SHADY SIDE ACADEMY RUNS CONDITIONING DRILLS
TRIB TOTAL MEDIA • 81
SHADY SIDE ACADEMY • ALLEGHENY
SSA FEELS GRATEFUL FOR
OPPORTUNITY TO PLAY
Shady Side Academy’s football
team made headlines last year
when low roster numbers and injuries
conspired to cause the forfeit
of a Week 5 conference game at
Apollo-Ridge.
But the players regrouped, and
the next week, they defeated conference
foe Summit Academy to
solidify their position in the WPIAL
Class 2A playoffs.
Shady Side, 5-5 overall last year,
bowed out against No. 1 Washington,
21-7, in the first round, but
things were starting to turn in
its favor.
“It was extremely difficult for
the guys to have to lose that one
game,” coach Chuck DiNardo said.
“You work very hard for so very
few Friday nights. To not be able
to play one of those games, it was
really tough on them. But they handled
it very responsibly. They were
very team-first. Their resiliency
was unbelievable.”
Now, with eight starters back
on offense, seven returning on
defense and a bolstered roster that
numbers 35, Shady Side hopes to
continue riding a wave of momentum
into the 2020 season.
“We had a small team in terms
of numbers last year, but every
guy showed up to practice and
games and gave 110 percent to do
whatever they could to help the
team,” senior quarterback, safety
and punter Josh Castro said.
“We had eight or nine freshman,
and they really showed they belonged.
A couple of them even
played both ways. It was nice only
graduating five and having a number
of players come in, including
a nice freshman group. It was exciting
to be around the guys again
after all that went on in the spring
with the pandemic and quarantine.
We’ve seen a lot of improvement.
There is a lot of excitement heading
into the season.”
Shady Side Academy will have
to wait longer than most teams to
return to competition.
In an effort to limit potential
exposure to the coronavirus, the
school’s administration decided to
cancel a Sept. 4 scrimmage against
Springdale and a Sept. 18 game
against Carlynton. A Sept. 11 game
against Summit Academy already
was canceled when the Butler
County school decided to not play
football this season.
Shady Side will now open Sept.
25 at Sto-Rox and follow that with
four games against Allegheny Conference
opponents.
“We’re following all of the protocols
to try and keep everyone safe,”
DiNardo said. “We’re doing what
we can to get ready for the season.
There has been so many adjustments
from the norm. It’s not anything
that every other team hasn’t
also gone through. But the guys are
just excited to have games to play.
That’s what they are focusing on.”
Castro owns a Division I punting
offer from Dayton. The all-conference
performer is rated one of the
top punters in the country for the
Class of 2021.
He also is back as a dual threat
in the Shady Side offense. He ran
for 810 yards and 14 touchdowns
as a complement to leading rusher
Eddie Faukner, now a freshman on
the football team at Slippery Rock.
“Josh’s looking really good,”
DiNardo said. “He made the most
of his time in quarantine. He’s in
great shape and has done a really
good job taking control of the
offense.”
Shady Side hopes to improve on
its 19.5 points-per-game average
from last year
Sophomore Joey Bellinotti is
the top returning receiver from a
year ago.
“Joey’s done a nice job of taking
on more of a leadership role as a
sophomore,” DiNardo said.
Junior Ryan Jones also is a
pass-catching threat, while junior
Chris Sullivan, a backup to Faulkner
last year, hopes to impact the
rushing attack while catching a
few passes out of the backfield.
Six linemen with starting time
from last year are back. Senior
Jack Keating, a three-year starter
at center, leads the way after
earning all-conference laurels a
year ago. He is joined by seniors
Sam Morton, Joe Mele and Watts
Coulter, junior Andrew Marous
and sophomore Nate Ewell.
“The line is a position of experience,
and we feel good about our
leadership coming from there,”
DiNardo said.
Mele, the team’s leading tackler
last year, will run the defense from
his middle linebacker spot.
Watts, who DiNardo said
trimmed down in the offseason to
290 pounds, will be a part of a defensive
tackle rotation with Keating
and Marous, while Ewell and
Morton will be at defensive end.
DiNardo said sophomore outside
linebacker James Bernier is looking
good, and Castro, Jones and
Bellinotti will lead an experienced
secondary.
A pair of transfers, junior Phil
Pollice (Mt. Lebanon) and sophomore
Isaiah Grier (Woodland
Hills), are expected to help at both
wide receiver and defensive back.
“Since football season ended last
year, I’ve been counting down on
a white board in our weight room
how many days until our opener,”
Castro said. “Not knowing if we
were going to have a season was
a tough thing to deal with, but we
kept working, kept focused and
controlled what we could control.
It’s a blessing to be able to play
this fall.”
by MICHAEL LOVE
Coach: Chuck DiNardo
2019 record: 5-5, 3-3 in
Class 2A Allegheny Conference
All-time record: 533-431-46
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.18 Carlynton ppd
9.25 at Sto-Rox 7
10.2 Serra Catholic* 7
10.9 at Apollo-Ridge* 7
10.17 Steel Valley* 3
10.23 at Ligonier Valley* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME
FAST FACTS
• Shady Side Academy won 16
games the past three seasons
after going winless in 2016.
• Shady Side will face Serra
Catholic in conference play,
and the game is a rematch of
a 2018 WPIAL Class 2A firstround
game won by Shady
Side, 22-20.
• The team last year gave up
19.7 points per game overall
and just 8.8 a contest in its
five victories.
• In addition to his 14 touchdown
runs last year, Josh Castro
added four TD passes.
CHUCK DiNARDO