Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2021 Week 3

By: Paul Schofield
Wednesday, September 15, 2021 | 4:59 PM

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Class 6A

Hempfield (2-1) at Seneca Valley (2-1)

7:30 p.m. Friday, at NexTier Stadium, Jackson Township

Hempfield unleashed its running game in the second half last week, daring Franklin Regional to stop it on the way to a 30-28 win. Junior Gino Caesar ran for 215 yards and two touchdowns on 39 carries, 20 of them coming in the third quarter. Eli Binakonsky had a key special teams touchdown on a blocked punt with about eight minutes left that gave the Spartans the lead for good. Daniel Sierk continued to be a disruptive force on defense with two sacks. … Seneca Valley kept its passing game churning in a 17-7 win over North Hills as quarterback Graham Hancox was 18 of 23 for 251 yards, finding Luke Lawson 11 times for 128 yards, mainly on screen passes. Brandon Ross had a key 60-yard touchdown catch in the fourth. The Raiders beat Pine-Richland in Week 1, 24-20.

Norwin (2-1) at 6A No. 1 Central Catholic (2-1)

7 p.m. Friday, at Gesling Stadium, Carnegie Mellon

Norwin posted its first shutout in three years and won back-to-back games for the first time since 2017 with a 37-0 win over Connellsville. Dom Barca ran for two touchdowns, and Luke Levendosky, who continues to warm up to his leadership role at quarterback, threw for 114 yards and a touchdown to Jackson Pons. Pons planned to transfer to Central Catholic over the winter but opted to stay at Norwin. … Central Catholic’s quarterback has Norwin ties. Payton Wehner is from North Huntingon. He came back from a broken leg, an injury he sustained in last year’s WPIAL championship game, to earn the starting job this season. He threw for 178 yards and two touchdowns on only nine completions in a wild, 49-35 win over Pine-Richland. He also ran for two scores. Central’s defense features two standouts in linebacker Anthony Speca and Donovan Hinish, a Notre Dame commit.

Class 4A Big Eight Conference

No. 2 Belle Vernon (2-0) at West Mifflin (1-2)

7 p.m. Friday, at Titan Stadium, West Mifflin

If there ever were a statement game that didn’t occur in conference play, it was Class 4A No. 2 Belle Vernon’s 27-7 win over 5A No. 1 Penn-Trafford last week. Quarterback Devin Whitlock shined against a 5A team as he led the Leopards with 203 yards rushing and three touchdowns, including runs of 75 and 50 yards. The Leopards scored 20 unanswered points. They had two interceptions and held Wisconsin commit Cade Yacamelli to 59 yards rushing. … West Mifflin posted its first shutout since 2018, a 14-0 victory over Elizabeth Forward as Tyrell Ogletree scored a rushing touchdown and Israel Rose returned an interception 60 yards for a score. The Titans’ losses are to Chartiers Valley and South Fayette.

Class 4A Greater Allegheny Conference

Greensburg Salem (2-1) at Knoch (1-2)

7 p.m. Friday, at Knoch Athletic Field, Saxonburg

Greensburg Salem’s lone win in 2020 was against Knoch. It also was the 700th win in school history. Now the Golden Lions come into the game riding a two-game winning streak, defeating Connellsville and Mt. Pleasant. Knoch ended a 10-game losing streak with a win against Deer Lakes. … The Greensburg Salem duo of quarterback Hayden Teska and wide receiver Cody Rubrecht connected for three touchdowns in its 34-6 win against Mt. Pleasant. J.J. Szebalski caught a touchdown pass against Freeport. Keagan Fraser rushed for 92 yards in the Freeport game. Fraser is looking for injury-free season.

Class 3A Allegheny Seven Conference

Deer Lakes (0-3) at Derry (0-3)

7 p.m. Friday, at Trojan Stadium, Derry

Derry has won all three meetings in the latest conference series, including 31-7 last year. … Deer Lakes came close to snapping its losing streak last week against Knoch, but the Knights won 21-13 to send the Lancers to their 15th consecutive setback. Senior Cody Scarantine and sophomore quarterback Derek Burk scored on runs of 1 and 13 yards, respectively. … Derry has struggled defensively over the first three weeks, giving up an average of 64.7 points in losses to Latrobe, Mt. Pleasant and Indiana. Senior Eric Catone led Derry last week against Indiana with 82 rushing yards and a touchdown and 45 receiving yards.

Class 3A Interstate Conference

South Allegheny (0-3) at Southmoreland (2-1)

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

South Allegheny has struggled out of the gates, getting shut out twice while being outscored 74-17. The Gladiators are trying to turn a corner. It has not won a conference title since 1986. It did earn a forfeit win over Southmoreland last season and went 3-1 on the road. The loss was in double-overtime against touted Elizabeth Forward, 20-14. … Southmoreland looked impressive in a 35-20 win at Perry last Thursday night at Cupples Stadium. Anthony Govern threw for 128 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 71 yards and a score, but the Scotties gave up 232 passing yards. Isaac Trout and Travon Lee had interceptions, and Lee tossed a scoring pass.

