5 things we learned in H.S. football Week 3: Plenty to chew on after Hopewell-Beaver clash

By: Chris Harlan
Saturday, September 13, 2025 | 9:57 PM

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When Matt Mottes went out for breakfast Saturday morning, the Hopewell coach sat and listened to a recap of one of the wildest games of the year.

Hopewell and Beaver combined for more than 1,300 yards and 101 points Friday in a high-scoring affair that stuffed the stat sheet. Each team had a 300-yard passer, but Beaver ultimately won 51-50 when the Bobcats stopped Hopewell’s 2-point run with only seconds left.

There was plenty to discuss.

“There were two tables of people talking about it,” Mottes said. “I sat there and heard them talk about me (going for two). They didn’t say anything bad.”

The final stats are eye-popping.

• Hopewell quarterback James Armstrong accounted for 609 yards from scrimmage. The sophomore passed for 346 yards and four touchdowns but also ran the ball 22 times for 263 yards and two scores.

Armstrong’s total wasn’t far from a WPIAL single-game record.

• Beaver quarterback Travis Clear led all WPIAL passers in Week 3 with 391 yards through the air. The senior connected on 18 of 38 pass attempts and threw for two touchdowns.

• Beaver wideout Junior Marino was the leading receiver in Week 3 with 216 yards on nine catches. Bobcats teammate Micah Pupi had 167 yards on five receptions, a total that rarely gets overshadowed.

• Besides Armstrong, two other rushers also topped 100 yards. Beaver’s Jonah Justice had 162 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries. Hopewell’s Nasir Wade rolled up 143 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.

“You lose track of it,” Mottes said of how many yards everybody has. “You don’t know who has what, but that’s the last thing you worry about.”

Armstrong’s yardage total came within 44 yards of the WPIAL single-game record set nine years ago by another dual-threat quarterback. In 2016, Keystone Oaks’ Alex Smith rolled up 653 offensive yards (450 passing and 203 rushing).

Coincidentally, Smith’s big game also came in a loss to Beaver. But while Keystone Oaks lost 77-49 nearly a decade ago, this one was much closer.

Beaver overcame a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit and took a 51-44 lead when Marino returned a fourth-quarter interception 40 yards for a touchdown.

Hopewell answered with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Armstrong to Logan Triscila that pulled the Vikings within one point. With seconds left, Hopewell gambled on a winning 2-point try.

Beaver stopped Armstrong’s run short of the goal line for the one-point win.

Big wins for Antelopes

WPIAL schedule-makers didn’t take it easy on Avonworth.

The Antelopes were given back-to-back games against perennial Class 4A powers Aliquippa and Thomas Jefferson, but it turned out that schedule was bad news for the opponents. A week after handing Aliquippa a stunning 23-7 loss at home, Avonworth romped to a 41-14 victory over Thomas Jefferson on Friday.

Of course, Avonworth (4-0) is no pushover. Coach Duke Johncour’s team won the WPIAL Class 3A title last season and finished as the state runner-up.

Tied 14-14 in the second quarter, Avonworth scored 27 unanswered points. Dimitri Velisaris scored two rushing touchdowns in the win.

Amazing accuracy

Upper St. Clair quarterback Ethan Hellmann, the WPIAL’s leading passer after four weeks, draws praise from his coach for protecting the ball.

Consider that the four-year starter hasn’t thrown an interception since his sophomore year. The senior extended that streak by completing 15 of 17 passes for 297 yards and five touchdowns in a 62-3 win over Hampton.

Hellmann’s accuracy is remarkable.

The 5-foot-11 passer has completed 83% of his throws this season, connecting on 60 of 72 attempts for 1,119 yards and 17 touchdowns. A year ago, he threw the ball 102 times without an interception.

But he’s not alone in being accurate. North Catholic’s Joey Felitsky, the WPIAL’s second-leading passer, upped his completion rate to 81% with a 9-for-12 effort Friday. The senior has completed 48 of 59 passes for 958 yards and 16 touchdowns this season.

Zero no more

For 15 WPIAL teams, Week 3 wasn’t just more of the same.

This was a week of change. Seven teams that entered Friday with a 0-3 record won their first game of the season. And there were eight 3-0 teams that took their first loss this week.

Beth-Center, Central Valley, Gateway, Indiana, Keystone Oaks, Penn Hills and Shaler are now 1-3. Elizabeth Forward, Hempfield, Hopewell, Mars, New Brighton, Penn-Trafford, South Park and Thomas Jefferson are 3-1.

Butler, a WPIAL school playing an independent football schedule, also saw its three-game winning streak snapped.

8 is enough

Call it a coincidence, but all three Class 6A conference games were won by a team that scored eight touchdowns.

That says something about those big-school offenses. North Allegheny and Norwin rolled up 56 points each in their Week 3 victories while Central Catholic finished with 57.

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.