Ligonier Valley, Imani Christian, Seton LaSalle forfeit Week 6 football games

By: Paul Schofield
Wednesday, October 6, 2021 | 2:07 PM

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Serra Catholic is picking up its second forfeit victory of the season after Ligonier Valley announced Wednesday it will be unable to field a team for Friday’s scheduled WPIAL Class 2A Allegheny Conference football game.

The Eagles (8-0, 2-0) received a nonconference forfeit win against Carlynton on Sept. 24. Serra Catholic then beat Freeport.

Injuries, not covid-19 quarantines, have dwindled down the Rams roster, Ligonier Valley athletic director Wesley Siko said.

In a statement released by the district: “Due to a high number of injuries and lack of depth, Ligonier Valley High School will not be able to play football this Friday against Serra Catholic. This issue has created a health and safety concern for our learner (student) athletes and the ability to compete safely. As a district, we are put in a position to ensure that our learner’s safety is the priority, and we will never falter from that stance.”

Siko said the decision wasn’t easy and was made after conferring with coach Roger Beitel and school administration.

Ligonier Valley (5-2, 0-2) was missing at least three starters — quarterback Haden Sierocky, defensive back Ryan Harbert and slot back Miles Higgins — in last week’s loss at Steel Valley. Other players suffered injuries in that game.

“We were hit with the injury bug,” Siko said. “We’re hoping to get players back to practice and ready for the Oct. 15 game against Summit Academy.”

In addition to Ligonier Valley, Imani Christian (2-4, 1-3) — which already forfeited a game to Greensburg Central Catholic on Sept. 17 — is forfeiting its Class A Eastern Conference game Friday against Clairton (4-2, 4-0).

Injuries forced Seton LaSalle (1-5, 0-1) to forfeit its scheduled game Friday against Sto-Rox (6-0, 1-0) in the Three Rivers Conference. Sto-Rox hoped to find an alternate opponent.

Also, the nonconference game between Washington (6-0) and Uniontown (1-3) was because the Washington School District has switched to virtual learning to slow the spread of covid-19 in the junior-senior high school.

In the City League, University Prep has forfeited its Week 6 game against Brashear.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Clairton, Imani Christian, Ligonier Valley, Serra Catholic