South Park (0-2) at Yough (0-3)

7 p.m. Friday, at Cougar Mountain, Herminie

Yough’s offense finally found the end zone against Trinity, but the Cougars lost 41-6. The Cougars also dropped 40-0 games to Albert Gallatin and Ringgold. … South Park started slowly with a 35-0 loss to Keystone Oaks and a 31-21 loss to Seton-La Salle. South Park quarterback Harper Conroy has thrown for 221 yards but has thrown three interceptions. Running back Adam Johnson, who has rushed for 128 yards, is the leading receiver with six catches. Yough finally broke its scoring drought when Tristan Waldier hit paydirt on a 30-yard run.

Class A Eastern Conference

Imani Christian (1-1) at Greensburg C.C. (2-1)

7 p.m. Friday, at Centurion Stadium, Carbon

After a 12-8 win over Monessen to open the season, thin-rostered Imani Christian lost to Serra Catholic, 56-8. Serra scored all of its points in the first half. Senior quarterback Malik Shannon leads the offense. He played behind Steve Jenkins, a key receiver who transferred to Woodland Hills. Senior running back Raysaun Jackson is a key ball carrier, and Daryl Strong returns at tackle for the Saints. … Greensburg Central Catholic put together a highlight-filled 33-7 victory at Apollo-Ridge last week as Jaydin Canady, Danny Dlugos and Amari Mack caught touchdowns. Taishaun Jamison and Ryan Kimmel also had scores on a fumble recovery and blocked punt. Tyree Turner spelled Nate Dlugos at quarterback in the second half and threw for 79 yards and two scores. The Centurions already have tied last year’s win total.

Riverview (0-2) at Jeannette (0-3)

7 p.m. Friday, at McKee Stadium, Jeannette

Jeannette has faced the toughest schedule in Class A, falling to Class 3A East Allegheny, Class 2A Sto-Rox and Class 2A Ligonier Valley. It will be Hall of Fame night at Jeannette. … Riverview running back Dean Cecere rushed for 213 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to Carlynton. The Raiders also allowed a 256-yard performance by Shawn Curry. Jeannette’s offense is struggling, not finding the end zone this season. Jeannette has been outscored 177-0.

Class A Tri-County South Conference

Monessen (1-2) at Bentworth (1-1)

7 p.m. Friday, at Bentworth Athletic Field, Ellsworth

Bentworth edged winless Frazier, 20-19, and Monessen dominated Charleroi, 24-6, in the “Battle of the Bridge.” … Bentworth quarterback Seth Adams has thrown for 385 yards and three touchdowns. Seth Adams, Vincent Adams and Vitalis Daniels have scored two touchdowns each. Daniels has 10 catches. Monessen quarterback Lorenzo Gardner completed 6 of 12 passes for 151 yards and three touchdowns. Anthony Crews rushed for 121 yards and a 92-yard touchdown. He also caught a 76-yard touchdown.

Class 5A nonconference

Fox Chapel (1-2) at Franklin Regional (1-2)

7 p.m. Friday, at Panther Stadium, Murrysville

Fox Chapel rebounded from losses to Peters Township and Hampton to rout Plum, 31-13. Collin Dietz completed 13 of 21 passes for 263 yards and three touchdowns, Zidane Thomas ran for 150 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries, Nicholas Odom rushed for 137 yards on 17 attempts and Jake DeMotte had seven catches for 130 yards and a score. … Franklin Regional continued to rotate quarterbacks, using Connor Donnelly, Roman Sarnic and Caden Smith under center, all in the first quarter and throughout the game, in a 30-28 loss to Hempfield. The Panthers had three turnovers for the second straight week but nearly rallied in the fourth.

Peters Township (2-1) at Penn-Trafford (2-1)

7:30 p.m. Friday, at Warrior Stadium, Harrison City

Peters Township has won the previous two meetings: 28-10 in the 2019 WPIAL playoffs and 24-21 during the 2020 regular season. Both teams are coming off losses: Peters Township, 31-0 to Mt. Lebanon and Penn-Trafford, 28-7 to Belle Vernon. Penn-Trafford is honoring the military and holding Hall of Fame inductions. … Peters Township starting quarterback Sam Miller missed last week’s game against Mt. Lebanon. He has completed 20 of 41 passes for 312 yards and two touchdowns. Bryce Thompson is the top receiver with nine catches. Penn-Trafford running back Cade Yacamelli has rushed for 373 yards and scored six touchdowns.

Class 2A nonconference

Frazier (0-3) at Ligonier Valley (3-0)

7 p.m. Friday, at Weller Field, Ligonier

Ligonier Valley collected its first win in the return to the WPIAL after 40 years at Frazier in 2020.

The Rams have looked strong in beating Class 4A Indiana, 3A Elizabeth Forward and returning Class A champion Jeannette. Ligonier Valley’s Nick Beitel rushed for 138 yards and two touchdowns against Jeannette, and Haden Sierocky completed 6 of 8 passes for 93 yards and three touchdowns. … Frazier was shut out in its first two games, falling to Class A Bishop Canevin and Class 2A Brentwood. Then it lost, 20-19, to Bentworth. Frazier quarterback Brayden Boggs has completed 18 of 33 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Bentworth, Central Catholic, Derry Area, Franklin Regional, Frazier, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Imani Christian, Jeannette, Ligonier Valley, Monessen, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Peters Township, Seneca Valley, South Allegheny, South Park, Southmoreland, West Mifflin, Yough