The Top Three Games from Week 7
28
Mt. Lebanon
vs.
Seneca Valley
27
It does not get much better than late October football with your season on the line. That was the case for Mt. Lebanon who faced two very clear scenarios entering Friday. Win and you’re the No. 2 seed in 6A, lose and your season is likely over – it would have been since Canon-Mac defeated Norwin and owned the tiebreaker. It took more than 48 minutes, but the Blue Devils pulled out of Harmony with their playoff spot perfectly in tune.
The Blue Devils could not have asked for a better start. Their defense came up with a quick stop, Brian Anderson had a 31-yard catch and run on their first offensive play, and Alex Tecza followed with a beautiful 61-yard touchdown run up the left sideline that he cut back inside to then cross paydirt. Seneca Valley answered with a 13-play, 65-yard drive to even the score late in the first. Nolan Dworek scooped up a loose ball on a botched snap and darted 9 yards for a touchdown to cap the series. The second frame was started by short series and each defense trading interceptions. The Raiders cashed in on their takeaway as Brian Olan found Lucas Lambert for an 18-yard score with 40 seconds left before the half to take a 14-7 lead.
Seneca Valley appeared to open the second half by forcing a 3 and out, but they roughed Mt. Lebanon’s punter to give them a new set of downs. It proved costly as Tecza broke free two plays later for a near-identical 57-yard touchdown run that tied the game. The Raiders responded by marching downfield and Connor Lyczek took the snap and sprinted 22 yards for a touchdown with 1:16 left in the third. Mt. Lebanon answered by going 75 yards in 6 plays and Maurice Plummer capped the march with a 21-yard sprint to the end zone. The game was tied at 21 with 10:51 left in regulation. That’s when things got crazy. The defenses traded three interceptions in a span of five plays and then both defenses locked down to preserve the tie. Mt. Lebanon picked off two Olan passes – Grayson Dee and Tecza. Mitchell Curan snagged the one for Seneca Valley. The Raiders stalled Mt. Lebanon at midfield in the final minute and forced a punt to send the game to overtime.
Mt. Lebanon won the toss and elected to play defense. The move lasted all of one play as Lyczek took a direct snap and raced 10 yards for the touchdown. On came Alex Davies for the extra point. 6-5 lineman Joey Peters, who did not play a single snap on offense or defense, came in and blocked the attempt to keep the score 27-21. It took the Blue Devils only two plays to score as Joey Daniels lofted a pass to the right side of the end zone that Eli Heidenreich went up to grab over a defender for a 10-yard touchdown. Casey Sorsdal came on the for the PAT and drilled it for the winning point. Mt. Lebanon was outgained by a 258-256 total.
The win comes in dramatic fashion to give the Blue Devils the No. 2 seed. Seneca Valley already clinched a playoff spot but drops to the No. 4 seed in the 4-team bracket after the loss.
MTL: Joey Daniels 7/12, 57 yds, TD, 2 Int. Alex Tecza 172 rush yds, 2 TD; Int. Eli Heidenreich 4 rec, 41 yds, TD.
SV: Brian Olan 9/17, 106 yds, TD, 2 Int; 19 rush yds. Nolan Dworek 62 rush yds, TD.
Connor Lyczek 64 rush yds; 1/1 7 yds; 3 rec, 55 yds; 2 TD.
Player of the Game:
Alex Tecza (Mt. Lebanon)
172 rush yds, 2 TD; Int
36
Upper St. Clair
vs.
South Fayette
32
Neighborhood rivals clashed with second place on the line in the Allegheny Six conference. Both sides were set to make the playoffs but the winner got bragging rights and the extra momentum to the playoffs, while also garnering the higher seed in the 5A bracket. Two high-scoring offenses did not disappoint as what looked to be a wash swiftly turned into a
last-second thriller.
Upper St. Clair opened things up with a solid scoring drive on their first possession that saw Abelardo Sabarzo hit a
31-yard field goal. The Panther defense was just as in rhythm out of the gates, constantly denying the Lions offense. Later in the frame Ethan Dahlem found Mateo Cepullio for a 49-yard touchdown to make it 10-0. Jaden Keating broke free for a 76-yard scoring spurt early in the second to push the edge to 16-0. South Fayette finally broke through when Ryan McGuire snagged a 36-yard scoring strike from Naman Alemada. But shortly after USC answered as Dahlem capped a scoring drive with a 3-yard rushing touchdown that made it 23-7 with 4:48 left in the half. The Panther defense held to preserve the advantage at the break. They USC defense recorded 6 sacks in the first half.
With the change of halves came a change in South Fayette. The offense got in motion and took its opening drive of the third quarter downfield. McGuire hauled in a 27-yard scoring toss to make it 23-14. USC responded later in the frame as Dahlem went to David Pantelis for a 21-yard touchdown. But the two-point try failed to keep it 29-14. After that, Justin Caputo made a 25-yard field goal to keep the Lions within striking range. After a stop, Alemada drove his team downfield and fired a 14-yard touchdown to Joey Audia that closed the gap to 29-24 early in the fourth. USC’s offense stalled again, and the Lion offense went to work. Alemada again led his team but this time it was Shay Aitken who scored on an 18-yard run to give South Fayette their first lead with 7:13 left to play. Charley Rossi caught the 2-point pass to make it 32-29. But just when they needed it USC got a spark from its leader. Down three with under five minutes left the Panthers faced a 4th and 12 from the Lions 45. They went for it and Dahlem delivered. He took the snap, scrambled away from pressure in the pocket, went to his right then over to his left, before seeing two receivers break for the end zone. He launched the ball downfield to keep the play alive. Cepullio came up with a huge 35-yard reception in traffic along the sideline to setup a goal-to-go situation. Two plays later, Dahlem found Luke Banbury in the flat for a 9-yard touchdown with 4:15 remaining.
A successful PAT made it 36-32. The Panther defense came up with two stops in the final four minutes, which included a Banbury sack of Alemada in the final minute to seal the win. Upper St. Clair will ride this momentous victory into the playoffs as the No. 5 seed. South Fayette was awarded the No. 8 seed.
USC: Ethan Dahlem 13/21, 199 yds; 51 rush yds; 4 TD. Jaden Keating 160 rush yds, TD.
Mateo Cepullio 5 rec, 108 yds, 2 TD. Hunter Schroeck 4.5 sacks. Luke Banbury 2 rec, 37 yds, TD; 3 sacks.
SF: Naman Alemada 23/37, 371 yds, 3 TD. Shay Aitken 104 rush yds, TD. Charley Rossi 11 rec, 173 yds.
Joey Audia 6 rec, 86 yds, TD. Ryan McGuire 5 rec, 110 yds, 2 TD.
Player of the Game:
Ethan Dahlem (USC)
250 total yds, 4 TD
20
McKeesport
vs.
Thomas Jefferson
14
When realignment moved McKeesport into Class 4A and the Big Eight Conference many wondered if this would be the team that could challenge Thomas Jefferson. The Tigers did more than challenge as they dominated for 3+ quarters to pull off a shocker, handing TJ its first home loss in five years and snap their overall win streak of 21 games.
For the first 17 minutes it was a defensive slugfest that forced each punter to get their work in. It took a big play from the visitors to break the scoreless tie. Terrance Glenn took the snap and darted untouched up the middle for an 85-yard touchdown that made it 7-0 with 6:24 left in the half. The defensive stalemate continued after and the 7-0 score remained at the intermission.
Thomas Jefferson looked to get things going on the first series of the second half, but on their fourth snap Devontae Hampton picked off a pass and ran 55 yards to the Jaguars 3. Two plays later, Glenn scored on a 3-yard run to make it
13-0 after a failed PAT. The Tigers forced a quick punt and extended their lead to 20-0 two plays later when Caleb Reist broke loose for a 45-yard touchdown with 6:35 left in the third.
The Jaguars were down but not out. They stuck with their power run game and marched 68 yards in 17 plays. Conner Murga scored on a 1-yard dive early in the fourth to cut the deficit to 20-7. The Jaguar defense forced another punt and again marched 73 yards. Jake Pugh hit Preston Zandier for an 11-yard touchdown to make it 20-14 with less than four minutes to play. The Tigers gained nine yards on three plays to setup a 4th and 1 at their own 30. Reist was stuffed to hand the ball over to TJ on downs. The Jaguars gained 21 yards in 7 plays, but the Tiger defense held up to force a 4th and 6 at their own 9 with 32 seconds left. Pugh took the snap, bought time but found no one open, and attempted to run for it. But Catrell Leggett got their first to record the clinching sack.
McKeesport’s win created a 3-way tie atop the Big Eight conference that heavily affected the 4A playoff bracket. TJ, Belle Vernon, and the Tigers all were involved and traded h2h wins over each other. TJ won the tiebreak based on points, and then it was Belle Vernon and McKeesport. TJ was given the No. 2 seed, while McKeesport earned the No. 6 spot. TJ was hurt by 4 giveaways (3 fumbles) and a lot of penalties, which two of them took away big plays on the Jaguar final drive.
McK: Terrance Glenn 115 rush yds, 2 TD. Caleb Reist 66 rush yds, TD.
TJ: Jake Pugh 20/30, 210 yds, TD, Int. DeRon VanBibber 67 rush yds. Conner Murga 59 rush yds, TD.
Preston Zandier 15 rec, 157 yds, TD.
Player of the Game:
Terrance Glenn (McKeesport)
115 rush yds, 2 TD