WPIAL champ South Park to visit Deer Lakes with revenge in mind

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, August 27, 2025 | 6:50 PM

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South Park lost just once last year en route to the WPIAL Class 2A championship.

The only blemish through its first 13 games? A 35-22 home loss to Deer Lakes.

“They took care of business against us last year, and we took that and used that as a positive piece for our team. It really helped us,” said Eagles coach Brian Abbey, whose team won 11 in a row after the loss to the Lancers. “It proved to us early on that we weren’t invincible. As we look at this game again this year, we see it as a great nonconference opportunity against a great team as we continue to grow with some new players.”

“We try to establish a week-to-week view of everything we are doing. We look at it as the most important game on our schedule just because it’s the next one.”

South Park and Deer Lakes will meet at 7 p.m. Friday at Lancers Stadium.

Deer Lakes’ win last year was fueled offensively by the running of graduate Zier Williams, who collected 118 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries. Fellow graduate Jake Fleischer threw for 91 yards and a score.

“We know they will be coming in here Friday looking for revenge,” said Lancers coach Tim Burk, whose team opened 2025 with a 23-7 win at Keystone Oaks. “I feel that sticks with them. They will be coming for us, and rightfully so, using that as one motivational factor.

“But we know that they are a very good football team which is coming off a good win over a solid East Allegheny team last week. It was wild at points, and it was back and forth. They have some things, of course, that they are working on to get better, but we definitely saw a lot of things that they did very well.”

The Eagles topped East Allegheny, 33-26, as they leaned on the running of junior Colsen Heynes, senior Robert Lenzi and junior Quintin Napper for four of their five touchdowns and 223 yards on 35 carries.

Lenzi also was 6 of 9 passing for 72 yards, and Napper returned a kickoff 89 yards for a score.

“Our kids have got to rise up again this week, and I know our kids will be prepared,” Burk said. “It’s going to be a good challenge for us. They are big, and their quarterback (Lenzi) and running back (Napper) are very good. They run a lot of different things from different formations. They have a strike-while-the-iron’s-hot mentality. We have to be prepared for everything.”

Abbey said it was exactly what he expected for a first game.

“It was sloppy in some areas,” he said. “It was a good opportunity to work some things out and face some adversity. The big thing we can take out of it as a staff was our team’s ability to overcome mistakes and show our resiliency.”

Abbey said his players, like those at Deer Lakes, did a good job of transitioning from the Week Zero win to their focus on the trip north to face the Lancers.

“We celebrated the win, came in on Saturday and took a good, hard look at ourselves, which was much easier to do coming off a victory, and then came in Monday to start the preparation,” Abbey said. “They are really good in knowing when it is time to turn the page.”

Abbey said the teams have some similarities.

“We’re bringing in a whole new line on both sides of the ball, and they seem to be replacing some key pieces, but from the skill position standpoint,” he said. “I have a ton of respect for the way they are coached over there. Coach Burk does a great job of establishing his system, and their kids have bought in fully to what he is trying to do.

“They do a good job of controlling the clock with their offense and limiting possessions for teams. It mirrors a lot of what we try to do in controlling time of possession to take the stress off our defense. It’s going to be a great opportunity to gauge where we’re at with our line going up against their more experienced line that they brought back.”

Deer Lakes punted on its first possession last Friday but was able to right the offensive ship and get some help from the defense.

Junior linebacker Jack Guthrie got the Lancers on the board first with a 55-yard interception return.

Senior Ryan Love ran 24 times for 108 yards and a score

“That is kind of what we expected for Ryan as a workhorse type back,” Burk said. “He works hard and runs hard.”

Junior Dante Mangieri threw a touchdown pass to classmate Evan Moore.

“With Dante, it is a learning curve,” Burk said. “There were some good things and some not-so-good things, but at the end of the day, he managed the game and also made some big throws when we needed him to. That is what we expect.”

Sophomore Connor Moore had a 31-yard field goal.

“I liked the way our kids responded and played with intensity the whole way through,” Burk said. “There’s always a lot of unknowns going into a first game. We started a little sluggish and had some first-game jitters. The first drive, we kind of had that deer-in-the-headlights look. But they continued to battle and match KO’s intensity. Our kids responded and made plays.”

“I was curious to see how we would handle that. It was a tight game with things going back and forth. And we finished on the positive end, which was good.”

Burk said junior linebacker Danny Bichler impressed the coaches with what they saw from him on film.

“He was our H-back. He played linebacker. He just played really well,” Burk said. “He had a lot of key blocks for us. He’s an unsung hero. We were like, looking back at the tape, ‘Where did he come from?’ We’re really happy with him and how he played.

“This was a kid who really transformed his body in the offseason. Last year, he might have weighed 130, 140 pounds. This year, he’s at a good 170 to 175. He just brings the lumber with him on both sides of the ball.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Deer Lakes, South Park