Trib HSSN don’t miss high school football matchups for 2025 Week 4

By: Don Rebel
Thursday, September 18, 2025 | 8:41 PM

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Welcome to Week 4 of the 2025 WPIAL football regular season and another Friday night of warm weather at kickoff.

Which stands to reason, since it’s the final night of high school football for the summer of 2025.

Conference play continues in 12 of the 17 conferences in the WPIAL.

Teams from all three Class 4A conferences along with the Class 5A Allegheny Six Conference and the Class 3A Interstate Conference have one more week of tuneups before they finally begin conference play next week.

Through the first four weeks of the season, 15 WPIAL football teams have yet to lose. That is down big time from 25 perfect teams a year ago at this time.

The list of undefeated teams that have four wins includes North Allegheny, Peters Township, Upper St. Clair, Freeport, Imani Christian, Southmoreland, Avonworth, North Catholic, South Allegheny, Western Beaver, Fort Cherry, Monessen, Avella and Jefferson-Morgan.

Technically, Shady Side Academy is 3-0.

On the flip side, 20 district teams are still searching for their first victory, up from 18 winless teams heading into Week 4 last year.

Mt. Lebanon, Baldwin, Franklin Regional, North Hills, Knoch, Ambridge, East Allegheny, Valley, McGuffey, Ligonier Valley, Charleroi, Sto-Rox, Beaver Falls, Union, Northgate, Rochester, Summit Academy, Serra Catholic, Springdale and West Greene are the winless teams in the district looking for that elusive “W” this week.

Here is a look at some of the top high school football matchups for Friday in Week 4.

Class 6A

Mt. Lebanon (0-4, 0-1) at No. 5 Canon-McMillan (2-2, 0-0)

7 p.m. Friday, AHN Field at Big Mac Stadium in Canonsburg

Coaches: Greg Perry, Mt. Lebanon; Brian DeLallo, Canon-McMillan

On air: Video stream on Trib HSSN

Last week: Central Catholic 57, Mt. Lebanon 0; Canon-McMillan 31, Armstrong 21

Players to watch: Patrick Smith, Mt. Lebanon (Sr., 6-3, 220, QB/LB); Ty Jansma, Canon-McMillan (Jr., 6-1, 190, QB)

Team notes

Mt. Lebanon: The early season struggles continued for the winless Blue Devils last week in their 2025 Class 6A opener against defending champion Central Catholic, as Lebo was blanked for a second straight week. Mt. Lebanon has been outscored in their four losses, 153-32. The start is very similar to the Blue Devils first four games games a year ago in which they were winless and outscored, 157-36. Mt. Lebanon went on to win three of their last five regular season games to qualify for the 2024 playoffs.

Canon-McMillan: Following losses to undefeated Class 5A powers Peters Township and Upper St. Clair by a combined score of 90-14, the Big Macs weathered the storm and head into their Class 6A opener having won two straight games at home. In last week’s victory over Armstrong, junior quarterback Ty Jansma had a big game, connecting on 16 of his 27 passes for 254 yards and three touchdowns, two of which went to Ethan Campoli, who had eight receptions for 147 yards.

Historic factoids

• Mt. Lebanon leads the all-time series 46-9, including 14 wins in the last 17 meetings. Canon-McMillan has won in each of the last two years and in three of the last five meetings. The Big Macs’ victory in 2020 ended a 12-game skid against Lebo that dated to 2008.

• Last year in Week 4, Canon-McMillan defeated Mt. Lebanon in an overtime thriller, 17-14. Zach Barzd booted three field goals, including a 32-yard game-winning field goal in overtime. The Big Macs tied the game in the fourth quarter on an Evan Morris 1-yard run and a Ty Jansma to Morris pass completion for the 2-point conversion. Patrick Smith connected with Noah Schaerli on a TD pass and Kris Kambitsis scored on a short TD run for the Blue Devils.

