WPIAL Friday Night HighLights – Week Nine 2017

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, October 28, 2017 | 10:42 PM

Mother Nature must love her high school football. After a chilly and wet week of weather, it was another glorious Friday from the scholastic gridirons weather wise. There were only nine WPIAL football playoff spots up for grabs heading into Friday of Week Nine, but there were plenty of playoff positions, some home field advantage and conference crowns at stake up and down the six classifications. Whether it was for all the marbles or just for school pride, here are the performances that were the sweet vanilla icing on the regular season chocolate cake.

Luke Michalek – Butler

Two if by air, won if by land. While the throw and catch combo of Jon Quinque and Drew Engel of Canon-McMillan lit it up through the air, Butler went old school with Luke Michalek pounding out yardage on the ground. Michalek rushed for 299 yards and scored on runs of 14 and 82 yards, plus he scored on kickoff returns of 92 and 94 yards as the Golden Tornado concluded the season with a 28-26 victory over the visiting Big Macs in a Class 6-A Non-Conference contest.

Tanner Volpatti – Bethel Park

South Hills neighbors meeting for the Class 6-A Southeastern Conference title in Week Nine pitting a ground and pound physical visitor against a high flying versatile offensive attack. in the particular matchup, power won out thanks to the big game on the ground by Bethel Park running back Tanner Volpatti, who gained 210 yards and scored twice on touchdowns 48 and 1 yard as the Black Hawks swept to the conference title with a 34-24 win over the host Mount Lebanon Blue Devils.

Layton Jordan – McKeesport 

A dynamic duo was too much for an undefeated conference champ. While McKeesport quarterback John Harper rushed for 145 yards and two touchdowns, his teammate in the offensive backfield Layton Jordan ran wild. Jordan rushed for 209 yards and scored on touchdown runs of 19 and 35 yards as the Tigers avoided being swept by the Class 5-A Big East Conference playoff teams with a 27-24 thriller over visiting Penn-Trafford, ending the Warriors 11-game winning streak.

Melvin Blanks – North Hills

North Hills was eliminated from the Class 5-A Allegheny Nine Conference playoff chase in Week Eight, but that didn’t prevent them or their leading rusher from finishing the regular season strong. Melvin Blanks rushed for 267 yards and ended up scoring all four of his teams touchdowns on runs of 1, 65, 22 and 88 yards as the Indians knocked off the host Hampton Talbots by a score of 28-7 to finish tied for fifth place and with a .500 record in conference and overall.

Steven Alauzen – Chartiers Valley

There have been few highlights for Chartiers Valley this season as the blue and red struggled to only one victory through the first eight weeks, although that win helped keep Moon out of the Class 5-A postseason. But Steve Alauzen helped end the season with a silver lining as he rushed for 247 yards and scored on a 74-yard touchdown that helped the Colts gallop to a 42-24 triumph over the host Baldwin Highlanders in an Allegheny Nine Conference finale.

Dawson Porter – Armstrong

After winning the Class 5-A Big East Conference a year ago, being the ‘best of the rest’ among conference non-playoff teams is of little consolation. But Armstrong quarterback Dawson Porter ended the season in a big way as he connected on 14 of 21 passes for 273 yards and three touchdown tosses to go along with a pair of scoring runs as the River Hawks smacked the host Kiski Area Cavaliers 56-25 to close out  historic Davis Field in Vandergrift on a down note for KA.

Drew Saxton – South Fayette

Performing in front of the AT&T Sports Network television camera in the Chick-Fil-A Robinson Game of the Week, South Fayette quarterback Drew Saxton proved once again why he is one of the elite at his position in the district. Saxton connected on 14 of 20 passes for 339 yards and threw three touchdown passes of 10, 14 and 27 yards plus he scored on runs of 1 and 8 yards as the Lions clinched the Class 4-A Northwest Nine Conference crown with a 57th consecutive regular season win in a 49-21 victory over the host Montour Spartans.

Avante McKenzie – Aliquippa

The Aliquippa defense has grabed most of the headlines this year, allowing only one touchdown and a total of 20 points in ten regular season games. But the offense is pretty good too as Avante McKenzie helped conclude an 18th perfect regular season for the black and red by rushing for 209 yards on only eight carries with three touchdowns of 38, 55 and 60 yards as the Quips destroyed the host Hopewell Vikings 54-3 in a Class 3-A Beaver Valley Conference mismatch.

Nick Welsh – Washington

Speaking of undefeated regular seasons, Washington finished up its 4th straight perfect regular season and garnered a 38th straight regular season victory thanks to the efforts of Nick Welsh. The Wash High running back rushed for 200 yards and scored three times on runs of 31, 69 and 8 yards, plus he caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from teammate Zack Swartz in the Little Prexies 49-20 rout of the host Beth-Center Bulldogs in a Class 2-A Century Conference finale.

Tre’Sean Howard – Clairton

Maybe it was the fact that Clairton was a home underdog for the first time in decades, or maybe it was the spiffy new uniforms the team debuted thanks to alum and Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd, whatever the reason, Tre-Sean Howard and company sent a message loud and clear on Friday. Howard rushed for 194 yards and scored on runs of 83 and 57 yards as well as an 86-yard touchdown reception that got the Bears ball rolling en route to a 40-6 victory over the visiting and previously undefeated Jeannette Jayhawks.

Tags: Aliquippa, Armstrong, Bethel Park, Butler, Chartiers Valley, Clairton, McKeesport, Washington