WPIAL Class 3A championship preview: Avonworth, Central Valley set for rematch

By: Kyle Dawson
Wednesday, November 20, 2024 | 5:30 PM

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To the naked eye, the matchup in the WPIAL Class 3A championship may not seem surprising based on the recent history of the two programs.

No. 5 Avonworth will take on No. 2 Central Valley for gold at 5 p.m. Saturday at Acrisure Stadium.

Avonworth is set to appear in its third straight title game while Central Valley is back in the main event of its classification for the fifth time in six years.

The Antelopes won their first title since 1959 and second overall in 2019 but that win was at Norwin High School. The Lopes lost at Acrisure Stadium each of the last two years to Belle Vernon.

The Warriors started playing WPIAL football in 2010 and immediately won a title. In all, Central Valley has won five football championships at the district level, has missed the dance just once and has appeared in three more championship games. This will be their first since 2022 after they exited in the quarterfinals last fall.

The road to this year’s title game for both, however, had some twists and turns for a pair of teams that have already played each other once this season.

Central Valley entered the postseason at 5-5 overall but went 5-1 in conference play. The one loss for the Warriors in the Western Hills Conference was to Avonworth, 21-14, on Sept. 27. Following that game, the Warriors sat at 2-4 before rattling off three wins in conference and then suffering defeat against 5A North Hills in Week 9. That included an 0-3 start for Central Valley, with losses to Montour (Class 4A No. 2 seed), Thomas Jefferson (4A champion) and Belle Vernon.

When push came to shove, Central Valley had to turn things around and mature.

“It was baptism by fire. It was us having to grow. It was us having to learn a lot about ourselves,” Central Valley coach Mark Lyons said. “We did right the ship. We started to do that midseason and took on a different identity and had conversations about what we wanted to look like on Friday nights. No disrespect to any opponent, but we needed to concentrate on us.”

So, it happened. Central Valley owns wins over Freeport, 35-7, and Elizabeth Forward, 31-15, in the playoffs. In the win over Elizabeth Forward, Mason Dixon rushed for 136 yards on 13 carries and scored a touchdown. Jance Henry carried it 12 times for 43 yards and two scores. Quarterback Steven Rutherford found pay dirt from 91 yards away in the win as well.

Avonworth got, self-admittedly, popped in the mouth in Week 9 in a 34-14 loss to Beaver to finish the regular season 7-3. After handling Greensburg Salem, 43-27, in the first round, the Lopes avenged their only loss to a 3A team this season by beating Beaver, 42-21, in the quarterfinals. Last week, Avonworth held high-powered Imani Christian to just six points in a 14-6 decision. Luca Neal scored twice in the win and had 166 yards on 20 carries while Nico Neal added 61 yards on 14 carries.

“Our defense played lights out last week, and we made enough plays to get the victory,” Avonworth coach Duke Johncour said. “That Beaver game at the end of the regular season woke the kids up a bit. We were able to flip that script.”

Avonworth used a physical wildcat rushing game to work over the Warriors when the two met a month and a half ago. Luca and Nico Neal combined for more than 210 yards, and Luca scored the game’s difference-making touchdown with 3:22 left in the third quarter. The Lopes also got a 25-yard fumble return by Cooper Scharding in the first quarter and a 3-yard run from Carson Bellinger in the second.

Central Valley scored on a 64-yard pass from Rutherford to BJ Nastick and a TD run by Dixon.

“They’re talented with a bunch of athletes, two really good running backs and a good line,” Johncour said. “They’ve been to the big stage a bunch of times. They’ll be prepared and ready to battle like they were the first time.”

Lyons isn’t surprised to be seeing the Lopes again.

“They do a great job from a coaching standpoint. Duke’s been in a lot of big football games and understands where his team needs to be this time of year,” Lyons said. “We have to make sure we win some individual battles because Avonworth’s not going to beat themselves. We have to play fundamental, hard football whistle to whistle.”

Bellinger is approaching 1,000 yards through the air for Avonworth and has thrown for 11 touchdowns while the Neal brothers and Dimitri Velsaris have combined for roughly 1,500 yards on the ground.

For Central Valley, Rutherford has thrown for about 900 yards and run for another 372. Mason Dixon had nearly 1,400 yards on the ground and has scored a total of 19 touchdowns.

Central Valley will be searching for its sixth WPIAL football championship and Avonworth its third. The winner will advance to the PIAA semifinals where it will meet Friday’s winner in a game featuring District 10 champion Hickory and District 6 champion Penn Cambria.

Listen to the game for free on the TribLive High School Sports Network.

Tags: Avonworth, Central Valley