Mt. Lebanon keeps playoff hopes alive, eliminates Hempfield from race

By: Bob Orkwis
Friday, October 17, 2025 | 10:45 PM

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In a Class 6A matchup with postseason implications, Mt. Lebanon posted a 28-6 victory over Hempfield on Friday. The Spartans (4-5, 1-5) are officially eliminated from the playoff race with the loss.

“It was senior night, and we’ve hit some bumps in the road this season,” Mt. Lebanon coach Greg Perry said. “We started out with a really difficult early schedule. I was glad to get the seniors a win here (at home) because we hadn’t had one all year.”

It was one of the Blue Devils seniors who made the first big play of the night. Joe Malone, a Cornell commit, intercepted a Dom Detruf pass and returned it 47 yards for a 7-0 first-quarter lead.

“That was a big momentum swing for us — coming out and getting a pick-6 early, when we had a limited amount of turnovers all year on our defensive side,” Perry said.

The next Mt. Lebanon score came from a more standard play for the Blue Devils, and it came from another one of their senior leaders, quarterback Patrick Smith.

The dual-threat Penn recruit broke through the line and galloped 54 yards for a score and a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Hempfield, which put together a few nice drives in the game, did have a chance for some first-half points but fell short on a 39-yard field goal attempt.

With the victory, Mt. Lebanon is following a similar pattern to last season when it overcame a slow start to make the postseason.

“That’s the cards we have been dealt,” Perry said. “We have to just play them, and we have a big one coming up next week.”

Mt. Lebanon (2-7, 2-3) will visit Norwin next week most likely needing a win to claim the final Class 6A playoff spot.

Canon-McMillan is also in the mix, but the Big Macs play conference champion Central Catholic next week in their season finale.

Perry is excited for the opportunity against the Knights.

“You know, they have a great quarterback of their own in Tristyn Tavares,” Perry said. “Their running back is also close to 1,000 yards. Our defense has to get off the field next week and give us a chance to match scores.”

It was much more of Smith for Mt. Lebanon in the second half as he added two more touchdown runs.

He scored on a 18-yard carry late in the third quarter, followed by a 64-yard run in the fourth quarter that put Mt. Lebanon up 28-0.

Perry is continually impressed with the play of his signal caller.

“Pat does what Pat does,” he said. “He’s a really bright kid, and he’s going to Penn for a reason. He’s a dude. We’ve been riding him for two years. I’m glad to have him on our side.”

Smith carried the ball 19 times for 200 yards and three touchdowns.

He also threw for 67 yards, which put him over 1,000 yards rushing and passing for the second consecutive season.

Hempfield put together a late scoring drive to spoil the shutout.

Detruf, who was 27-of-48 passing for 239 yards, found Aidan Stinebiser in the end zone for a 7-yard touchdown as time expired.

In addition to the early pick-6, the Blue Devils defense limited the Spartans to 40 yards rushing in the win.

Tags: Hempfield, Mt. lebanon