Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2022 Week 9

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, October 26, 2022 | 5:48 PM

Class 5A Big East

Norwin (1-8, 0-4) at Hempfield (5-4, 1-3)

7 p.m. Friday, Spartan Stadium, Hempfield Township

Neither team is heading to the WPIAL postseason, so this matchup is for pride. Norwin suffered its sixth straight loss, falling 42-10 to Gateway. Nick Urey, one of four quarterbacks the Knights have used, threw a touchdown to Luke Denny, who also has seen time behind center. Joey Castle, an Akron commit, kicked a 39-yard field goal. … Injury-riddled Hempfield has lost four in a row after its headline-grabbing 5-0 start. The Spartans were eliminated from the playoff race with a 34-21 loss to Plum. Eli Binakonsky ran for two touchdowns and Gino Caesar ran for 169 yards on 35 carries. Kieran Lippman, who has spelled injured starter Jake Phillips, threw for 147 yards in the loss.

Class 3A Interstate

3-Belle Vernon (6-2, 4-0) at 1-Elizabeth Forward (9-0, 4-0)

7 p.m. Friday, Warrior Stadium, Elizabeth

It’s simple here: the winner takes the conference title and likely the top seed in the WPIAL playoffs. Belle Vernon rolled past Southmoreland, 48-0, for its fifth consecutive victory. The Leopards have scored 48 or more points in four straight games. Jake Gedekoh ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns, and Quinton Martin had 100 yards and a score. Belle Vernon played four quarterbacks in the win. The defense has only allowed six touchdowns since the opener. … Speaking of defense, Elizabeth Forward is allowing just 9.1 points while scoring 44.9. The high-powered Warriors erupted for 62 points in a 62-13 win over Greensburg Salem as Zach Boyd had six receptions for 233 yards and three touchdowns. Zion White threw for 255 yards (9 of 11) and the three scores, and Diego Magwood rushed for 138 yards and two TDs.

Greensburg Salem (3-6, 04) at South Allegheny (1-8, 0-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Gladiator Stadium, Liberty

Both teams are riding losing streaks: The Golden Lions have dropped five consecutive games, and the Gladiators have lost eight. Greensburg Salem fell to Elizabeth Forward, 62-13, and the Gladiators were beaten by Mt. Pleasant, 42-0, last week. … Greensburg Salem quarterback Cody Rubrecht ran for 33 yards and a touchdown and threw a 19-yard scoring strike to Christian Hostetler. South Allegheny is led by quarterback Eric Wehrer and running back Dashawn Carter, who rushed for 53 yards at Mt. Pleasant.

Mt. Pleasant (5-4, 2-2) at Southmoreland (4-5, 2-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Russ Grimm Field, Alverton

It’s a showdown for third place in the conference between these two rivals. Mt. Pleasant ended a two-game losing streak by defeating South Allegheny, 42-0. Southmoreland, however, saw its two-game winning streak snapped at Belle Vernon, losing 48-0. … For the Vikings, Jackson Hutter rushed for 135 yards and a touchdown and running back Robbie Labuda rushed for 73 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Cole Chatfield was 4 for 7 for 82 yards and two scores. Southmoreland relies on the duo of quarterback Kadin Keefer and wide receiver Ty Keffer. Keefer has thrown for more than 1,330 yards and 14 touchdowns and Keffer has 62 catches for 870 yards.

Class 2A Allegheny

Derry (0-9, 0-6) at Ligonier Valley (6-3, 4-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Weller Field, Ligonier

Ligonier Valley bounced back from a 27-18 loss to Serra Catholic by thumping Imani Christian, 42-7, on the road. The Rams are 5-0 on the road and have wrapped up third place. Winless Derry fell to Burrell, 30-8. … Damari Robinson caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Blake Revoir for the young Trojans. The Rams got two touchdowns each from Haden Sierocky and John Jablunovsky. Sierocky rushed for 105 yards, caught four passes for 42 yards and had an interception. Jablunovsky rushed for 90 yards and quarterback Broderick Schreyer completed 7 of 9 passes for 73 yards and two touchdowns.

Imani Christian (4-5, 2-4) at Yough (2-7, 1-5)

7 p.m. Friday, Cougar Mountain Stadium, Herminie

Imani Christian remains in the playoff race but needs to win and get some help. The Saints had a two-game winning streak snapped with a 42-7 loss to Ligonier Valley. A playoff berth would be the team’s first in 2A. They moved up from Class A after last year. Their wins are against Brentwood (3-6), South Allegheny (1-8), Apollo-Ridge (5-4) and Derry (0-9). … Yough stumbled to its fifth straight defeat, falling 56-7 to top-ranked Steel Valley. The Cougars’ lone score came in the fourth quarter when Gavin Roebuck returned a fumble for a score. The Ironmen scored 35 points in the first quarter as rough first quarters continued to haunt Yough.

Class A Tri-County South

Beth-Center (3-6, 2-4) at Monessen (5-4, 4-2)

7 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Monessen

Beth-Center is coming off a 43-14 loss to rival California. The Bulldogs had their two-game winning streak end. Monessen is coming off 26-18 loss to first-place Mapletown. Monessen, Carmichaels and California are tied for second in the conference. The Greyhounds need a win by six or more points to clinch second place with the WPIAL tiebreaker system if they all win and finish tied for second. Monessen has 26 tiebreaker points, California 22 and Carmichaels 14. … Jonah Sussan and Tyler Debnar scored touchdowns in the loss to California. Ethan Varesko rushed for 56 yards and Debnar 53 for the Bulldogs. Monessen freshman running back Tyvaughn Kershaw rushed for 242 yards and a touchdown while Daevon Burke and Daniel Dozier also rushed for scores.

Class A Eastern

Jeannette (3-6, 3-2) at Clairton (4-5, 4-1)

7 p.m. Friday, Neil C. Brown Stadium, Clairton

Both teams are coming off impressive wins: Jeannette thumped Springdale, 35-7, and Clairton ran over Frazier, 49-7. If Jeannette can upset Clairton and Leechburg loses, the Jayhawks could end up in third place. … Noah Sanders scored two touchdowns and rushed for 86 yards against the Dynamos and quarterback Payton Molter ran for two scores and threw a touchdown pass. Bears quarterback Capone Jones completed 6 of 6 passes for 131 yards and three touchdowns. Michael Ruffing is the Bears’ top receiver.

Nonconference

Butler (4-5) at Latrobe (5-4)

7 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Latrobe

Butler was a longstanding member of the WPIAL until it chose to leave District 7 two years ago to play in District 10. The Golden Tornado defeated WPIAL team Shaler (35-28) and lost to Seneca Valley (42-7). The Golden Tornado have four straight losses, including last week’s 48-25 setback against McDowell. … Latrobe was roughed up by No. 2 McKeesport last week, 54-14, but still clinched a playoff spot. The Wildcats have not been to the postseason since 2019 and before that there was a 10-year gap. Last week, McKeesport held leading rusher Robby Fulton to just 31 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. The Wildcats managed just 24 yards passing and gave up 480 yards rushing.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Beth-Center, Butler, Derry Area, Elizabeth Forward, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Imani Christian, Jeannette, Latrobe, Ligonier Valley, Monessen, Mt. Pleasant, Norwin, Southmoreland, Yough