Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2021 Week 8

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, October 20, 2021 | 6:44 PM

Class 6A

Canon-McMillan (4-4, 2-3) at Norwin (2-6, 0-5)

7 p.m. Friday, Norwin Knights Stadium

After winning two straight, Canon-McMillan takes a two-game losing streak into Friday after falling to Seneca Valley and North Allegheny in consecutive weeks. Mike Evans threw for 114 yards and a touchdown and Ryan Angott had a rushing TD in last week’s loss. The Big Macs trailed North Allegheny at the half, 15-14. Angott is a workhorse back who has 686 yards and 10 touchdowns. … Norwin has surprised a few of the top 6A teams early but hasn’t been able to limit the damage for four quarters. Last week, the Knights scored first on No. 1 Mt. Lebanon and took a 7-7 score into halftime until the Blue Devils scored 21 in the fourth. Dom Barca had a rushing touchdown in the loss, Norwin’s fifth in a row.

Hempfield (2-6, 0-5) at 3-North Allegheny (5-3, 3-2)

7:30 p.m. Friday, Newman Stadium, McCandless

Hempfield dropped its fifth straight and second shutout in a row, losing to Central Catholic, 35-0. The Spartans have dropped six in a row on the road. This matchup never happened last year because Hempfield canceled its final two games due to covid-19 issues. Hempfield hosts Norwin next week in a game that will likely keep one of them out of last place. … North Allegheny won its second in a row, 36-14 over Canon-McMillan, after losing back-to-back games to Central Catholic and Mt. Lebanon. Logan Kushner passed for 158 yards and two touchdowns — a 70-yard bomb to Khiryn Boyd and a 52-yarder to Dwayne Taylor. Tailback J.R. Burton added two scores for the Tigers, who are allowing 24 points a game, a big number by the program’s standards.

Class 5A Big East Conference

Latrobe (3-5, 1-2) at Woodland Hills (2-6, 1-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Wolvarena, Turtle Creek

A playoff berth could be on the line for the winner. Both teams are coming off tough conference losses. Woodland Hills saw Gateway score 20 points in the fourth quarter in a 40-21 loss, while Latrobe was stunned by a big comeback by Franklin Regional in a 41-40 setback. The Panthers scored 27 consecutive points, 21 in the second half, after the Wildcats built a 40-14 lead. … Woodland Hills QB Jahshawn Pringle completed 9 of 26 passes for 163 yards and two scores. Latrobe QB Bobby Fetter returned from injury and completed 7 of 16 passes for 127 yards and rushed for 102 yards. Slot back Kyle Brewer rushed for 66 yards and a score and caught four passes for 101 yards and a score.

Class 4A Greater Allegheny Conference

Highlands (5-3, 2-3) at Greensburg Salem (5-3, 3-2)

7 p.m., Friday, Offutt Field, Greensburg

The playoffs actually have begun for these teams as both look to clinch a berth in the upcoming tournament. Highlands stunned Armstrong with a pounding ground game, while Greensburg Salem used the passing of Hayden Teska and receiving of Cody Rubrecht to defeat Mars. … Highlands, which lost at Indiana on Oct. 8, used the one-two ground punch of Chandler Thimons (130 yards and three touchdowns) and Luke Bombalski (104 yards and two touchdowns) to upset Armstrong, 41-27. Thimons also threw a touchdown pass. Teska completed 16 of 29 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns (to Rubrecht for 55 yards and Christian Hostetler for 23). Rubrecht also scored on a 6-yard run from the wildcat. Teska is second in the WPIAL in passing, completing 109 of 219 passes for 1,795 yards and 16 touchdowns. Rubrecht has a team-high 36 catches for 854 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Class 3A Allegheny Seven Conference

Burrell (1-7, 1-3) at Derry (0-7, 0-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Trojan Stadium, Derry

A matchup of two programs that have slipped from recent lofty spots should come down to which team runs the ball better. Burrell is led by tailback Caden DiCaprio, who has 706 yards and nine touchdowns. The Buccaneers broke a six-game skid two weeks ago when they surprised Deer Lakes, 28-24. Last week, the Bucs fell to Freeport, 42-9. Ethan Croushore kicked a 29-yard field goal. … Derry is allowing a WPIAL-high 54.9 points a game, while Burrell yields 40.9. The injury-burdened and young Trojans are only three seasons removed from a trip to the WPIAL championship at Heinz Field. They showed some offensive movement in a 32-14 loss to Valley in Week 6.

Class 3A Interstate Conference

Brownsville (0-5, 0-3) at Yough (0-8, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Cougar Mountain Stadium

A matchup of winless teams trying to stay off the bottom floor of the Interstate, one team will finally earn its first win. Brownsville has not played since Oct. 1 after it canceled back-to-back games over covid concerns. The Falcons have been outscored, 271-6. … Yough had last week’s game cut about a half short after chippiness between the teams caused security concerns. Yough has managed just 39 points and is allowing 34.5 a game. The Cougars have dropped seven in a row on Cougar Mountain. Sophomore running back Terek Crosby is trying to gain traction after joining the team late in the season.

