2022 WPIAL 5A football championship breakdown: Pine-Richland vs. Upper St. Clair

By: Chris Harlan
Friday, November 18, 2022 | 12:47 PM

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WPIAL Class 5A football championship

No. 2 Pine-Richland vs. No. 5 Upper St. Clair

Noon Saturday, Norwin

Video stream: tribhssn.triblive.com

Radio: KDKA (1020 AM, 100.1 FM)

Winner plays: Erie’s Cathedral Prep in PIAA quarterfinals Nov. 25 of 26

WPIAL titles: Pine-Richland 5 (2003, ‘14, ‘17, ‘18, ‘20), Upper St. Clair 7 (1974, ‘75, ‘88, ‘89, ‘92, ‘97, 2006)

Pine-Richland (9-3)

Player to watch: Ryan Palmieri

The senior started the season at running back but returned midseason to quarterback, a position he played last season as a 1,000-yard passer. A week ago, he rushed for 241 yards and passed for 77. Since the position switch, the Rams have won eight in a row, including wins over Class 6A finalists North Allegheny and Central Catholic.

Statistical leaders

Passing: Ryan Palmieri, 47-67, 551 yards, 3 TDs

Rushing: Ryan Palmieri, 195-1,343 yards, 17 TDs; Ethan Pillar, 148-912 yards, 13 TDs

Receiving: Andrew Mellis, 18-251 yards, 1 TD; Brad Gelly, 15-210 yards, 2 TDs

How they got here: No. 2 Pine-Richland defeated No. 7 Penn-Trafford, 31-17, in the quarterfinals; and No. 8 Woodland Hills, 23-12, in the semifinals.

Probable starting lineup

Coach: Jon LeDonne

Offense

OT, 55, Brady Carrigan, 6-6, 230, sr.

G, 59, Jon Smith, 6-1, 270, jr.

C, 52, Isaiah Kerns, 6-1, 270, sr.

G, 75, Ryan Cory, 6-4, 290, jr.

OT, 73, Jake Beam, 6-4, 275, sr.

WR, 3, Niko Andrews, 6-1, 175, so.

WR, 5, Vasile Balouris, 5-9, 175, jr.

WR, 1, Andrew Mellis, 5-10, 185, sr.

HB, 17, Brady Gelly, 6-1, 175, sr.

RB, 44, Ethan Pillar, 6-0, 200, jr.

QB, 25, Ryan Palmieri, 5-11, 180, sr.

Defense

DT, 7, John Rottinghaus, 6-2, 220, sr.

DT, 75, Ryan Cory, 6-4, 290, jr.

DE, 18, Joey Perry, 5-11, 205, sr.

DE, 34, Aiden Hasley, 6-1, 215, sr.

LB, 12, Sam Heckert, 5-10, 170, so.

LB, 40, Max Heckert, 6-0, 220, sr.

LB, 4, Evan Johnson, 6-1, 175, jr.

CB, 19, Bryce O’Brien, 5-10, 170, jr.

CB, 1, Andrew Mellis, 5-10, 185, sr.

S, 25, Ryan Palmieri, 5-11, 180, sr.

S, 28, Tanner Cunningham, 5-7, 155, so.

Special teams

P, 18, Joey Perry, 5-11, 205, sr.

K, 26, Grant Argrio, 6-1, 190, so.

LS, 98, Matt Nicely, 5-11, 195, sr.

H, 10, Vaughn Spencer, 6-0, 175, so.

Notable: This is LeDonne’s first season as Pine-Richland’s coach. The Aliquippa native won WPIAL and PIAA titles in 2018 as coach at Penn Hills, where he went 46-13 in five seasons. … The Rams started this season 1-3 before winning eight in a row. … The team averages 30.5 points on offense and allows 15.8 points on defense. … Lineman Ryan Cory is among the state’s top junior recruits. He lists 13 offers, including from Pitt and West Virginia. His latest was from Kansas. … Max Heckert leads the team in tackles with 127. Ryan Palmieri is second with 97. … Joey Perry had a team-high eight sacks and two forced fumbles. … Pine-Richland is 5-2 all-time in WPIAL championship games.

Upper St. Clair (10-2)

Player to watch: Jamaal Brown

The senior running back is a workhorse for Upper St. Clair’s offense. He has now carried the ball 20 or more times in three consecutive games for totals of 176, 198 and 132 rushing yards. Brown has 186 carries on the season. He lists offers from 18 Division I schools to play running back in college.

Statistical leaders

Passing: Julian Dahlem, 62-89, 980 yards, 16 TDs; Ethan Hellmann, 43-71, 659 yards, 8 TDs

Rushing: Jamaal Brown, 164-1,336 yards, 12 TDs

Receiving: Aidan Besselman, 37-743 yards, 10 TDs

How they got here: No. 5 Upper St. Clair defeated No. 4 Gateway, 21-14, in the quarterfinals; and No. 1 Bethel Park, 17-7, in the semifinals.

Probable starting lineup

Coach: Mike Junko

Offense

LT, 75, Marcus Fennell, 6-3, 300, sr.

LG, 58, Nate Stohl, 6-3, 240, so.

C, 52, Zachary Ehasz, 6-3, 240, sr.

RG, 55, Mark Banbury, 6-2, 275, sr.

RT, 78, Marco Carone, 6-4, 250, jr.

TE/HB, 44, Cam Phillips, 5-11, 175, jr.

WR, 4, Aidan Besselman, 6-3, 190, sr.

WR, 5, Cody Marn, 6-4, 190, sr.

WR, 43, Ty Lagoni, 6-0, 190, sr.

QB, 13, Ethan Hellmann, 5-9, 140, fr.

RB, 7, Jamaal Brown, 5-11, 205, sr.

Defense

NT, 55, Mark Banbury, 6-2, 275, sr.

DL, 78, Marco Carone, 6-4, 250, jr.

DL, 58, Nate Stohl, 6-3, 240, so.

OLB, 43, Ty Lagoni, 6-0, 190, sr.

OLB, 33, Aidan Conn, 6-2, 190, sr.

ILB, 23, Van Hellmann, 6-1, 190, so.

ILB, 34, Shea Moorhead, 6-2, 220, sr.

CB, 41, Gordon Groninger, 5-11, 175, sr.

CB, 10, Jacob Hufnagel, 6-1, 180, sr.

S, 4, Aidan Besselman, 6-3, 190, sr.

S, 17, Tim Speer, 5-10, 170, sr.

Special teams

K, 99, Bennett Henderson, 5-10, 165, sr.

P, 42, Jacobo Echeverria, 5-10, 160, fr.

LS, 15, Brayden Wells, 5-10, 143, so.

H, 43, Ty Lagoni, 6-0, 190, sr.

Notable: Upper St. Clair is in the WPIAL finals for the first time since 2011. … This is USC’s 14th appearance in the WPIAL finals overall. The team is 7-6. … Mike Junko is 28-15 in four seasons as coach. His father is longtime Pitt football assistant Bob Junko. … Upper St. Clair’s offense averages 31 ppg and its defense allows 11.9. … The Panthers switched QBs midseason after October losses to Bethel Park and Canon-McMillan. USC avenged its lost to Bethel Park in the WPIAL semifinals. … Aidan Besselman is among the top two-way players in the WPIAL. The wide receiver/safety has D1 offers from 20 schools. … Jamaal Brown has 14 TDs and Besselman has 12. … Nate Stohl has a team-high six sacks. … Eight players have at least one interception. Besselman and Ty Lagoni have three INTs each.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Pine-Richland, Upper St. Clair