• Eighty-five years ago, the Blue Devils won the first meeting between the schools in 1940, 28-0. That was one of 15 shutout wins the Blue Devils have over the Big Macs. The two 6A rivals have met once in the WPIAL playoffs with Mt. Lebanon eliminating Canon-McMillan, 38-31, in the 2018 6A quarterfinals. This marks the 20th consecutive season the teams have met on the football field.

Class 5A vs. 4A nonconference

Class 4A No. 3 McKeesport (2-2) at Class 5A No. 3 Upper St. Clair (4-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Panther Stadium at Upper St. Clair

Coaches: Matt Miller, McKeesport; Mike Junko, Upper St. Clair

Last week: McKeesport 20, Belle Vernon 7; Upper St. Clair 62, Hampton 3

Players to watch: Akeem Cochran, McKeesport (Sr., 5-10, 150, RB/WR/FS); Ethan Hellmann, Upper St. Clair (Sr., 5-11, 185, QB)

Team notes

McKeesport: Against a tough nonconference schedule, it has been a grind for a Tigers team playing without one of the top juniors in the state in Kemon Spell, who was on the sidelines against last week in McKeesport’s trip to the “Beach” at Belle Vernon. It was all hands on deck for the ‘Port as nine players had at least one carry, led by senior Akeem Cochran, who rushed for 89 yards and opened the scoring on a 12-yard run. Javier Everett was right behind him with 85 yards rushing.

Upper St. Clair: Going back to the championship days with coach Jim Render, the Panthers program has always relied on a strong, punishing ground attack. USC can still run the pigskin, but now it is scorching teams through the air thanks to Ethan Hellmann. The senior QB last week completed 15 of his 17 passes for 299 yards and five touchdowns, three of which went to Nico D’Orazio. Luca Coury led the ground game with 81 yards and Dante Coury scored twice as USC remained undefeated.

Historic factoids

• This is the 17th meeting between the schools. McKeesport has won 10 times, including five of the last six meetings, while Upper St. Clair has six victories, including last fall.

• Upper St. Clair defeated McKeesport, 31-14, last year in Week 4. It was the first time the Panthers beat the Tigers since pitching a 31-0 shutout in the fall of 2007. Ethen Hellmann hit Nico D’Orazio with a touchdown pass while Dante Coury, Julian Dahlem and John Banbury had scoring runs for USC. Anthony Cromerdie had a touchdown reception and a scoring run for McKeesport.

• More than half of the previous 16 games between McKeesport and Upper St. Clair have been played in the WPIAL playoffs. These two cats have met nine times in the district postseason with the Tigers holding the edge over the Panthers, 6-3. McKeesport won in the 1994, 2000, 2001, 2008, 2016 and 2018 postseasons while Upper St. Clair earned wins in the 1991, 1993 and 2004 playoffs. The 1994 clash was for the WPIAL Class 4A championship as the Tigers defeated the Panthers, 21-14.

Class 4A nonconference

No. 4 Mars (3-1) at No. 5 Montour (3-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Thomas J. Birko Memorial Stadium at Montour

Coaches: Eric Kasperowicz, Mars; Lou Cerro, Montour

On air: Video stream on Trib HSSN

Last week: Aliquippa 19, Mars 6; Montour 41, Knoch 8

Players to watch: Colin Yurisinec, Mars (Soph., 5-10, 155, QB); Caden Halajcio, Montour (Sr., 5-11, 185, RB/LB/S)

Team notes

Mars: For three quarters last week at home against Aliquippa, Mars looked like it was closing in on a 4-0 start. However, the Quips rallied for 19 points in the fourth quarter to hand the Fightin’ Planets their first loss of the season. Sophomore quarterback Colin Yurisinec completed 14 of his 20 passes for 147 yards and the lone score of Week 3 for Mars, a 44-yard touchdown pass to Gabe Hein. Hein had two catches for 54 yards while teammate Smyth Dunaway had seven receptions for 63 yards.

Montour: The Spartans made it two wins in a row and three victories in their four games this season with a runaway victory at Knoch last week. Senior running back Caden Halajcio had a big night on the ground, rushing for 193 yards on 18 carries and three touchdown runs of 1, 7 and 27 yards. Montour QB Brandon Bennett threw for exactly 100 yards on five completions, including a 43-yard scoring strike to Zander Stern to get the ball rolling on a 28-point first half for Montour.

