Football round-up
Patrick Kimball (No. 17) and Ethan Anderson (No. 9) battle for a pass while Alex Munday (No. 2) watches the action during Mt. Lebanon’s 42-6 victory against Peters Township. The Indians look to get back on the winning track when they host Penn Hills at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 3.
Ron Coder
Peters Township running back T.J. Kpan cannot escape the clutches of Mt. Lebanon linebacker Ben Bruni (No. 43) during a 42-6 loss.
Area football teams hope that playing on their home fields will prove an advantage as they attempt to regroup for their playoff stretch drives beginning Oct. 3. Four weeks remain in the regular season, and from Quad-A through Class A, squads continue to fight for their post-season lives.
Baldwin at USC
Both teams are coming off big losses to the top teams in the Southeastern Conference. While No. 2 ranked Woodland Hills blanked the Panthers, 48-0, the Highlanders fell to Penn Hills, 63-35. With a 1-4 record, 1-3 in the conference, USC is in jeopardy of missing the playoffs for the first time since 1999.
The Panthers’ mission will be to stop Doug Altavilla. He completed 24 of 40 passes for 378 yards and four scores against Penn Hills. He also rushed for 95 yards and another touchdown. Altavilla ranks among the top three quarterbacks in the WPIAL with 86 completions on 159 attempts for 1,052 yards and 10 TDs.
USC counters with Jesse Slinger on defense. The linebacker leads the team with 51 tackles, 10 of which occurred in the loss to Woodland Hills. Sean Parker follows with 29 while Blake Kadar and Key Smith have 24 each. Thomas Vissman and Marcus Galie, who have 22 tackles each on defense, spearhead the offense with 365 and 111 yards rushing and two touchdowns each. Dan Trocano has completed 31 of 52 passes for 539 yards and four scores while Gunnar Lund has rushed for three scores to rank second on the team in scoring. Doug Wagner (223 yards, 13 grabs) and Andrew Bartusiak (175 yards, 10 catches) lead the receiving corps.
Penn Hills at PT
Because both teams lay claim to the nickname, it’s a safe bet the Indians will win this one. For Peters Township (2-3, 1-3) to have a shot in this Southeastern Conference clash, these Indians must curtail the turnovers against Penn Hills (4-1, 4-0). They committed two critical miscues, an interception and a fumble, in the first quarter that contributed to their 42-6 loss to Mt. Lebanon last week. Meanwhile, Penn Hills thumped Baldwin, 63-35.
Cory Owen, who ranks among the WPIAL’s versatile quarterbacks, may find some room to maneuver because Doug Altavilla rolled up 473 yards of total offense for the Highlanders last week against Penn Hills. Heading into the Lebo loss, Owen had over 500 yards passing, but the PT offense was stymied, held to 160 total yards by the Blue Devil defense. Lebo also caused two turnovers that resulted in a pair of first-quarter touchdowns. After Lebo mounted a 28-0 advantage, PT ended its shutout bid. T.J. Kpan raced 40 yards for a second-quarter score.
C-M at Woodland Hills
The Big Macs continue to regroup from the resignation of their head coach, Ron Coder, but the recovery doesn’t get easier as they travel to Woodland Hills. The Wolverines lead the league with a 5-0 record.
The Big Macs, who fell to 0-5 after a 34-12 loss to Fox Chapel, lost their head coach when he agreed to resign last week. Former Carlynton head coach and Washington & Jefferson assistant Terry George has been named interim head coach for the remainder of the season. George was hired as Coder’s offensive coordinator last spring.
Coder, a third-round pick of the Steelers in 1976, played five seasons with the Seattle Seahawks and St. Louis Cardinals. He was hired April 23, 2013, by former C-M athletic director Guy Montecalvo, a teammate at Penn State, to replace Tim Sohyda. Coder coached the Pittsburgh Passion for a year, leading the team to the 2007 Independent Women’s Football League championship. He also served as team chaplain for Pitt.
