Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2021 Week 7

By: Paul Schofield
Wednesday, October 13, 2021 | 5:42 PM

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Class 6A

2-Central Catholic (5-2, 3-1) at Hempfield (2-5, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Spartan Stadium, Hempfield

Central Catholic lost a game and its No. 1 ranking last week when it fell to Mt. Lebanon, 35-14, in a game that carried over into Saturday morning because of lightning delays. Gannon Carothers returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for the Vikings, and sophomore quarterback Payton Wehner, who is from North Huntingdon, threw a late touchdown to Peter Gonzalez. It was the Vikings’ worst loss since a 27-3 setback against North Allegheny in 2018. Last year’s Hempfield-Central game was canceled due to covid-19 concerns. … After a 2-1 start that showed promise, Hempfield dropped its fourth straight game, second via shutout, 28-0 to improving Baldwin. Senior Daniel Sierk, a Bucknell commit, leads the Spartans lines. Junior Eli Binakonsky has also been strong on both sides of the ball as a tight end, running back and linebacker.

1-Mt. Lebanon (7-0, 4-0) at Norwin (2-5, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Norwin Knights Stadium

Mt. Lebanon has surged to the top of the 6A conference and looks like the frontrunner for WPIAL favorite. The Blue Devils dispatched of former No. 1 Central Catholic, 35-14, increasing their margin of victory to 28.3 points. Alex Tecza has been a big-play producer. He had touchdown runs of 84 and 44 yards, while quarterback Joey Daniels caught a 20-yard scoring pass last week from Eli Heidenreich. Daniels returned the favor later with a short scoring throw to Heidenreich. Norwin had a long Friday night last week as it sat through a weather delay of one hour and 20 minutes and didn’t finish a 42-24 loss to North Allegheny until around 11:30 p.m. The Knights cut the Tigers’ lead to 28-17 in the third quarter before fading. Luke Levendosky threw for 118 yards and ran for 79 yards, including a 48-yard run to the end zone. The Knights have lost four straight.

Class 5A Big East Conference

Franklin Regional (2-5, 1-1) at Latrobe (3-4, 1-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Latrobe

The winner will put itself in a good position to earn one of the four WPIAL playoff berths in the conference. Both teams have defeated Connellsville, but two wins could clinch the berth. Woodland Hills also has one victory with games against Connellsville and Latrobe left. … Latrobe welcomed back the return of quarterback Bobby Fetter, who tossed two scoring passes and rushed for two scores. Kyle Brewer also scored twice and rushed for 115 yards and Drake Clayton rushed for 227 yards and a score in a 55-13 win against Connellsville. Franklin Regional got touchdown runs from Caden Smith (79 yards), Ayden Hudock (46 yards) and Tyler Bewszka (12 yards) in a 37-21 loss to Woodland Hills. The Panthers allowed five touchdown passes.

3-Penn-Trafford (5-2, 2-0) at Connellsville (0-7, 0-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Connellsville Stadium, Connellsville

A strong push from its defense propelled Penn-Trafford to a statement win over rival Gateway, 15-10. The Warriors also used a pair of field goals by Nathan Schlessinger and a sound running game to pin back the Gators and tie their all-time Victory Bell series, 11-11. The defense limited Gators’ QB Brad Birch and WR Patrick Body, as Gateway passed for 118 yards. Cade Yacamelli and Carter Green continued to be a one-two punch in the backfield, combining for 193 yards rushing. P-T has three straight wins. … Mired in a 14-game losing streak, Connellsville fell last week at Latrobe, 55-13. The Falcons have been outscored 296-60. Last week, Zak David scored on a short run, while Jason McBride caught a 16-yard pass from Anthony Piasecki for another touchdown.

Class 4A Big 8 Conference

Trinity (2-5, 1-2) at Belle Vernon (6-0, 4-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Jim Weir Stadium, Rostraver

Belle Vernon has already punched its ticket to the WPIAL playoffs. Now the Leopards look to win the Big 8 Conference with a victory to set up a possible first-place showdown Oct. 29 against McKeesport. Trinity looks to keep its playoff hopes alive. It needs to win two of its final three games to qualify. … Devin Whitlock continues to lead the Leopards. He scored four touchdowns and rushed for 182 yards in a 35-14 victory against Ringgold. Jake Gedekoh added 70 yards in place of Quintin Martin, who is sidelined with an injury. Trinity journeyed to District 9 and dropped a 30-0 decision to unbeaten Clearfield. Running back Andrew Durig has scored eight touchdowns while rushing for only 161 yards and catching eight passes for 223 yards.

Class 4A Greater Allegheny Conference

Mars (1-6, 1-3) at Greensburg Salem (4-3, 2-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Offutt Field, Greensburg

Greensburg Salem looks to end a two-game losing streak against Mars, which won its first game of the season last week against Knoch, 14-13. Both teams are jockeying to finish in the top four in the conference to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs. … Mars quarterback Rafael Bartley tossed touchdown passes of 47 yards to Aidan Alessio and 46 to Noah Nesselroad in the win. Bartley completed 13 of 18 passes for 228 yards. Greensburg Salem quarterback Hayden Teska is the top passer in the WPIAL. He completed 18 of 35 passes for 262 yards in a 33-16 loss to Armstrong. Cody Rubrecht had eight catches for 174 yards and a 79-yard touchdown reception. Teska has completed 93 of 189 passes for 1,610 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Class 3A Allegheny 7 Conference

Derry (0-6, 0-2) at East Allegheny (2-5, 1-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Churchman Stadium, North Versailles

Both teams are still in the running for a WPIAL playoff berth. East Allegheny, with its win against Burrell, has the edge and will qualify with wins against Derry and Valley. Derry must defeat East Allegheny and Burrell to have a shot at a playoff berth. … East Allegheny dropped a 17-7 decision to Freeport. The Wildcats’ score came on a 37-yard pass from Michael Smith to Trey Jeter. Derry has been outscored 316-43 this season. Ahmad Ward and Eric Catone have each rushed for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Derry has turned the ball over 20 times.

