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Bethel Park, Upper St. Clair dominate Almanac all-star squad

By Eleanor Bailey almanac Sports Editor ebailey@thealmanac.Net 11 min read
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Brian DeLallo

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Austin Caye

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By Eleanor Bailey

Austin Caye was a workhorse on offense for Bethel Park, leading the team in rushing. He is a two-time Almanac all-star in football

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Braedon Del Duca

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Aidan Currie

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Dinari Clacks

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Mark Banbury

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Marcus Fennell

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Shea Moorhead

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Bennett Henderson

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Chris Cibrone

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Brendan McCullough

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Roman Costanza

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Jake Velgich

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Justin Tornatore

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Joey Bedellion

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Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac

Nolan DiLucia (17) eludes Ivory Travers (11) during football action this autumn. The Peters Township freshman has been named Almanac Rookie of the Year.

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By Eleanor Bailey

By Eleanor Bailey

Kade Capristo

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Michael Beiersdorf

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Connor Young

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Grayson Dee

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Will Hartung

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Nate Deanes

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Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac

Nate Deanes (1) was an electrifying player for South Fayette.

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Lamont Payne

Though the 2022 scholastic football campaign did not culminate in any championships for local teams, the season did produce noteworthy performances by their players that put them in position to compete for trophies.

Two years after a winless season, Bethel Park won a conference title. Upper St. Clair reached the WPIAL Class 5A final. And, one year after going undefeated and winning district and state banners, Mt. Lebanon advanced to the semifinals in the Class 6A playoffs. Peters Township put itself in playoff position while rebuilding a roster replicate with underclassmen. The Indians suited up only a handful of seniors.

So, it comes as no surprise that those squads dominate the 42nd edition of The Almanac’s football all-star team. The unit was compiled by surveying the area coaches, consulting the staff of writers that viewed the competition via game attendance and reviewing final statistics.

Aidan Besselman of Upper St. Clair headlines the list as Most Valuable Player followed closely by his teammate Jamaal Brown and BP rivals Ryan Petras and Gavin Moul. (See related story.) The Panthers and the Black Hawks continued to dominate the compilation with seven additional all-star selections.

BP’s turnaround

Coach Brian DeLallo and his core of seniors were responsible for the Black Hawk turnaround. In 2020, BP was winless, 0-7 and last in the conference. In 2022, the Black Hawks ran the table in the division and finished 10-2, falling to USC, 17-7, in the district semifinals.

For his direction, DeLallo was named Almanac Coach of the Year. He also was voted the Allegheny Six Conference COTY before resigning his position in November because of health concerns.

In addition to Petras and Moul, Austin Caye, Braedon Del Duca, Aidan Currie and Dinari Clarks spearheaded BP’s success story. All are seniors.

Caye dominated at the start of the season before suffering a knee injury that hobbled him the rest of the campaign. He earned first-team all-conference recognition as an at-large pick.

“Despite playing one conference game,” remarked DeLallo. “That’s how much coaches respected him. Austin is a true warrior and a great teammate.”

An Almanac all-star on defense in 2021, Caye dominated the running game at BP. He rushed for 719 yards. He added 18 receptions for 172 more yards. Caye scored six touchdowns. Defensively, he had two interceptions.

A two-year starter on the offensive and defensive line, Del Duca is a repeat performer on the Almanac All-Star list. He earned first-team all-conference laurels as well at the guard position.Del Duca managed 10 tackles and helped anchor a defense that allowed just 15.9 points per game.

“He was our best offensive lineman,” DeLallo said.

A nationally-ranked long snapper, Currie dominated on both sides of the ball that he was voted all-conference at both tight end and linebacker. He led the team in tackles and ranked third in receptions.

On offense, he had 17 catches for 221 yards, a 13-yard average. On defense, he recorded 50 tackles, six assists, one fumble recovery, three sacks and seven TFL.

Another standout defender, Clacks gained all-conference recognition at the safety position. He led the team with four interceptions and added 43 tackles, three of them assisted. As a wide receiver, he averaged 16.4 yards on 18 catches.

USC’s run

Upper St. Clair made a run for a WPIAL title thanks to players like Matt Banbury, Marcus Fennell, Shea Moorhead and Bennett Henderson. The foursome were critical in the Panthers posting a 10-3 record, a conference runner-up showing, avenging a regular-season loss to BP and facing eventual state champion, Pine-Richland, in the WPIAL finals.

Banbury was a force on both sides of the ball. A two-time Almanac all-star and four-year starter, he earned first-team all-conference honors as an offensive guard and a defensive tackle. Banbury, who has a handful of FCS scholarship offers, finished with 33.5 tackles (26 solo and 15 assisted). He managed three sacks and six TFL.