Historic factoids

• This is the eighth meeting between Mars and Montour. The Fightin’ Planets lead the series 4-3, but the Spartans have won in each of the last two seasons.

• Last year in Week 4, Montour led 14-0 after one quarter and finished strong with 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win, 31-14. Kaleb Platz had two short TD runs for the Spartans, which had two interceptions returned for touchdowns from James Bundridge of 83 yards and Andrew Alston from 75 yards. Nate Walker had a touchdown pass and Gabe Hein scored on a 6-yard run for the Fightin’ Planets.

• The first two meetings between these teams took place in the WPIAL playoffs. In the 2010 WPIAL Class 3A playoffs, top-seed Montour bounced Mars in the semifinals, 35-14. Four years later, the Fightin’ Planets returned the favor by eliminating the Spartans in the 2014 Class 3A first round, 42-27.

• Offense wins out when these teams meet. In their seven previous meetings, Mars and Montour have averaged 54 points per game.

Class 3A Western Hills Conference

Central Valley (1-3, 1-0) at Beaver (2-2, 1-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Gypsy Glen Stadium at Beaver

Coaches: Mark Lyons, Central Valley; Curt Rowse, Beaver

Last week: Central Valley 49, McGuffey 6; Beaver 51, Hopewell 40

Players to watch: Braddock Ambrose, Central Valley (Jr., 6-1, 160, QB/DB); Travis Clear, Beaver (Sr., 6-1, 180, QB)

Team notes

Central Valley: For the second straight season, the Warriors duplicated the start of their season by falling to Class 4A powers Montour, Thomas Jefferson and Belle Vernon before opening up Class 3A Western Hills Conference play with a beatdown of McGuffey. Last week in the first win of the year for Central Valley, junior quarterback Braddock Ambrose threw for 164 yards and two touchdowns to Mekhi Ahmed and Aaron Lawson. The Warriors’ Ethan Shearer rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns in the win.

Beaver: In what is a game of the year candidate in the WPIAL, the Bobcats won their Western Hills Conference opener and evened their overall record at 2-2 with a goal line stand on a 2-point conversion attempt to secure a one-point win over previously unbeaten Hopewell. Beaver senior quarterback Travis Clear connected on 21 of 40 passes for 437 yards and two touchdowns while Jonha Justice rushed for 152 yards and three scores for the Bobcats.

Historic factoids

• This is only the fourth meeting between the Beaver County schools. By virtue of their victory last season, Central Valley leads the series with Beaver, 2-1.

• There was offense aplenty in Week 4 last year as the Warriors defeated the Bobcats, 51-37. Mason Dixon had three touchdowns and Jance Henry scored twice for Central Valley. Amari Jackson had three touchdown runs and Qualan Cain scored twice for Beaver. In their first two meetings, the Warriors won a tight one in 2016, 42-35, while the Bobcats picked up a narrow victory in 2017, 24-22.

• Beaver and Central Valley were supposed to play each other in nonconference games in both the 2020 and 2021 season, but both games were postponed. The 2020 game was canceled because of the pushback of the season due to covid-19, and the 2021 game was wiped away when several Bobcats players came down with the virus days before the game, forcing the postponement of the contest.

• The schools that merged in 2010 to create Central Valley were Center and Monaca. In 34 meeting against Center, the Bobcats and Trojans split with each winning 17 times. In 53 games against Monaca, the Bobcats held a slim edge, winning 27 while the Indians won 22 with four ties.

