Pennsbury, Upper Dublin and Springfield (Montco) will be in action this weekend in district/state play.
By Scott Huff
The Suburban One League is guaranteed to have a team play for the PIAA Quad-A District One championship next week.
The SOL earned that assurance when # 2 Pennsbury (SOL National Conference) captured a 45-14 victory over # 7 Garnet Valley (Central League) and # 6 Upper Dublin (SOL American Conference) ‘upset’ # 3 West Chester Rustin (Ches-Mont American Conference) by a 41-23 score in district quarterfinal play.
In the ‘battle of the birds’ – the Falcons of Pennsbury (11-1) will host the Cardinals of Upper Dublin (11-1) on Friday-7 pm- at Falcon Field. The winner will advance to the PIAA Quad-A District One title game against the winner of the contest between # 1 Coatesville (12-0) and # 5 Downingtown East (9-3).
Both the unbeaten Red Raiders and the Cougars are members of the Ches-Mont National Conference. Coatesville defeated West Chester Henderson (Ches-Mont National) 56-28 to move on in district play, while Downingtown East shut out Quakertown (SOL Continental Conference) 21-0 in quarterfinal games.
PIAA District One Class AA champion Springfield will face District 12 champion Neumann-Goretti on Saturday – 1 pm – at the South Philadelphia Super Site. The SOL American Conference Spartans (6-6) ‘upset’ # 1 Bristol 15-14 last week – Neumann-Goretti (8-4) had upset West Catholic 32-14 two weeks ago in the Philadelphia Catholic League final and then beat Prep Charter 12-6 last week.
And the beat goes on …
PIAA Quad-A District One Semifinal Game
Friday – November 21, 2014 @ Falcon Field – 7 pm
[# 6] Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals (11-1) @ [# 2] Pennsbury Falcons
Winner Gets The Winner of [# 4] Downingtown East Cougars (9-3) @ [# 1] Coatesville Red Raiders (12-0)
Playoff Resume:
Upper Dublin – the Cardinals advanced to the semifinal game with a stunning 41-23 victory over favored West Chester Rustin * Junior quarterback Ryan Stover completed 21 passes for 282 yards and four touchdowns * Matt Thompson caught 10 passes for 146 yards and three touchdowns * John Lee rushed for a team-high 99 yards and a touchdown * Upper Dublin won its first round game in a 48-14 win over Council Rock North * Kaleif Lee led the Cardinals with 156 yards rushing and four touchdowns.
Pennsbury – the Falcons advanced to the semifinal game with a 45-14 victory over Garnet Valley * Charles Snorweah led the Falcons to the win with a game-high 187 yards and two touchdowns * Quarterback Mike Alley rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown * Pennsbury won its first round game with a 63-55 track meet win over Downingtown West * Snorweah registered incredible numbers with 433 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.
Season Highlights:
Upper Dublin – the Cardinals finished the regular season as the champion of the Suburban One League American Conference with a conference record of 7-0 * signature wins during the season included victories over Coconut Creek – [Fla] – (36-28), Truman (28-21), and Cheltenham (28-1) * only loss of the season came against Abington (27-20).
Pennsbury – the Falcons completed the regular season as the co-champions of the Suburban One League National Conference with a conference record of 6-1 * signature wins during the season included victories over Council Rock North (57-20), Pennridge (41-14), and Central Bucks South (55-7) * only loss of the season came against North Penn (24-21).
Stat Track:
Upper Dublin * Points Scored Per Game – 36.0 * Points Allowed Per Game – 15.9 * Margin of Victory + 20.1
Pennsbury * Points Scored Per Game – 43.3 * Points Allowed Per Game – 14.0 * Margin of Victory + 29.3
Players To Watch:
Upper Dublin – Ryan Stover, Kaleif Lee, Matt Thompson, and John Lee.
Pennsbury – Charles Snorweah, Mike Alley, Raheem Thompson, and Victor Delgado.