“Mark has been a big part of our success,” said USC skipper Mike Junko. “He had great feet on offense and was a run stopper on defense.”

Moorhead also helped Banbury solidify a defense that surrendered on average 13.6 points per game. An all-conference linebacker, Moorhead ranked second on the team in tackles with 45 (34 assisted and 22 solo) and added 1.5 TFL. A senior, undecided about his college plans, Moorhead has several Division II offers to consider.

“Shea was a hard-hitting middle linebacker that was the anchor or our run defense,” said Junko.

Fennell, like Banbury, has many FCS scholarship bids because he was a force on the offensive line, where he gained all-conference, first-team acclaim. His blocking enabled the Panthers to rack up 375 points this fall for an average of 28.8 per game.

“Marcus was a standout lineman that combined size and physicality,” Junko said.

Henderson excelled on special teams. He was voted the conference’s top kicker, leading the league in field goals and touchbacks. His season-long field goal of 47 yards helped USC upend Gateway, 24-21, in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs. Henderson converted 10 field goals and 45 extra points to finish with 75 points.

Seven shine for PT

Despite featuring five seniors on the roster, Peters Township managed to contend for a playoff spot and a conference title through the final regular season game. The Indians finished third in the division with a 3-2 record, falling only to league-leading BP and USC. They finished 6-4 overall because of the efforts of players like Chris Cibrone, Brendan McCullough, Roman Constanza, Jake Velgich, Justin Tornatore, Joey Bedillion and even freshman Nolan DiLucia.

Cibrone ranked among the leading passers in the WPIAL. He finished eighth among all classifications. A junior, he gained first-team all-conference designation at quarterback for completing 119 of 219 aerials for 1,963 yards and 19 touchdowns.

McCullough was Cibrone’s favorite target. A senior, he earned all-conference laurels for his 47 receptions and 836 yards. He pulled in six scoring strikes and did not fumble once. McCullough also was a first-team, all-conference cornerback. A two-year starter, he covered the opposition’s best wide receiver and made three catches for interceptions on defense.

“Brendan was an experienced receiver. A game-breaker,” said PT coach T.J. Plack.

Constanza provided the protection up front and centered the ball to start the offense. A first-team all-conference performer, he was a nominee along with USC’s Matt Banbury for the Bill Fralic Award as the WPIAL’s top offensive lineman. He also gained honorable mention status on the all-conference squad for his defensive line play.

“He was a team captain. Our best O-lineman but he played as physical on the D-line,” said Plack. “From day one of ninth grade, Roman was a leader.”

Defensively, Velgich, Tornatore and Bedillion all gained all-conference, first-team acclaim. Both juniors, Velgich and Tornatore anchored a defensive unit that allowed just 16.6 points per game while Bedillion, a senior, controlled field position with his punting abilities.

An end, Velgich collected two sacks and six TFL to go along with 16 solo and 16 assisted tackles. “He was very difficult to block,” Plack said. “Jake was quick, strong and fast. He possesses a high motor.”

A defensive back, Tornatore ranked second on the team with 62 solo tackles. He added four TFL to go along with one fumble recovery and one interception.

Bedillion came out for the team as a kicker this fall and emerged as the No. 1 punter. He also gained second-team honors as a placekicker. He excelled at both, said Plack. Bedillion averaged 34.3 yards per punt. He converted all four of his field goal attempts, with his longest measuring 38 yards. He was 27 of 28 on extra points.

Only a freshman, DiLucia played in all 10 games and emerged at PT’s leading tackler with 64 as well as an honorable mention all-conference selection at safety. He also had an interception and a forced fumble.

By season’s end, he emerged as the starting quarterback, completing 37 of 64 attempts for 389 yards and three touchdowns.

For his combined efforts, DiLucia was named Almanac Rookie of the Year, edging out BP’s sophomore quarterback Tanner Pfeuffer, who completed 105 passes for 1,418 yards and 14 TDs as well as rushed for 10 more, and Mt. Lebanon QB David Shields with his 1,031 yards passing, eight scoring strikes and two TD rushes.

Lebo rebounds

After winning WPIAL and PIAA titles in 2021, Mt. Lebanon regrouped and by the end of the 2022 season emerged again as a force on the football field. The Blue Devils upset Central Catholic on a walk-off field goal and after starting the season at 2-5, won their last three regular season games to qualify for the playoffs.

Despite missing the first half of the season due to a foot injury, Kade Capristo returned to anchor Lebo’s offensive line and spearhead the march to the playoffs. An all-state performer as a junior, Capristo repeated as an-conference and All-Almanac performer. The offensive guard is a Richmond recruit.

