quarterback Skyy Moore ran for 193 yards and three touchdowns before being pulled early in the third quarter.

Class 3A Allegheny Conference

Freeport (6-2, 5-1) at Valley (3-5, 3-3)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Valley won at Apollo-Ridge, 20-6. Freeport rolled past Keystone Oaks, 28-7.

The buzz: The Vikings hope to make their senior night a memorable one, while the Yellowjackets want to add more momentum as they head into the playoffs next week.

Key players: Freeport's defense sacked Keystone Oaks freshman Logan Shrubb six times and recorded three interceptions. Valley's Deonte Ross only carried the ball 11 times in the victory over Apollo-Ridge, but he totaled 132 yards, an average of 12 yards per carry.

About the Yellowjackets: Freeport's win last week over Keystone Oaks clinched the No. 2 spot in the conference behind Seton LaSalle (6-0). Conor Selinger has two interception returns for touchdowns in the past three games. The Yellowjackets are the top scoring defense in the Allegheny Conference.

About the Vikings: Valley is hoping to close conference play with a third consecutive victory. The Vikings won four in a row at one point last year, including three consecutive conference contests, en route to a 6-3 overall record.

Class A Eastern CONFERENCE

Leechburg (0-9, 0-6) at 3-A Imani Christian (7-2, 5-1), Graham Field

1:30 p.m. Saturday

Last week: Leechburg fell to Brownsville, 35-19. Imani Christian routed Springdale, 66-16.

The buzz: Imani Christian can win the Eastern Conference title with a win and a Jeannette loss to Clairton. Leechburg hopes to build on positives from last week's loss to the Falcons.

Key players: Leechburg's Jake Blumer tallied a season-best 142 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries against Brownsville. Imani quarterback Tawan Wesley was efficient against Springdale, completing 11 of 12 passes for 358 yards and six touchdowns.

About the Blue Devils: Leechburg's 19 points against the Falcons was a season high. The Blue Devils are the only Class A team averaging less than 10 points per game. Dylan Cook caught a 7-yard TJ pass.

About the Saints: Imani Christian has won four in a row since back-to-back losses to California and Jeannette last month. The Saints have scored at least 50 points in four games and rank third in Class A in scoring (43.8) behind California (55.1) and Jeannette (47.4).

NONCONFERENCE

Bentworth (3-6) at Riverview (2-6)

Noon Saturday

Last week: Bentworth lost to Frazier, 39-18. Riverview was shut out by Clairton, 56-0.

The buzz: Riverview hopes to celebrate senior day with a win that also will avenge a 35-24 loss to the Bearcats last season.

Key players: Bentworth senior receiver Ben Peternel has 45 catches for 824 yards and nine touchdowns in nine games. Raiders quarterback Ben Blacksmith will lead an offense hoping to put points on the board after last week's shutout loss to the Bears.

About the Bearcats: Quarterback Shawn Dziak has thrown for 1,226 yards and 13 touchdowns against 16 interceptions over nine games.

About the Raiders: Five of Riverview's eight games this season have ended in shutouts. The Raiders blanked Leechburg and Avella for their two wins but were kept off the scoreboard in losses to Jeannette, Greensburg Central Catholic and Clairton.

NONConference

Fox Chapel (5-4) at Plum (3-6)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Fox Chapel upended Chartiers Valley, 34-18. Plum dropped a 28-7 decision at Latrobe.

The buzz: Playoff-bound Fox Chapel hopes to make it five wins in a row, while Plum wants to finish the regular season on a positive note after last week's tough loss.

Key players: Fox Chapel's Nick Gizzo and Micah Morris each went over 1,000 yards rushing in last week's win over Chartiers Valley. Plum's Colt Robb ran for 124 yards against Latrobe, his fourth game of at least 100 yards rushing this season. The senior has 640 yards and two touchdowns this season.

