74 • TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2020 • TRIB TOTAL MEDIA
INTERSTATE • SOUTH PARK
NATE MAY
Coach: Marty Rieck
2019 record: 5-6, 4-3
All-time record: 400-354-27
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 at Southmoreland* 7
9.18 Yough* 7
9.25 at Brownsville* 7
10.2 Elizabeth Forward* 7
10.9 at North Catholic 7
10.16 at South Allegheny* 7
10.23 Mt. Pleasant* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Stephen Kmonk*
51-130, 862 yards, 6 TDs
Receiving Nathan May
17-351 yards, 8 TDs
Rushing Rudy Mihoces*
247-1,197 yards, 13 TDs
*GRADUATED
FAST FACTS
• Marty Rieck begins his sixth
season as head coach of the
Eagles. Since 1982, South
Park has only had two football
coaches as Rieck followed
the 32-year stint of Tom
Loughran.
• Speaking of Loughran, he
led the Eagles to WPIAL and
PIAA championships two
times, 1997 and the most
recent title for South Park
that came 15 years ago. South
Park beat Greensburg Central
Catholic, 24-20, to win the
2005 Class AA title. Three
weeks later, the Eagles beat
Wilson Area, 28-17, to win the
school’s second state football
crown.
• South Park has qualified for
the WPIAL playoffs in three of
five years under Rieck.
• The Eagles’ wild 32-27
upset of Class 3A Big East
Conference champion North
Catholic in the quarterfinals
last fall was South Park’s first
playoff win since a victory
over Beaver in 2014 and the
team’s first trip to the district
semifinals since 2005.
SOUTH PARK MOTIVATED
BY PLAYOFF VICTORY
HARPER CONROY
by DON REBEL
For the last two years, South Park has
played in the strongest of the two WPIAL
Class 3A conferences — the Tri-County West.
There, the Eagles battled some of the top
teams in the class in Aliquippa, Beaver Falls
and defending district champion Central
Valley.
You would think South Park would be happy
to be jettisoned in realignment back to the
geographically friendly south against former
foes such as Elizabeth Forward, Mt. Pleasant
and Southmoreland.
However, Eagles coach Marty Rieck liked
the weekly challenge playing in the Tri-County
West brought. It prepared the Eagles for a
postseason run in 2019 that ended in a close
loss to Aliquippa in the semifinals.
“We had a losing record, but we were still
one game away from the stadium,” Rieck
said. “That right there tells you something
about the fortitude and character of the kids
that put on this uniform.
“The conference that we played in, plus our
nonconference games, made us battle-tested
and hungry to see how good we could be.”
That hunger is driving returning players
like senior lineman Eli Podgorski.
“Our shortcoming last year is definitely
motivating us,” Podgorski said. “The feeling
is that the Aliquippa game gave us something
we don’t want to experience again and we
won’t experience again.”
South Park has to replace quarterback Stephen
Kmonk and workhorse running back
Rudy Mihoces, who rushed for 1,200 yards
last year, but the cupboard is hardly bare
with seven returning starters on offense and
six on defense.
Senior Nate May showed his versatility
last season when he was the team’s second
leading rusher with nearly 600 yards on
the ground and another 351 yards in receptions
as the Eagles’ leading receiver. He was
second for South Park in scoring with eight
touchdowns.
“One of the most underrated players in
3A football,” Rieck said of May. “Size, speed,
power and athleticism were on full display in
our playoff run last season. His results and
highlight tape speak for themselves.”
Another key player is back to lead the Eagles
in the trenches, Podgorski, a four-year
starter.
“He is a stalwart on both the O and D lines,”
Rieck said. “He’s agile, quick, strong and
dependable. He will be counted upon this
season to use his experience and leadership
to anchor an offensive line that will have him
playing alongside some new faces.”
Other key players back for the blue and
while include seniors Mason Kasprack (WR/
DB), Vincent DiPaolo (OL/DL), Xander Robertshaw
(WR/DB) and Alex Yanity (RB/LB).
Also back are juniors Travis Rooney (OL/
DL), Luke Smith (WR/S), Adam Johnson
(RB/S) and sophomore Harper Conroy (QB/
CB).
“We will have many new faces taking the
field on Friday nights, but that does not mean
that we are young,” Rieck said. “We have
many talented and experienced players ready
to insert themselves as full-time starters in
the lineup and keep the momentum moving
from 2019.”
Podgorski feels the offensive and defensive
lines have a chance to be strength for the
Eagles.
“Up front, we have hard workers and people
that want to win,” Podgorski said. “If we do as
our coaches tell us and go hard all the time, we
will be a force to be reckoned with.”
The wait for a new season seems to have
been longer this year. Rieck and the Eagles are
ready to go.
“Having the kids together and getting them
back into a routine is extremely exciting,”
Rieck said.
“Doing it safely and wisely is paramount, but
being with our players and coaches is a blessing
for me each and every day.”
South Park opens the season on the road
Friday when it visits Southmoreland in the
return to the Interstate Conference.
“There are a lot of new faces in the conference
this year,” Podgorski said. “Though it
may not be Aliquippa or Central Valley, no one
can be taken lightly. We have to come out every
week and treat each opponent the same.”
Rieck says the new conference has plenty of
quality opponents, players and coaches.
“One of our goals has always been to win
the battle with ourselves, and at the end of the
day, that is all you can do when you take the
field,” Rieck said. “Our coaches are confident
in our team, and our players are confident in
themselves and each other.”