Class 2A Allegheny Conference

No. 1 South Allegheny (4-0, 1-0) at South Park (3-1, 0-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Eagle Stadium in South Park

Coaches: Brian Hanson, South Allegheny; Brian Abbey, South Park

On air: Video stream on Trib HSSN

Last week: Steel Valley 56, South Park 7; South Allegheny 28, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 6

Players to watch: Joey Gamret, South Allegheny (Jr., 5-9, 185, RB/LB); Colsen Heynes, South Park (Jr., 5-9, 145, RB/LB)

Team notes

South Allegheny: Heading into the 2024 season, the Gladiators had not started a football season with a 4-0 record in 47 years. Now they have done it in back-to-back campaigns. Victory No. 4 for South Allegheny was also its first in the Class 2A Allegheny Conference as it rolled past OLSH. SA junior running back Joey Gamret rushed for 97 yards and scored on a 52-yard run and a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. Quarterback Alijah Cook threw two touchdowns to Drew Cook for the Gladiators.

South Park: At 3-0, the defending WPIAL champion Eagles were flying high heading into the Class 2A Allegheny Conference opener at Steel Valley. However, it was all Ironmen as South Park lost big. One of the few bright spots was SP junior running back Colsen Heynes, who scored the lone Eagles touchdown on a 25-yard run. He had 34 of the 39 rushing total rushing yards in the game for South Park.

Historic factoids

• This is the 28th all-time meeting between these schools. South Park has won 20 times while South Allegheny has seven victories.

• Prior to Week 4 of the 2024 season, the Gladiators won the last two meetings against the Eagles, 14-7 in 2020 and 26-7 in 2021. The teams combined for 35 points in the opening quarter as South Park won at South Allegheny, 48-38. SP quarterback Robert Lenzi had three touchdown runs while Tyreeke Chatman had two scoring runs and a TD reception for SA.

• South Park beat South Allegheny 12 straight times from 1997-2011 before the Gladiators knocked off the Eagles, 28-7, in 2012. The first meeting between the teams was 43 years ago when South Park blanked South Allegheny, 12-0, in the fall of 1982.

Class A Big 7 Conference

Shenango (2-2, 1-0) at South Side (3-1, 1-0)

7 p.m. Friday at Richard Ashcroft Stadium at South Side

Coaches: Jimmy Graham, Shenango; Luke Travelpiece, South Side

Last week: Shenango 56, Northgate 20; South Side 42, Summit Academy 6

Players to watch: Niko DeSalvo, Shenango (Jr., 6-2, 238, RB/S); Amare Moman, South Side (Soph., 5-11, 165, RB/FS)

Team notes

Shenango: Following losses in their first two games this season, the Wildcats made a change at quarterback, moving freshman Caleb McConnell to QB and junior Niko DeSalvo to running back. The move has helped Shenango win two straight, including their Class A Big 7 Conference opener. DeSalvo rushed for 183 yards and four touchdowns in the win last week over Northgate. McConnell threw only six passes and completed three for 61 yards, but one of the three went for a score.

South Side: The Rams did not complete a pass in their Class A Big 7 Conference opener last Saturday afternoon at Summit Academy, but they ran for 385 yards and churned out a 36-point win. Sophomore Amare Moman did a lot of the damage, rushing for 137 yards on 12 carries and scoring on runs of 5 and 11 yards. Also scoring on the ground to help in the third win of the year for South Side were Paxton Short, Will Hudson, Curtis Roy and quarterback Todd Mattijevich

Historic factoids

• This will be the 15th all-time meeting between Shenango and South Side, and each school has won seven games.

• South Side won three of the first four meetings. Shenango then won six straight before the Rams have picked up victories in the last three years.

• South Side won by two points in 2022, by 50 points in 2023 and a year ago, the Rams knocked off the Wildcats in Week 4, 34-21. Mateja Pavlovich rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns and Michael Conrad had two TDs for South Side. Sam Patton threw two touchdown passes for Shenango, which led by one point at halftime.

• The first game in this series saw South Side beat Shenango nearly 30 years ago, 16-6, in the fall of 1996. While the Rams and Wildcats have scored 74 and 55 combined points the last two years against each other, this is the 25th anniversary of the lowest-scoring game in the series. Shenango blanked South Side in the 2000 season, 6-0.

Tags: Beaver, Canon-McMillan, Central Valley, Mars, McKeesport, Montour, Mt. lebanon, Shenango, South Allegheny, South Park, South Side, Upper St. Clair