Westmoreland County high school football notebook: Injuries could impact Eastern Conference clash

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, October 2, 2025 | 8:14 PM

Forget the stat sheet. Take a look at the injury list.

The biggest question mark in the 36th football meeting between Jeannette (3-3, 1-2) and Greensburg Central Catholic (3-3, 1-2) is who has more questionable players.

Both teams had standout wide receivers sustain injuries last week. For Jeannette, it was Jayce Powell, who tweaked his ankle against Clairton.

GCC’s Samir Crosby, meantime, did not play last Saturday at Riverview because of an upper body injury. Five starters missed that game for the Centurions and could be out again this week, forcing the team to play underclassmen.

“This is as banged up as we’ve been,” GCC coach JT Thompson said. “It wasn’t good last week.”

Powell and Crosby are Division I prospects. Both were limited this week in practice.

Jeannette coach Tommy Paulone said he expects Powell to play. Thompson said Crosby is a game-time decision.

Powell is one of the top pass-catching threats in the WPIAL. He leads Westmoreland County in receptions (24) and receiving yards (498) and has six touchdowns.

Crosby, who has 10 Division I offers, has 17 catches for 234 yards and three TDs but also has played quarterback and running back.

He has 314 yards rushing and six TDs on 37 carries and has completed both of his pass attempts for 43 yards.

Paulone values the rivalry game and looks forward to it every year. He and three of his assistants played against GCC when they were Jayhawk players.

The game carries a lot of weight for the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Jeannette, GCC, Frazier and Brentwood are tied for fourth place.

“I don’t downplay it, and I don’t pull punches,” Paulone said. “It’s Jeannette-GCC. It is huge, and it means a lot to the community.

“We know we have to be able to finish. We had everybody back. If we finish fourth again, have we actually progressed?”

The teams met twice last year, with GCC taking the Eastern Conference matchup 44-27 before Jeannette returned the favor with a 29-23 victory in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals at Norwin. The Jayhawks, the No. 13 seed, upset No. 4 Neshannock and No. 5 GCC before falling to eventual champion Fort Cherry in the semis.

“We’re thinking more about what we did last week than what happened last year,” Thompson said. “We beat ourselves last week (in a 26-7 loss to Riverview). If we have any aspirations of moving on, we have to take care of the next aspect of what is in front of us.

“We’re a different team, and Jeannette is a different team from last year.”

The Jayhawks, who will celebrate homecoming and their newest hall of fame class Friday night at McKee Stadium, lead the all-time series 22-12-1.

Bell curve

Penn-Trafford and Gateway will continue their rivalry with the annual “Victory Bell” game Friday night at Penn-Trafford.

The traditional matchup began in 1924 when the schools were Trafford and Pitcairn. But there was a long lull when the bell went missing for more than 50 years. It was recovered in 2008, and the game gradually picked up steam with the bell reemerging in 2016.

The on-again, off-again series sees Gateway with a 13-12 lead.

“Both teams know each other well and get up for the game,” Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane said. “It’s been a great rivalry and pretty even in a lot of meaningful games.”

Penn-Trafford won last year 32-12 to take back possession of the bell, which has stood in the P-T gymnasium lobby for the last year.

The Warriors this week jumped to the No. 5 spot in the TribLive Class 5A rankings.

Kubasky transfers

Suddenly, Gabe Kubasky is no longer a member of the Southmoreland football team.

The senior wide receiver and defensive back has joined his former teammate, quarterback Anthony Smith, at Fairmont Senior High in Fairmont, W.Va.

Kubasky withdrew from Southmoreland last week and transferred. He played immediately last Friday — West Virginia has a one-time transfer allowance — and had five receptions for 103 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-28 loss to University.

Smith was 11 of 35 for 172 yards, two scores and an interception.

Kubasky has rallied from a torn ACL that cost him his junior season.

Another Yacamelli

Sophomore Cody Yacamelli is playing quarterback for Penn-Trafford, sharing snaps at times with senior Nate Desmond and junior Ben Grabowski, Yacamelli and Grabowski often from the wildcat formation.

But Yacamelli is dangerous running the football, just like his brother, Cade, was when he led the Warriors to WPIAL and PIAA championships in 2021.

Cade Yacamelli was a featured running back with speed and power. How similar Cody is to Cade is up for debate. The former still has plenty of prep football left.

Cody Yacamelli ran for a career-high 115 yards and four touchdowns on nine carries in last week’s 33-14 win over Plum.

For the season, he leads the Warriors with 427 yards and 10 touchdowns.

“I hate comparing siblings, but, obviously, both are talented,” Ruane said. “One thing I will say: The work that both put in behind the scenes lifting and working on speed is unmatched. Both are relentless workers to coincide with their talent.”

Great Dane

Mt. Pleasant quarterback Dane Firmstone seems to have command of the offense after five weeks of the season.

But he can do more than run, throw and manage the game.

Firmstone last Friday had a rushing touchdown, a passing touchdown and returned a blocked punt for a score as the Vikings picked up their third straight win, 41-7 over Yough.

Firmstone, a senior, saw time under center last season when Cole Chatfield was injured.

Johnny be good

Yough sophomore Johnny Gergely quietly had his best game as a Cougar last week.

Gergely, a linebacker, made 16 tackles in a loss to Mt. Pleasant.

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

Tags: Derry Area, Franklin Regional, Greensburg C.C., Hempfield, Jeannette, Latrobe, Monessen, Mt. Pleasant, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland