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High School Football: Looking at this week's PIAA playoff matchups

Central York, Elco, Lampeter-Strasburg, Camp Hill, and Steel-High are all still alive in the postseason.
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While many Central Pennsylvania high school football teams are turning in their pads, there are five fortunate programs who still alive and in the hunt for District 3 or PIAA championship gold.

In Class 4A, two Lancaster-Lebanon League foes will square off for the district championship as Elco and Lampeter-Strasburg square off in a game that also serves as a PIAA quarterfinal matchup. It's the third straight year that the Raiders and Pioneers have met in Districts.

Elsewhere on Friday, Camp Hill will host Bishop McDevitt (from District 12, not the District 3 powerhouse many Central PA fans are familiar with) in the PIAA Class 2A quarterfinals, and Steelton-Highspire makes the two-hour trek north on Interstate 81 to face Old Forge in the Class 1A quarterfinals.

On Saturday, newly crowned District 3 champion Central York will make a 3.5-hour jaunt north to face Delaware Valley in the Class 6A quarterfinals.

Here's a preview of each game.

DISTRICT 3 CLASS 4A CHAMPIONSHIP AND PIAA QUARTERFINALS

Elco (7-0) at Lampeter-Strasburg (8-0)

Friday, 7 p.m. at L-S

About Elco: The Raiders captured the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 4 championship in the regular season, and opened the District 3 playoffs with a 42-7 rout of Northern York in last week's semifinals. Their reward is a rematch with Lampeter-Strasburg, who knocked them out of the playoffs last year with a 34-7 rout in Lampeter. Friday's meeting will mark the third straight year that Elco and L-S have met in Districts; the Pioneers ripped the Raiders 37-0 in 2018.

This year's Raiders rely heavily on their running game. Quarterback Bradon Bohannon, a four-year starter, has attempted just 15 passes all season. In last week's victory over Northern, Elco did not call a single passing play. 

But Bohannon is still a vital cog in the offense. He's the team's leading rusher, with 938 yards and 17 touchdowns on 123 attempts. The Williams brothers -- Jake, a freshman, and Luke, a junior, have combined for 1,054 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. 

Against Northern, Jake Williams rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries and added a back-breaking touchdown by scooping up a blocked field goal and taking it to the house late in the first half, when the game was still close. Luke Williams added 86 yards and two scores on seven carries, while Bohannon lugged the ball 13 times for 136 yards and a pair of TDs.

Elco is making its second appearance in a district title game. The Raiders lost 28-0 to Wyomissing in the 2001 Class 2A championship. Elco is 2-5 all-time in the playoffs.

About L-S: The Pioneers are seeking their second straight district title. They upended Berks Catholic 35-21 in last year's final before bowing out of States with a loss to Thomas Jefferson. 

This year, L-S joined Elco and Warwick as one of three teams to make it through the regular season without a loss. The Pioneers captured the Section 3 championship. They rank fourth among all L-L League offenses, averaging 374 yards per game, while boasting the league's stingiest defense (187 yards per game).

L-S has a wide-open offense that spreads the wealth among several players. At least seven Pioneers have logged 10 or more carries this season. Drew Harris is the team's top rusher, with 406 yards and five touchdowns on 78 attempts. Quarterback Sean McTaggart is second, with 354 yards and seven scores on 74 carries. He's also completed 64 of 106 passes for 1,122 yards and 21 scores.

In the Pioneers' 56-35 victory over Conrad Weiser in the semifinals, McTaggart threw for 353 yards and a whopping seven touchdowns.

Austin Stoltzfus leads a quartet of Pioneer receivers with 11 catches for 334 yards and six TDs. 

L-S is 2-1 all-time in district championship games and has an 18-11 overall playoff record. 

Friday's winner will face either District 2 champion Crestwood or District 4 champ Jersey Shore in the state semifinals.

PIAA CLASS 2A QUARTERFINALS

Bishop McDevitt (3-1) at Camp Hill (3-2) 

Friday, 7 p.m.

About Bishop McDevitt: No, these aren't the Crusaders Mid-Penn fans are familiar with. The Royal Lancers are located in Wyncote and compete in the Philadelphia Catholic League. They captured the District 12 Class 2A title with a 47-7 rout of Dunmore last week.

Quarterback Nick Santo hooked up with wideout Emmanuel Sia for three touchdowns against Dunmore, and added an 83-yard catch-and-run to Corey Wright-Downing for another score. The Lancers built a 33-0 lead at halftime and never looked back.

McDevitt has three major-college prospects on its roster: RB Jon-Luke Peaker, defensive back Michael Price, and defensive end Keith Henderson. 

The Lancers' only loss this season came against reigning PIAA Class 5A champion Archbishop Wood (35-14 in their season opener). 

About Camp Hill: The Lions stunned York Catholic 21-7 in last week's District 3 championship game, outscoring the Fighting Irish 14-0 in the second half while holding them to nine total yards on 10 plays from scrimmage.

Quarterback Daniel Shuster threw three touchdown passes and sealed the game with a clutch interception late in the second half from his spot in the defensive backfield to carry Camp Hill, which parlayed a 2-2 regular-season record into its ninth district title in program history.

