McKeesport casts a ‘Spell’ on Montour in Class 4A semifinals

By: Jose Negron
Friday, November 17, 2023 | 11:47 PM

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Halloween may be in the rearview mirror, but McKeesport still managed to dish out a few belated “Spells” on Montour on Friday night.

Senior Keith Spell ran for 190 yards and three touchdowns, while younger brother Kemon Spell added 120 yards and another score to help the No. 2 Tigers to a 28-14 win over No. 3 Montour in the WPIAL Class 4A semifinals at West Mifflin.

McKeesport (11-1) advances to face No. 1 Aliquippa in the 4A title game at 8 p.m. next Friday at Acrisure Stadium. It is the program’s first championship game appearance since 2016.

“I’m a big part of this team, so I know I need to step up in those situations,” said Keith Spell, a standout senior who has oftentimes punished opposing defenders with his 6-foot-2, 255-pound stature.

He carried the ball 28 times and scored on runs of 13, 14 and 12 yards. He was also a menace on defense, sacking Montour quarterback Jake Wolfe five times.

Wolfe entered the game as one of the top passers in the WPIAL. He also led the Spartans (10-2) in rushing with nearly 800 yards.

“We worked all week to try and contain him,” Keith Spell said. “We knew if we did that, we’d be there for a sack.”

Kemon Spell, a standout freshman, wasn’t featured as much in the running game, but he made his few carries count.

He had three runs of 19-plus yards, including a 57-yard touchdown down the right sideline that gave McKeesport a 21-14 lead as time expired in the third quarter.

Anthony Boyd gave McKeesport another weapon out of the backfield, as he also contributed with a 100-yard rushing performance.

“It felt like we were getting yards. I just didn’t know where we were at in terms of yardage,” McKeesport coach Matt Miller said. “It’s a big win for us, though. Hats off to Montour because they played really hard.”

McKeesport’s defense forced Montour to turn the ball over on downs three times in the fourth quarter. Keith Spell had all five of his sacks on those three drives and scored his final touchdown of the night after the Spartans attempted a fake punt that was unsuccessful on fourth down.

While the night ended with the elder Spell celebrating a game-changing performance, it started with him putting the ball on the ground to end the Tigers’ first drive of the night.

AJ Alston recovered the fumble at the Spartans’ 3-yard line, but McKeesport’s defense found a way to force a three-and-out.

On the next possession, Keith Spell found the ball back in his hands.

This time, he didn’t spoil the chance to make an impact, capping a six-play, 47-yard drive by rolling up the middle for a 13-yard score that gave McKeesport a 7-0 lead after a Nathan Kendrick extra point.

“I gotta give all the credit to my teammates because they brought me up after that fumble,” Keith Spell said. “After that, I dominated and did what I had to do.”

The Tigers had a few chances to put the game out of reach in the first half, but a holding penalty negated a 16-yard touchdown run by Kemon Spell and, two plays later, the drive ended on an interception by Montour’s James Bundridge.

The Tigers committed four turnovers, including three in the first half.

“It was scary. I was like, ‘This is how you lose games,’” Miller said. “I thought we’d be up a couple, and then it was a fumble and a bad penalty. I got a little nervous, but it’s a testament to these kids. During those big-pressure moments, they stay chill. Sometimes they’re a lot more chill than their head coach.”

The Spartans were limited to just 35 total yards and were forced to punt on four occasions before a big play allowed them to tie the game before the half.

Montour started its drive on its own 1-yard line and eventually got to the 12 before Wolfe connected with Daniel Batch in the middle of the field. Batch broke a tackle and raced for an 88-yard touchdown that tied the game with 2:25 remaining before halftime.

“At halftime, I thought to myself, ‘Yeah, we definitely have a shot here,’” Montour coach Lou Cerro said. “But McKeesport is a really good football team. You see that if you don’t play sound football against them, they’re going to burn you, and their fullback killed us tonight. We tried everything we could, and we actually did a nice job, but the kid is a special player and he made plays all night.”

The teams exchanged turnovers on their first two possessions to begin the second half.

Boyd lost a fumble that was recovered by Bundridge, and Ricky Beermann helped put the Tigers’ offense back on the field with an interception.

McKeesport took advantage of the Spartans’ miscue, as Keith Spell finished off a six-play drive with his 14-yard touchdown.

Montour answered quickly with a five-play drive that came to an end on a 29-yard touchdown run by Keino Fitzpatrick.

“We got it to 14-14 there and we had a lot of momentum,” Cerro said. “That momentum switched right away, though, and forced us to fight from behind.”

Wolfe completed 12 of 26 pass attempts for 186 yards in the loss. He entered the game completing 62% of his passes for 2,478 yards and 30 touchdowns.

“We wanted to make sure he wasn’t killing us on the inside because he also runs the ball so well,” Miller said of Wolfe, who was limited to just 8 yards on the ground.

Fitzpatrick led the Spartans’ rushing attack with 55 yards.

“It was a great defensive effort from our kids and a great job by our coaches,” Miller added. “I thought they came up with a really great plan.”

Tags: McKeesport, Montour