A-K Valley don’t miss high school football matchups for Week 5

By: Michael Love
Thursday, October 8, 2020 | 3:01 PM

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Class 5A northeast

Kiski Area (1-2, 0-2) at Fox Chapel (1-3, 1-1)

7 p.m. Friday at Fox Chapel Stadium, Fox Chapel

Fox Chapel hopes to keep up momentum gained from its first win of the season, a 36-21 triumph over Shaler on Friday. Quarterback Justin Rice threw for five touchdowns, giving him eight on the season to go along with 650 yards through the air. … Kiski Area RB Kenny Blake is hoping to play as he recovers from a sprained ankle that kept him out of last Friday’s loss to North Hills. Cavaliers QB Logan Johnson threw for 196 yard and three touchdowns. Kiski Area leads the series 14-9 and has won the last four. Fox Chapel last defeated the Cavaliers in 2011.

Class 4A greater allegheny

Indiana (2-2, 2-2) at Highlands (1-3, 1-3)

7 p.m. Friday at Golden Rams Stadium, Natrona Heights

The Golden Rams have lost three straight. Receiver DJ Loveland caught a touchdown in last Friday’s 20-7 loss to Class 4A No. 2 Plum. He leads the team with 18 receptions and is second in yardage (216) behind Elijah Coleman (222). Brock White leads the team in total touchdowns with six (four receiving). … Indiana is a running team and that continued in Friday’s 29-6 win over Knoch. Quarterback Devin Flint had 129 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Zach Herrington added 72 rushing yards and two scores. Highlands is 5-8 all-time against Indiana.

Mars (3-1, 3-1) at Knoch (0-4, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday at Knights Stadium, Saxonburg

Knoch has averaged just eight points over four games. Keith Washington rushed for 53 yards and threw a touchdown pass to Jake Murphy in last Friday’s 29-6 loss at Indiana. … Mars bounced back from a loss to Plum with a 27-7 victory over Armstrong to move into a second-place tie with Hampton in the conference standings. Teddy Ruffner had 218 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries against the River Hawks. Mars ran 53 times.

No. 2 Plum (4-0, 4-0) at Hampton (3-1, 3-1)

7 p.m. Friday at Fridley Field, Allison Park

The Mustangs and Talbots meet with first place in the conference on the line. Plum, seeking its first 5-0 start since 2001, ground out a 20-7 victory over Highlands last Friday. Eryck Moore had 156 yards and three touchdowns, giving him 436 yards and six touchdowns on the season. … Hampton has won three in a row, including last Friday’s 42-9 rout of Greensburg-Salem. Joe Liberto rushed for 86 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. QB Matt DeMatteo added 125 yards and a touchdown through the air. This is only the second meeting between the teams since 1965. Plum scored a 28-9 victory over Hampton in 1987.

Class 3A allegheny seven

Deer Lakes (0-4, 0-4) at Burrell (1-3, 1-2)

7 p.m. Friday at Buccaneers Stadium, Lower Burrell

The Bucs play on their new field turf at Buccaneers Stadium for the first time. Burrell has lost three straight to East Allegheny, Apollo-Ridge and North Catholic who are a combined 10-1. QB Alex Arledge eclipsed the 3,000-yard career passing mark last Friday. The Bucs rushed for 248 yards against Deer Lakes last year. … The Lancers have been shut out the last two weeks. Their 3.5 per-game scoring average is the lowest in the WPIAL. Burrell leads the all-time series 22-8. The Bucs played the Lancers in the first night game at Deer Lakes in 1987.

Derry (1-3, 1-2) vs. Valley (1-2, 1-2)

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

Derry has dropped its past two homes games, falling to Freeport and Southmoreland, after defeating Deer Lakes. Valley didn’t play in Week 4 because Freeport had a coach with the coronavirus. It also owns a win against Deer Lakes. … Senior quarterback Nick Detore is having a good season replacing injured starter Paul Koontz. Detore completed 15 of 26 passes for 175 yards and rushed for 95 yards in a 28-20 loss to Southmoreland. Matt McDowell rushed for 70 yards and Sam Jones caught six passes for 92 yards. … Valley returned 10 seniors, including quarterback Cayden Quin and running back Justin Hooper.

Class 2A allegheny

Shady Side Acad. (0-2, 0-1) at Apollo-Ridge (3-0, 3-0)

7 p.m. Friday at Owens Field, Apollo

The Vikings return to action after a bye week. Apollo-Ridge has one of the most potent offenses in the WPIAL at 49.3 points a game. The Vikings rolled past Burrell, 56-8, in Week 3. QB Jake Fello has 657 yards passing and 10 touchdowns against zero interceptions. … Shady Side Academy suffered a 54-14 loss to Serra Catholic last week. Josh Castro, Shady Side’s 6-foot-3, 215-pound quarterback, also is a highly rated punter. Shady Side had to forfeit last year’s game with Apollo-Ridge because of a lack of healthy players. The all-time series is tied 10-10.

Class A eastern

Greensburg C.C. (1-3, 1-3) at Riverview (0-4, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Riverside Park, Oakmont

The playoffs seem miles away for Greensburg Central Catholic, which fell to fifth place in the Eastern after a 45-22 loss to Springdale. The Centurions have been banged up with injuries to lineman A.J. Johnson and receivers Evan Stasko and Amari Mack. Danny Dlugos had 93 yards on 14 carries in the loss. … Riverview has dropped seven straight games dating to last season. The Raiders have been outscored 210-38. They fell to Imani Christian, 45-28, as the Saints broke a 14-game losing streak.

Leechburg (1-3, 1-3) at Bishop Canevin (3-1, 2-1)

7 p.m. Friday at Dormont Stadium, Dormont

The Blue Devils hope to bounce back from losses to Springdale, Clairton and Jeannette, who are a combined 10-1. Dylan Cook threw a pair of touchdown passes to Eli Rich against the Jayhawks. He is among WPIAL leaders with 889 passing yards. Five Blue Devils receivers have at least 11 receptions. Sophomore Braylan Lovelace leads the group with 18. … Bishop Canevin shut out Carrick, 34-0. Junior Keyshawn Harris rushed for two scores, and Willie Banks threw for 107 yards and a score. The Crusaders were 1-9 last year. Bishop Canevin leads the all-time series, 7-0.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Bishop Canevin, Burrell, Deer Lakes, Derry Area, Fox Chapel, Greensburg C.C., Hampton, Highlands, Indiana, Kiski Area, Knoch, Leechburg, Mars, Plum, Riverview, Shady Side Academy, Valley