About the Foxes: If Woodland Hills (5-2) wins at Upper St. Clair on Friday, the Wolverines finish third in the Allegheny Nine, and Fox Chapel is fourth. The Foxes beat Woodland Hills earlier in the season and would take third on the head-to-head tiebreaker with a Wolverines loss.

About the Mustangs: Plum is 4-6 on senior night the past 10 years. The Mustangs hope to avenge last year's 42-7 loss to the Foxes. Plum won three of four conference games against Fox Chapel from 2007-10.

NONCONFERENCE

South Allegheny (1-7) at

Apollo-Ridge (4-5)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Apollo-Ridge topped Valley, 20-6. South Allegheny fell at home to Avonworth, 31-20.

The buzz: Apollo-Ridge can cap its season at .500 win a senior-night victory. The Vikings defeated the Gladiators, 49-27, last year.

Key players: Vikings freshman Klay Fitzroy threw for 122 yards and scored his team's lone touchdown on a 1-yard run against Valley. Gladiators senior running back Juwan Mitchell leads the team in rushing with 514 yards and three touchdowns on 94 carries, including 132 and two scores in a 35-32 loss to Brentwood on Oct. 6.

About the Gladiators: South Allegheny is hoping to stop a five-game losing streak after a 54-6 victory over Carlynton on Sept. 15.

About the Vikings: Klay Fitzroy was thrust into the quarterback spot last Friday as older brother Kyle didn't play because of injury and fellow freshman Jake Fello left the game late in the first quarter.

Class 5A Big East Conference

2-5A Gateway (8-1, 6-1) at Franklin Regional (6-2, 5-2)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Gateway won its third straight game with a 21-18 victory over McKeesport. Franklin Regional defeated North Hills, 21-13, in a nonconference tilt.

The buzz: Gateway has hopes of sharing the conference title with Penn-Trafford but needs McKeesport to defeat the Warriors on Friday. Franklin Regional has hopes of riding a three-game winning streak into the playoffs and possibly finishing second in the conference to earn a home playoff game.

Key players: Gateway senior Brady Walker is the WPIAL's second-leading passer, having completed 150 of 237 attempts for 2,520 yards and 31 touchdowns, with just three interceptions. He also is approaching 7,000 career yards (6,689). Franklin Regional is led by the backfield of quarterback Adam Rudzinski (51-113, 829 yards, 9 TDs) and running back Nate Leopold (70-394, 6TDs).

About the Gators: The Gators offense averages 38.9 points thanks to a talented group of skill players, including WR Courtney Jackson (42 catches, 933 yards, 16 TDs) and RB Isaiah Cameron (481 rushing yards, 352 receiving yards, 14 TDs).

About the Panthers: Franklin Regional is averaging just 19.4 points, but its defense — led by senior linebacker Bryce Lauer — has limited opponents to 16.3, the same as Gateway.

Class 5A Big East CONFERENCE

1-5A Penn-Trafford (9-0, 7-0) at 3-5A McKeesport (6-2, 5-2)

7 p.m. Friday

Last week: Penn-Trafford toppled Kiski Area, 54-19. McKeesport fell at Gateway, 21-18.

The buzz: No. 1 Penn-Trafford has clinched its third conference title in four years and now seeks its second undefeated regular season in three seasons.

Key players: Running back John Gay IV scored three more touchdowns last week, giving him 15 for the season, and quarterback Cam Laffoon threw for three scores, all in the first half for Penn-Trafford. Laffoon has thrown for 919 yards and nine scores this season. Gay has run for 841 yards and 15 touchdowns. The Tigers' Johnny Harper ran for 141 yards on 20 carries last week against Gateway.

About the Warriors: Senior two-way lineman Logan Hawkins has missed three games with a leg injury but it expected to work his way back into the lineup.

About the Tigers: They went from No. 1 to open the season to No. 3 and potentially a third- or fourth-place finish in the Big East.

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Armstrong, Bentworth, Burrell, Deer Lakes, Fox Chapel, Freeport, Highlands, Imani Christian, Indiana, Kiski School, Leechburg, Plum, Riverview, South Allegheny, Valley