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Monday, November 25, 2019

Road to Heinz week 3 WPIAL championship/ PIAA semi-finals preview

 Warriors receiver Michael Barbuto ran for a 10-yard touchdown on the first play of overtime as his entire offensive line pushed him in from behind, then Ethan Ott drilled the extra point to give Central Valley a seven-point lead.  Aliquippa scored and coach Mike Warfield decided to try for the win, but Isaiah Towler was stopped at the 2 and the game ended.” According to Warfield, Aliquippa’s coach, “We were struggling a little bit, as far as kicking the ball, and we didn’t want to put that on our kicker,” Warfield said. “We didn’t make it. They made a good play. I’m not going to second-guess that.”
“Nobody’s heads were down when [Aliquippa] scored,” Warriors coach Mark Lyons said. “They were just anxious to get lined up and let the whistle blow, and let’s play and see what happens.” Lyons now has three WPIAL titles in 10 seasons as Central Valley’s head coach, since the merger of the Monaca and Center school districts in 2010. “I think our defense has been flying under the radar all year, and that’s OK,” Lyons said. “Our skill guys get a lot of the publicity and rightfully so, but our defense, they know what’s important this time of year.”

The teams went nearly 24 minutes without a point before the Quips got the scoring started as Aliquippa quarterback Vaughn Morris hooked up with wide receiver Chinua Solomon for an 11-yard scoring strike on third-and-9 with 22 seconds left in the half. Daniel Elmore’s extra point attempt went wide right, but the Quips took a 6-0 lead into the break.

After a scoreless third quarter, Dudley led the Warriors down the field for a game-tying score early in the fourth, finding Guy wide open for an 8-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal. But Ott missed the extra point wide to the left to keep the score tied, 6-6, sending the game into overtime and setting the stage for Barbuto’s heroics.

Check out a highlight reel of the game Below!

The Warriors will face the Bald Eagle Area( PA) Eagles @ Moon Area High School on 11/29/19 @7:00. A win for the Warriors will send them to their second PIAA state championship in school history, since the merger of the Monaca and Center school districts in 2010. The Warriors have never won a state championship, their only trip to Hershey was in 2014 where they would end up losing. If they win Central Valley will face the winner of the Wyoming Area (PA)/Tamaqua (PA) game.







Sources:
https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/high-school-football/2019/11/18/WPIAL-football-championship-2019-Central-Valley-Aliquippa-Mark-Lyons/stories/201911170200

https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/high-school-football/2019/11/16/WPIAL-Class-3A-Final-central-valley-aliquippa-high-school-football-championships/stories/201911160057









Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Road to Heinz:WPIAL playoffs week 2 preview/ week 1 recap Aliquippa vs Central Valley

Central Valley routed the Derry Area Trojans in a playoff rivalry game to see who would end up in Heinz Field this year. Final score 42-7 in favor of the Warriors.
Derry football coach Tim Sweeney said Central Valley’s greatest strength is the fact that they don’t have a weakness. 
Top-seeded Central Valley piled up the yardage, and the big plays, and mercy-ruled the Trojans, 42-7, in the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals Friday night at North Allegheny’s Newman Stadium. No. 4 Derry (9-3) was seeking its second straight trip to the finals, but the Trojans could not muster offense from the start and saw two key starters go down with injuries in the first half. Derry did not register a first down in the first half as it fell behind, 42-0. Stephon Hall scored three rushing touchdowns (2, 4 and 4 yards) and quarterback Ameer Dudley threw for 245 yards and a touchdown and also ran for two scores — all in the first half. Dudley topped the 1,500-yard passing mark for the season and now has 20 TD passes.He threw an 80-yard bomb to Jawon Hall, who pulled in two deep passes and had 134 receiving yards.
“We run to the football,” Lyons said.  “Our guys know their assignments and they have a lot of speed too.”
“It wasn’t just about their team speed,” Sweeney said. “It’s on me. We didn’t do enough tonight.”
Central Valley rolled up 524 yards, including 279 rushing. Jaylen Guy ran for 78 yards on 19 carries. Backup Landon Alexander added 60 in the second half. Jayvin Thompson had an interception for the Warriors.
Central Valley (11-1) will play for the class AAA WPIAL championship title at Heinz Field against the Aliquippa Quips (11-1) on 11/16/19 @2 P.M. Game broadcasted on TRIBLIVE and televised on The CW network for Pittsburgh. 
The Warriors will try to win their first WPIAL championship since 2014 when they would get to the class AAA PIAA state championship. The Warriors have won 2 WPIAL championships since their inception in 2010, 2013 and 2015. Their last trip to Heinz was in 2015 where they would eventually lose. Aliquippa will try to repeat their previous Hienz Field outcome, winning and eventually winning states.

Below is a recap/ highlight video of both games. Enjoy!