Shuster has thrown for more than 1,000 yards and 14 touchdowns in just five games for Camp Hill, whose upset of York Catholic snapped a two-game losing streak. 

Half of Shuster's touchdown strikes have gone to Cam Ochs, who had a pair of TDs against York Catholic.

Friday's winner will move on to the state semifinals, where they will face either District 6 champ Richland or perennial state powerhouse Southern Columbia. 

PIAA CLASS 1A QUARTERFINALS

Steelton-Highspire (7-0) at Old Forge (5-0)

Friday, 7 p.m.

About Old Forge: The Blue Devils compete out of District 2, and cruised past Bristol in last week's PIAA Class A 1-2 subregional game, winning 48-0. Old Forge has outscored its opponents 242-37 this season.

Old Forge uses a two-man platoon at quarterback. Senior Dante Lucarelli has 4,146 career passing yards and 52 passing touchdowns. James Sabol also sees snaps at QB for the Blue Devils. In last week's rout of Bristol, the duo combined for 194 passing yards and four touchdowns, completing 16 of 21 passes between them.

Meanwhile, RB Hezekiah Dietz ran for two touchdowns and eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark, Mike DiGregorio caught two TD passes, and brothers Casey and Colin Holzman combined for three of Old Forge's four interceptions. 

Old Forge faced Steel-High in the 2013 state semifinals and defeated the Rollers 26-7. The Raiders went on to fall 15-14 in overtime to North Catholic in the finals that year. 

Old Forge has never won a state title.

About Steel-High: The Rollers survived a shootout with Muncy in last week's state playoff opener, hanging on for a 50-43 triumph. Steel-High built a 36-14 lead at halftime and tacked on another TD to open the third quarter, but Muncy charged back in the second half to cut the Roller lead to 7 with 35 seconds left. Steel-High managed to fall on the ensuing onside kick and ran out the clock to escape and advance.

The Rollers were forced to finish the game without all-around weapon Mekhi Flowers, who left the game with an ankle injury early in the fourth quarter and did not return. Flowers caught seven passes for 129 yards and a touchdown before he checked out.

RB Odell Greene racked up 240 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries to lead the Roller ground game, while freshman QB Alex Erby shook off three interceptions to throw for 422 yards and and six touchdowns.

Assuming he's healed up in time for Friday's game, Flowers will be a huge challenge for Old Forge to contain. He's caught 46 passes for 750 yards and 12 TDs -- all numbers that lead the Mid-Penn Conference.

Greene is also the Mid-Penn's leading rusher, with 1,270 yards and 12 touchdowns on 166 attempts. Erby leads the conference in passing, with 1,930 yards and 26 touchdowns on 117-of-181 passing. He's been picked off five times.

Steel-High won back-to-back state titles in 2007 and 2008, but hasn't been back to the championship game since.

Friday's winner will face the winner of the state quarterfinal game betwen Bishop Guilfoyle and Homer Center in the semifinals at a site and time to be determined.

PIAA CLASS 6A QUARTERFINALS

Central York (8-0) at Delaware Valley (5-1)

Saturday, 1 p.m. in Milford, PA

About Central York: The Panthers defeated YIAAA rival York High 48-21 to capture the first District 3 championship in program history last week, extending their 2020 unbeaten streak to eight games. 

Central York is thriving under new coach Gerry Yonchiuk and the Air Raid offense he installed. QB Beau Pribula, a Penn State recruit, completed 14 of 19 passes for 224 yards and three touchdowns and added another score on the ground to lift the Panthers in last week's title game. 

Pribula, a junior, has completed 104 of 143 pass attempts for 1,566 yards and 30 touchdowns. All of those numbers lead the YAIAA.

Judah Tomb (29-548, 11 TDs), Parker Hines (22-342, 8 TDs), and Taylor Wright-Rawls (19-279, 8 TDs) are Pribula's top targets, while Isaiah Sturgis (67-439, 5 TDs) is the Panthers' leading rusher.

Central York averages 414 yards and 55.5 points per game on offense, while the Panther defense allows 5.8 points and 191.5 yards per game. 

About Delaware Valley: The Warriors are a powerhouse out of District 2, where they have won five straight titles. They stomped District 4 champ Altoona 35-14 in the first round of the state playoffs last week. Competing out of the Lackawanna Conference, Delaware Valley enters Friday's game on a five-game winning streak. Their only loss of the season was a 27-23 setback to highly regarded LaSalle College in Week 1.

The Warrior offense revolves around running back Jason Henderson, a 6-0, 210-pound junior who is also a starter at linebacker. Henderson has carried 63 times for 666 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. He scored four touchdowns in Delaware Valley's victory over Altoona.

The offensive line is anchored by Albany recruit Mike Gecik, a 6-3, 270-pound behemoth. 

Quarterback Aiden Oliver has completed 53 of 107 pass attempts for 1,009 yards and 11 touchdowns. His top target is senior Mark Callanan, who has 22 catches for 336 yards and two scores.

Friday's winner advances to the state semifinals, where they will face either District 7 champ Pittsburgh Central Catholic (6-2) or District 10 kingpin Erie McDowell (6-0). Those schools square off in the WPIAL title game Saturday night.

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