4-Elizabeth Forward (4-0, 6-2) at Southmoreland (6-2, 2-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Russ Grimm Field, Alverton

Elizabeth Forward is riding a five-game winning streak and is coming off a 35-0 thrashing of Mt. Pleasant. The Warriors have outscored their past five opponents, 205-14. Southmoreland got an unexpected forfeit from Brownsville when the Falcons decided not to play with 14 available players. … The Warriors got two touchdowns from Zach Boyd (40-yard pass, 43-yard run) and Kyle Flournoy (3-yard run, 20-yard fumble return) to overwhelm the Vikings. QB Zion White scored on a short run. Southmoreland QB Anthony Govern has completed 58 of 116 passes for 891 yards and eight touchdowns. Govern is the leading rusher with 519 yards and 13 touchdowns. Wide receiver Isaac Trout has 26 catches for 468 yards and eight touchdowns.

South Park (2-5, 2-2) at Mt. Pleasant (4-3, 2-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Mt. Pleasant Stadium, Mt. Pleasant

South Park is trying to keep its playoff hopes alive but needs to play a complete game to defeat the Vikings. The Eagles dropped a 26-7 decision to South Allegheny. The Vikings were overwhelmed by Elizabeth Forward, falling 35-0. … Running back Adam Johnson scored for the Eagles last week. He’s rushed for 326 yards, caught 10 passes for 89 yards and scored five touchdowns. QB Harper Conroy has completed 28 of 57 passes for 280 yards and one touchdown. Mt. Pleasant relies on the running of Robbie Labuda (543 yards) and Aaron Alakson (478 yards). WR Brant Garn averages 32.6 yards per catch and has two touchdowns.

Class 2A Allegheny Conference

Ligonier Valley (6-2, 1-2) at Shady Side Acad. (4-4, 1-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Michael J. Farrell Stadium, Fox Chapel

This is another playoff-type game as the winner will inch closer to clinching the third-place berth in the conference. The Indians have dropped consecutive games to Serra and Steel Valley. Ligonier Valley, which dropped two consecutive games, rebounded with a 43-14 win against Summit Academy. … Chris Sullivan is Shady Side Academy’s leading rusher with 349 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s also the placekicker. QB Max Wickland has completed 41 of 73 passes for 659 yards and five touchdowns. Ligonier Valley is starting to get healthy. QB Haden Sierocky returned and scored a touchdown and running back Nick Beitel celebrated senior night by scoring two touchdowns and rushing for 106 yards.

Class A Eastern Conference

4-Greensburg C.C. (5-3, 3-2) at Jeannette (1-7, 1-4)

7 p.m. Friday, McKee Stadium, Jeannette

Greensburg Central Catholic gave top-ranked Clairton all it could handle last week, at Clairton, before falling, 20-13. Sophomore Tyree Turner, who took over the quarterback reins a few weeks back, ran for a touchdown, while Ryan Reitler, a key soccer player at GCC, kicked field goals of 26 and 39 yards. Amari Mack continues his upswing for GCC as a receiver and defensive back. He is from Jeannette, as are teammates Jaydin Canady, Ryan Kimmel and Taishaun Jamison. Watch fullback Danny Dlugos in the backfield and Alexander Colcombe and Cole Spivak on the line. … Jeannette suffered its fourth straight loss, falling to Bishop Canevin last Saturday. The Jayhawks, who won the WPIAL title last year and finished second in the state, have beaten GCC seven straight times and nine of 10 dating to 2011. GCC’s last win came in 2013 (41-14) at Centurion Stadium. GCC has not won at Jeannette since 2009.

Class A Tri-County South

California (5-2, 3-2) at Monessen (3-5, 2-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Monessen Memorial Stadium

California had a three-game losing streak halted last week in a 35-20 loss to Carmichaels, which also beat Monessen, 40-6. Damoni Stafford ran 21 times for 140 yards and a touchdown and also threw a scoring pass to Conner Vig. Hunter Assad, a Brownsville transfer, also had a touchdown run. The Trojans, a returning playoff quarterfinalist, won by forfeit against Monessen last year. … Monessen has lost three in a row after winning three straight. Still, the Greyhounds remain the playoff mix with two games left. Last week, the Greyhounds rallied for 14 points in the fourth quarter to cut West Greene’s lead in half but fell 28-14. Sophomore quarterback Lorenzo Gardner has been a bright spot.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Brownsville, Burrell, California, Canon-McMillan, Derry Area, Elizabeth Forward, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Highlands, Jeannette, Latrobe, Ligonier Valley, Monessen, Mt. Pleasant, North Allegheny, Norwin, Shady Side Academy, South Park, Southmoreland, Woodland Hills, Yough