Canon-McMillan went 1-8 in Coder’s first season as the Big Macs allowed 40 points per game and scored just 65 all season. The Big Macs have not made the playoffs since 2008, which also was its last winning season at 6-4 under Montecalvo. George went 10-19 with no playoff appearances in three years at Carlynton.
In the loss to the Foxes, Bryan Mulligan scored on a 65-yard run and Dom Eannace tossed a 14-yard scoring strike to Jordan Smith.
East Allegheny at Seton-La Salle
Seton-La Salle ran its record to 5-0 overall when the Rebels defeated Sto-Rox, 49-18, in Century Conference action. Meanwhile, East Allegheny slipped to 2-3 with a loss to South Park, 17-7.
Tyler Perone continues to dominate out of the pocket. The senior signal caller ranks among the WPIAL passing leaders. With 191 yards on 13 completions against the Vikings, Perone improved 737 yards. Of his 60 completions, 12 have gone for scores. Perone fired five touchdowns against Sto-Rox.
Danzel McKinley-Lewis had six receptions for 73 yards. He has 22 catches for 258 yards this season. He had two TD grabs of 15 and 6 yards against the Vikings.
Paris Ford hauled in scoring strikes of eight and 43 yards from Perone. He also returned a kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown.
Matt Reinmund also had a scoring grab (25 yards) while Rick Mellick rushed for a 7-yard touchdown to complete the offensive action for the Rebels.
Keystone Oaks at Carlynton
The Golden Eagles look for their second straight victory when they visit Honus Wagner Field in Carnegie to take on Carlynton.
The Golden Eagles defeated South Allegheny, 35-20, for their first win of the 2014 campaign.
In the win, Kobe Phillippi completed 17 aerials for 188 yards. The senior, who also rushed for one touchdown, has thrown for 1,013 yards this season and eight scores on 82 completions.
Against the Cougars (0-5), Cody Cerminara hauled in eight passes for 91 yards and one score while Jimmy Canello made six grabs for 72 yards. In addition to a 7-yard scoring grab, Canello rushed for two touchdowns of five yards each.
Moon at Char-Valley
After falling to Bethel Park, 55-13, the Colts return to Parkway action to face Moon. Both teams are 2-2 in the division. In the loss to the Hawks, Jake Collins contributed to both scores. He rushed two yards for a touchdown and tossed a 28-yard strike to James Pachis.
Class A
After Chartiers-Houston upended Bishop Canevin, 26-14, the Bucs and Crusaders return to Black Hills Conference play. The Crusaders travel to Avonworth (5-0) while the Bucs host Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (0-5).
The Bucs benefited from the leg of Mike Cushma to beat Canevin for their first conference win. He kicked four field goals in the win at Dormont Stadium.
The Crusaders (1-2, 2-3) did not do themselves any favors by turning the ball over on their first three possessions of the game. Plus, their head coach, Darren Schoppe, was ejected in the first half after two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties called against his coaching staff. Chartiers-Houston (2-2, 3-2) only scored 10 points off three first-quarter turnovers.
Cushma hit a 29-yard field goal, sophomore running back Spencer Terling ran for a four-yard touchdown, and Bishop Canevin answered late in the first half when Amaan Bridget scored from eight yards out as C-H took a three-point lead into halftime.
In a must-win conference game, Cushma hit three more field goals from 32, 24 and 25 yards, as Chartiers-Houston barely walked away with its third straight win.
Trailing by 12 points, Canevin went to the passing game and needed an improbable play to cut the Bucs’ lead. Reed Relosky heaved a desperation pass to Austin Scott. The pass was tipped, Scott caught it, spun around and found open space for a 46-yard touchdown with 3:43 to play.
C-H failed to kill enough clock on the ensuing drive; giving BC one more chance to complete the comeback. The Crusaders advanced into Bucs territory after a pass interference penalty negated an interception. On the very next play, Josh Gray intercepted and returned it 70 yards to seal the win.
In defeat, Sean Fitzgerald shone. He had seven receptions for 79 yards for the Crusaders.