Upper Dublin Head Coach Bret Stover says:
“If you had told me in summer camp in August that we would be playing Pennsbury on November 21st in a district semifinal, I would have raised an eyebrow. Nobody really expected us to be playing this late in the season, and it is great for the team, the school, and the community that we are still playing meaningful football games in November. We are going to have to play the perfect game against Pennsbury – we have to play well in all three facets of the game – offensively, defensively, and special teams. Pennsbury is incredible to watch on tape, and we’re going to have our hands full Friday night.”
Pennsbury Head Coach Galen Snyder says:
“Upper Dublin is a nice offensive team that can do a lot of different things. They like to spread you out defensively. They are a little bit like Rock North, but they can run the ball inside more effectively. We are going into the game pretty healthy. A couple of weeks ago we ran the ‘I’ formation (due to injuries) and last week we ran both a little ‘I’ and a little ‘Wing-T’. We might run that combination again this week. It is a long season, and it is a challenge to have the players stay both mentally and physically sharp, but it is a challenge we will accept.”
PIAA Class AA District 1/12 Final Game
Saturday – November 22, 2014 @ South Philadelphia Super Site – 1 pm
[District 1 Champion] Springfield Spartans (6-6) vs. [District 12 Champion] Neumann-Goretti Saints (8-4)
Playoff Resume:
Springfield – the Spartans won the PIAA District One Class AA championship with a 15-14 victory over top-seeded Bristol * Martin Worgan rushed for a team-high 105 yards and scored a touchdown for the Spartans * Running back Brett Righter scored the second touchdown for the winners * Springfield advanced to the title game with a 39-19 first round victory over New Hope-Solebury * In the win over the Lions, quarterback Chris Stone threw for two touchdowns and rushed for another score.
Neumann-Goretti – the Saints captured the District 12 Class AA championship with a 12-6 win over Penn Charter * Khalil Roane rushed for 171 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns for N-G * Neumann-Goretti advanced to the District 12 title game with a 32-14 win over West Catholic in the Philadelphia Catholic League Class AA championship game * Roane, Aamir Brown, and Myles Brewer each scored single touchdowns to highlight the offense.
Season Highlights:
Springfield – the Spartans finished the regular season as the fifth place finisher in the Suburban One League American Conference with a conference record of 2-5 * signature wins came against Lower Moreland (35-0), Lansdale Catholic (29-7), and Hatboro-Horsham (27-21) * losses came against Penn Charter (23-20), Wissahickon (48-21), Upper Dublin (46-14), Cheltenham (14-0), Upper Moreland (25-20), and Plymouth Whitemarsh (30-13).
Neumann Goretti – the Saints completed the regular season as the second place in the Philadelphia Catholic League AA Division with a conference record of 3-1 * signature wins came against Chester (20-6), Lansdale Catholic (24-12), and Cardinal O’Hara (20-0) * losses came against Episcopal Academy (28-6), Penn Charter (18-13), West Catholic (30-13), and Bonner (30-19).
Stat Track:
Springfield * Points Scored Per Game – 22.8 * Points Allowed Per Game – 22.3 * Margin of Victory + 0.5
Neumann-Goretti * Points Scored Per Game – 20.4 * Points Allowed Per Game * 13.7 * Margin of Victory + 6.7
Players To Watch:
Springfield – Chris Stone, Martin Worgan, Justin Hill, and Brett Righter.
Neumann-Goretti – Khalil Roane, Aamir Brown, Ray Lenhart, and Myles Brewer.
Springfield Head Coach Chris Shelly says:
“Neumann-Goretti has tough athletic kids. They have a stud fullback-linebacker (Michael Difrancesco) that sets the tone for them. They have some mojo since they beat West Catholic for the first time in years and beat Prep Charter for the city championship. We need to match their intensity and physicality and not give up the big play. Our players know they can make school history – with a win this week we will go farther than any Springfield team ever in the state playoffs.”
About the Author