Class 3A Interstate Conference

Southmoreland (5-2, 2-1) at Brownsville (0-5, 0-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Brownsville Stadium, Brownsville

Southmoreland has regained its footing after getting blown out at Mt. Pleasant, 34-7, in Week 4. The Scotties have outscored their last two opponents, Derry and Yough, 76-7. Last week in a 35-7 win over Yough, quarterback Anthony Govern ran for 130 yards and two touchdowns, and Isaac Trout scored on a fumble recovery and caught a 39-yard scoring throw from Govern. The Scotties, who have shown big-play ability and sound play from their line, are in position to clinch a second playoff berth in three years. Watch JJ Bloom as another top receiving threat. … Brownsville had some covid-related issues last week that cut down its roster numbers and forced the Falcons to cancel their Week 6 game at Mt. Pleasant. The game went in the books as a no contest instead of a forfeit. The Falcons have lost 19 straight games.

Class 2A Allegheny Conference

Summit Academy (0-7, 0-2) at Ligonier Valley (5-2, 0-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Weller Field, Ligonier

Ligonier Valley and Summit Academy have their backs against the wall. To guarantee a spot in the WPIAL playoffs, they must finish in the top three in the conference. They can qualify for a spot if they are the top fourth-place finisher between their conference and the Three Rivers Conference. … Raquiane Cosby, Aden Koimene and Corral Stanback have scored touchdowns for Summit Academy. Scoring hasn’t been its main problem. Allowing points has been. In six of seven losses, it has allowed 40 points or more. Running back Nick Beitel has been the Rams’ main offensive weapon. He’s rushed for 599 yards, caught a team-high 12 passes for 131 yards and scored six touchdowns. Matthew Marinchak has 10 catches for 175 yards and four touchdowns.

Class A Eastern Conference

4-Greensburg Central Catholic (5-2, 3-1) at 1-Clairton (4-2, 4-0),

7 p.m. Friday, Neil C. Brown Stadium. Clairton

Greensburg Central Catholic stayed in the thick of the conference-title discussion with a dominating 66-0 win over Riverview, the Centurions’ second straight shutout following a close loss to Bishop Canevin. GCC has a number of playmakers, including Amari Mack, Ryan Kimmel, Joe Blahovec and others. This will be the biggest game for new coach Marko Thomas since he took over at GCC. The Centurions have allowed just 72 points, including 38 against 5A Upper St. Clair in the season opener. … Clairton had an unforced bye week after Imani Christian forfeited to the Bears because of the Saints’ limited number of active players. Clairton remains the favorite to win the WPIAL because of its speed and athleticism, but the defense has not been dominant. The Bears allowed 43 points against 2A Washington, 27 against Leechburg and 18 against Bishop Canevin. Capone Jones has rushed for five touchdowns and thrown for four more.

Jeannette (1-6, 1-3) at 4-Bishop Canevin (6-1, 3-1)

7 p.m. Saturday, Dormont Stadium, Dormont

Jeannette suffered its third straight loss after a Week 3 win over Riverview. Antonio Clark is getting back on track after an injury. He ran for a touchdown, and Mitchell Steele III kicked a 26-yard field goal, but Jeannette fell to Springdale, 20-9. Tyler Horn has been a bright spot at quarterback. Last year, Brad Birch threw seven touchdown passes for the Jayhawks in a 49-0 win over Bishop Canevin. Birch transferred to Gateway, one of nine transfers that left the Jayhawks decimated and rebuilding. … Bishop Canevin has emerged as a conference title contender with its strong return game and rushing attack. Last week in a 33-3 rout of high-scoring Leechburg, Lesae Lacks had a 32-yard punt return touchdown and Jason Cross ran for a score and threw for another. Marquis Carter rushed for 123 yards and a score for the Crusaders whose only loss is to Clairton, 28-18. Bishop Canevin is allowing a conference-best 9.0 points a game.

Class A Tri-County South Conference

West Greene (5-2, 4-0) at Monessen (3-4, 2-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Monessen

West Greene has already clinched a berth in the WPIAL playoffs and is in great shape to win the conference title with wins against California and Carmichaels. Monessen can qualify for the playoffs if it finishes in the top five of the conference. The Greyhounds will do so with one win in their final three games. … West Greene has won five consecutive games after opening the season with two losses. Running back Colin Brady has rushed for 899 yards and 13 touchdowns, Corey Wise has rushed for 428 yards and six touchdowns, and quarterback Wesley Whipkey has completed 33 of 63 passes for 702 yards and nine touchdowns. Anthony Crew has scored six touchdowns for Monessen, while Daevon Burke has scored three.

Nonconference

Yough (0-7, 0-4) at Valley (1-6, 1-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Valley High Memorial Stadium, New Kensington

Valley, which had scored 21 total points and was shut out three times over the first six weeks, broke into the win column last week with a 32-14 win over Derry. … Yough comes into the game averaging just 4.7 points per game and is giving up 36.1. The Cougars suffered a 35-7 loss to Southmoreland last Friday. Tristan Waldier got Yough on the scoreboard with an 18-yard run in the fourth quarter and finished with 46 yards on 13 carries. … Valley has won all seven previous games against Yough, including last year’s matchup, 32-14. The teams first played in 1990.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Brownsville, Central Catholic, Clairton, Connellsville, Derry Area, East Allegheny, Franklin Regional, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Latrobe, Ligonier Valley, Mars, Monessen, Mt. lebanon, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland, Summit Academy, Trinity, Valley, West Greene, Yough