Laurel stuns 2-time defending WPIAL champ Fort Cherry in Class A semifinals, ending Matt Sieg’s career

By: Josh Rizzo
Friday, November 14, 2025 | 10:58 PM

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Jack Miles felt good about Laurel’s chances to unseat two-time defending WPIAL Class A champion Fort Cherry all week. The Spartans senior linebacker/running back knew that wasn’t a sentiment shared outside of Lawrence County.

Laurel rolled up its sleeves and used its power running game to eliminate Fort Cherry with a 24-14 win Friday at Tony Dorsett Stadium at Hopewell. The Spartans will be headed to the WPIAL title game for the first time since 1989 to take on Clairton at 11 a.m. next Saturday at Acrisure Stadium.

“Honestly, the whole week,” Miles said. “We had a really hard practice. We put the work in on film and did the schemes right. I didn’t have a feeling all week we would lose.”

Laurel’s win ended the career of highly recruited Fort Cherry quarterback Matt Sieg.

Sieg, who recently decommitted from Penn State, rushed for more than 7,600 yards in his career to break Mike Vernillo’s school record and finished as the WPIAL’s second all-time leading rusher.

Against Laurel, Sieg finished with 152 yards on the ground and scored twice.

“There’s nothing I can say that hasn’t been said,” Fort Cherry coach Tanner Garry said. “He’s a special kid who has done more for this program than anyone who has ever come through here. He’s taken us to heights we’ve never been to before. The career he had here is going to be remembered for a long time.”

The Rangers’ offense didn’t score after halftime and was limited to a season low in points. Fort Cherry, which averaged 47.6 points per game entering the contest, had its previous low in the quarterfinals against Neshannock when it scored 36 points.

“We thought we had to make a statement up front,” Laurel coach Brian Cooper said. “We thought we had to control the line of scrimmage both offensively and defensively. If you allow those backs to have big seams, they are going to get big yards on you.”

Garry said the Rangers’ offense made too many mistakes. A few penalties put them behind the sticks and made it hard to move the ball. Sieg’s first touchdown run, a 67-yard effort to put Fort Cherry ahead in the first quarter, came on third-and-21.

“It can hurt you when you are limited to running the ball,” Garry said. “I don’t want to take anything away from Laurel. When you have a third-and-4 and you get a penalty and you have a third-and-15 and you are handcuffed to running the ball, it makes your job a lot easier. They took advantage of the mistakes we made.”

Laurel also became the first team to score more than 20 points on Fort Cherry this season. The Spartans’ first possession demonstrated how they wanted to move the ball.

They relied on consistent short runs. Kolton Carlson, who scored two touchdowns, capped Laurel’s first drive with a 2-yard run to tie the game 7-7 with 2 minutes, 57 seconds left in the first quarter.

“We dominated up front,” Cooper said. “There were no negative plays.”

Laurel caught Fort Cherry off guard before halftime by throwing the ball. Luca Santini, who attempted only five passes, hit Carlson on a 30-yard strike to put them ahead 13-7 with 1:33 left before halftime.

Fort Cherry went right back down the field on a kick return by Eli Salvini, setting the Rangers up at the Laurel 15. Sieg scored on a 1-yard run a minute later to give Fort Cherry a 14-13 lead at the break.

Laurel broke the game open on the first drive of the second half. Miles, who finished with 103 rushing yards, scored on a 33-yard run, and a run by Carlson on the two-point attempt put Laurel ahead 21-14.

Fort Cherry’s offense couldn’t get moving again. Tony Geiwitz made a 31-yard field goal at the start of the fourth quarter to put the Spartans ahead by 10.

“It’s amazing for all of us,” Miles said. “It was my dad’s last year the last time they made it this far. For the team, it’s really big. For me, it’s really big. For the school, it’s also huge.”

Tags: Fort Cherry, Laurel