Bethel Park battles Mt. Lebanon
Mt. Lebanon (5-0, 4-0) puts its undefeated record on the line when it hosts Bethel Park (3-2, 2-1) in a key Southeastern Conference battle set for 7:30 p.m. Oct. 9.
“It will be a barn burner,” predicted Lebo skipper Mike Melnyk. “It’s a big game.”
“The game has a lot of ramifications for both teams,” agreed BP skipper Jeff Metheny. “I expect a good football game.”
He also hopes his Hawks’ luck changes against Lebo for in the past five seasons, they are 1-4 against the Blue Devils. “We haven’t had much success against them lately,” Metheny admitted.
The losses, however, have all been close, and only last year’s has been a high-scoring affair. In that 30-22 defeat, David Harvey emerged as one of the premier running backs in the league. The Lebo tailback has rushed for 511 yards on 57 attempts for an 8.96 average. He has also scored eight touchdowns so far this season.
“No question, the Harvey kid is good,” said Metheny. “We have got to stop the run and get to the quarterback, whoever it may be.”
Though he is “dinged up,” Metheny expects Eddie Jenkins to call the signals.
“We are a bit banged up,” agreed Melnyk, “but I love our kids’ fight and tenacity. They are playing for each other now and they believe in each other.”
The Blue Devils believe in Jenkins. The three-year veteran has completed 36 of 61 attempts for 674 yards and nine scores this season. He also has rushed for 104 yards and two more scores.
“He’s a good player and a great athlete,” Metheny said of Jenkins, who also excels in basketball and baseball. “He’s tough. He is the guy you want to have on your team in the big game.”
For four years, the coach’s son has been that guy for the Hawks. Levi Metheny has passed for 836 yards this season on 50 completions. He has tossed 10 TDs.
In a 34-0 win against Chartiers Valley last week, he completed 10 of 12 passes for 214 yards and scoring strikes of 80, 22 and 6 yards to Charlie Davis, Zach Taylor and Jake Dixon. His top target was Dixon with five grabs for 74 yards. For the season, he has 14 receptions for 239 yards. Davis has 16 catches for 480 yards. Both have five touchdowns.
“Our kids played well,” said Metheny of last week’s non-conference clash with the Colts.
Defensively, the Hawks played extremely well, holding the explosive Colts scoreless. Sean Davis and Devin Andres excelled along with linemen Chris Pauley and Marc Dunlap as well as linebackers Christian Frazier and Chandler Dietz.
“Our front seven are playing well and those two linebackers are doing a great job.”
Metheny says that the Hawks will need a similar effort from those guys if they intend to stop the Blue Devils, who also boast top-notch receivers such as Jack Young (12 catches for 407 yards and five scores), Patrick Moeller (14 grabs for 163 yards and two TDs) and Nick Tommasi (10 receptions for 96 yards).
“Lebo has a lot of skill and good linemen that play well both on the offensive and defensive side. They’re all veterans,” Metheny said. “They do a nice job on defense and they have good skill people to spread it out on offense.”
BP’s skill players, likewise, are not limited to their QB and wide outs. The Hawks also feature a strong tailback in Terron Murphy. He rambled 71 yards for a score against CV. He has 763 yards rushing on the season. In addition to his 10.9-yard average per carry, he has racked up seven touchdowns.