Grayson Dee, Connor Young, Will Hartung and Michael Beiersdorf were instrumental in anchoring a defense that allowed just 15 points per game and recorded two shutouts in three of their final regular season games. Dee, Young and Hartung managed all-conference honors on defense while Beiersdorf gained recognition on offense though he started at safety and registered three touchdowns on a pair of interceptions and one fumble recovery.

As a wide receiver, Beiersdorf had 27 receptions for 328 yards (12.15 average) and four scores.

As a right tackle, Young finished with 31 tackles, one sack and four TFL.

As a defensive end, Dee registered 20 tackles, three sacks and 4 TFL on dense. As a tight end, he had five receptions for 59 yards.

An inside linebacker, Hartung had 50 tackles to go along with two sacks, seven TFL, one interception and one fumble recovery.

Pair repeats

Although their teams experienced little success this season, Nate Deanes of South Fayette and Lamont Payne from Chartiers Valley repeat as Almanac all-stars. The duo were dominate forces for their teams and each earned all-conference honors.

Deanes did it all for the Lions, who finished 5-5 overall. A senior, he rushed for 509 yards on 85 attempts and 10 touchdowns. He hauled in 30 passes for 326 yards and five more scores. On defense, he collected 64 tackles. He also returned punts and kickoffs for the Lions.

A Penn State recruit, Payne ranked among the receiving leaders in the WPIAL. He had 34 receptions for 524 yards. He scored three touchdowns for the Colts, who finished 2-8 overall. Payne is also a starter in the CV secondary.

OFFENSE

Quarterback Chris Cibrone Peters Township Junior

Running back Jamaal Brown Upper St. Clair Senior

Running back Austin Caye Bethel Park Senior

Wide receiver Brendan McCullough Peters Township Senior

Wide receiver Lamont Payne Chartiers Valley Senior

Offensive line Matt Banbury Upper St. Clair Senior

Offensive line Kade Capristo Mt. Lebanon Senior

Offensive line Roman Constanza Peters Township Senior

Offensive line Braedon Del Duca Bethel Park Senior

Offensive line Marcus Fennell Upper St. Clair Senior

Kicker Bennett Henderson Upper St. Clair Junior

Multi-purpose Ryan Petras Bethel Park Sophomore

DEFENSE

Defensive line Grayson Dee Mt. Lebanon Senior

Defensive line Jake Velgich Peters Township Junior

Defensive line Connor Young Mt. Lebanon Junior

Linebacker Gavin Moul Bethel Park Senior

Linebacker Aidan Currie Bethel Park Senior

Linebacker Will Hartung Mt. Lebanon Senior

Linebacker Shea Moorehead Upper St. Clair Senior

Defensive back Nate Deanes South Fayette Senior

Defensive back Dinari Clacks Bethel Park Senior

Defensive back Justin Tornatore Peters Township Junior

Defensive back Michael Beiersdorf Mt. Lebanon Senior

Punter Joey Bedillion Peters Township Senior

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Aidan Besselman , Upper St. Clair

HONORABLE MENTION: Tanner Pfeuffer, Jack Reilly, Jason Nuttridge, Tyler Stewart, Toby D’Andrea, Sam Sciullo, Jeremiah Hamilton, Logan Pettigrew, Coby Goelz, Dom Capone, Jake Brown, Clancy Orie–Bethel Park; Gavin Owens, Austin Efthimiades–Chartiers Valley; David Shields, Garrett Pavlick, Beckham Dee, Anthony Pietragallo, Maddox Metzler, Nate Sala, Ben McAuley, J.P. Walters, Michael Gevaudan, Rocky Fennell–Mt. Lebanon; Richie Woods, Nate Miller, Ethan Wertman, Paris Fishell, Tanner Mindach, Matt Miller, Eliot Schratz, Carter Shanafelt, Nolan DiLucia, Reston Lehman, Franco Muscatello, Michey Vaccarello, Nick Courie–Peters Township; Matt Boyce, Christian Brandi, Connor Cirra, Spence Hondru, Nico Lamonde, Michael Gimigliano, Talan Mizenko, Tyler Nicholson, Cam Rosinsky, Nate Spolnik–South Fayette; Aidan Conn, Ivory Travers, Ty Lagoni, Tim Speer, Gordon Groninger, Zach Ehasz, Van Hellmann, Marco Carone, Jacob Hufnagel, Nate Stohl, Julian Dahlem, Ethan Hellmann–Upper St. Clair

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Nolan DiLucia, Peters Township

COACH OF THE YEAR: Brian DeLallo, Bethel Park

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