All four of the local Laurel Highlands Conference football teams came through with wins in this year’s East-West Conference showdown.
Bald Eagle coasted over Penn Cambria, 46-0; Bellefonte held on against Somerset, 14-13; Penns Valley outscored Central Cambria, 41-34; and Philipsburg-Osceola won its fourth game with a 22-21 overtime win over Bishop McCort at home. The Mounties, down 21-14 in overtime, scored a touchdown and then won the game with a gutsy 2-point conversion.
Those last regular season games also finalized the District 6 playoff positions of BEA, Bellefonte and Penns Valley.
P-O, despite its win over McCort, finished just outside of the playoff contenders at No. 9 in the AA bracket and ended its season at 4-6.
Finally, State College again finished as the No. 1 seed in the 6A rankings after a 21-14 win over Chambersburg at home on Oct. 27.
So, four of our local teams will be moving on into the 2023 playoffs.
Here’s a brief look at the playoff matchups scheduled to begin on Friday, Nov. 3.
No. 8 Bishop Guilfoyle (6-4) at Bald Eagle Area (9-1)
District 6, AA Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m.
Bald Eagle wasted little time Oct. 27 asserting itself against Penn Cambria in a stunning 46-0 victory over the Panthers at home in the team’s first LHAC crossover game.
Both teams came into the game 8-1, but Bald Eagle struck first on a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Carson Nagle to Beau Taylor just four minutes into the game to take a 7-0 lead.
By halftime, it was 21-0 thanks to second-quarter touchdowns by Cameron Dubbs and Kahale Burns, and the Eagles were off and running from there.
The third quarter was highlighted by another long touchdown pass by Nagle (this one to Gavin Burns), a 31-yard run by Nick Wible and a pick-6 by defensive back Kollin Cunningham.
In all, BEA totaled over 470 yards of offense and held PC to no points and less than 100 yards.
Dubbs finished with 102 yards, while Nagle completed 18 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns.
On Friday, Nov. 3, in the quarterfinals of the District 6, AA playoffs, BEA will entertain No. 8 ranked Bishop Guilfoyle at 7 p.m. in Wingate.
The two teams played in Week 1 at BEA, with the Eagles coming away with a close 17-7 victory in their first ever LHAC contest.
Nagle and Dubbs led BEA that night as well, with Nagle throwing for 189 yards and a touchdown and Dubbs running for 71 yards and a touchdown.
The Marauders, 6-4 this season, ran for 130 yards and a touchdown against the BEA defense that day, but the Eagles held them to just 90 yards passing.
BG comes in with three wins in its last four games, including a 49-14 win over Bedford last Friday and a 22-7 win over P-O on Oct. 21.
Playoffs begin a new season, and the Eagles likely have some lofty goals after the many successes they’ve achieved this season so far.
It all starts with Game 1, though, and the loser will see its season come to an end.
The winner will advance to face either No. 4 River Valley or No. 5 Forest Hills on Nov. 10.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. in Wingate.
No. 7 Penns Valley (6-4) at No. 1 Richland (9-1)
District 6, AA Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m.
Penns Valley had to win on Oct. 27 at home against Central Cambria to secure a playoff spot, and the Rams did exactly that.
It was anything but easy though.
PV scored 41 points and piled up 320 yards of offense, but the Rams still had to hold on through the final minutes for a 41-34 victory over CC.
Ram quarterback Jarrett Stover struck for a 60-yard touchdown pass to Spencer Althouse late in the fourth quarter that gave PV a 41-27 lead.
But Central Cambria came right back with a quick touchdown that brought it to within one score with just three minutes to play.
PV, however, was able to run the time and clinched the win, taking the No. 7 playoff position in the process.
Now, Penns Valley will play No. 2 Richland in the AA quarterfinals on Nov. 3 in Johnstown.
Richland was 9-1 this season and lost its first game last week to powerful Central, 43-15, in the LHAC championship game held at Central on Oct. 27.
Central took an early lead, 22-0 after one quarter, and never looked back.
Now, in the quarterfinals, the Rams will bring an offense led by freshman quarterback Grayson Mahla, 75 completions for 1,189 yards, and tailback Evan McCracken, 941 yards and 20 touchdowns, that scores over 35 points per game and has not been held under 25 all season.
Last season, after going 11-0, Richland was beaten in the D6 playoffs by Bishop Guilfoyle, 32-22, and had its season come to an end.
The Rams upset Bald Eagle Area in last year’s quarterfinals but fell to BG, 56-35, in the semifinals.
The winner will play either No. 3 United or No. 6 Mount Union in the semifinals on Nov. 10 at a site to be announced.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
No. 1 Juniata (5-5) vs No. 2 Bellefonte (2-8)
District 6, AAAA Final
Friday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m.
One week after Bellefonte scored its first victory of the season, the Raiders went after win No. 2 against Somerset at home on Oct. 27 in an LHAC crossover game. And after Bellefonte fell behind Somerset 7-0 at halftime, the Raiders demonstrated how far they’ve come this season.
They tied the score on a 66-yard touchdown run by Sherman Lowry in the third quarter.
Bellefonte then went ahead in the fourth quarter on another big play — this time a 60-yard pass from quarterback Liam Halterman to Jaeden Gabrovsek.
Somerset, however, was not finished yet.
After the kickoff, Somerset drove to the Bellefonte 4-yard line, where running back Camden Lowery took it in for a touchdown.
The extra point try, however, was wide, and the Raiders survived with a 14-13 win.
Now, with just two teams in the AAAA Division, Bellefonte will play Juniata in the District 6, AAAA title G=game on Nov. 3 at Hollidaysburg High School.
Juniata is 5-5 this season, with victories over Newport, Halifax, James Buchanan, Boiling Springs and Upper Dauphin. The Indians lost their first three games of the year and then went 5-3 the rest of the way.
Wyatt Ehrenzeller is the Juniata quarterback, and he’s completed 92 passes for 1,624 yards and 19 touchdowns, while six runners have over 100 yards on the ground, led by Javier Lopez with 391.
Sophomore Jasper Shepps is the top receiver, with 55 catches for 1,086 yards and 11 touchdowns.
For its part, Bellefonte will be trying to extend a season of gradual improvement that saw it win its last two games.
Another win, and a district title, would look pretty good at this point.
The winner will take on DuBois in a regional playoff to qualify for the PIAA tournament.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. in Hollidaysburg.
No. 1 State College vs No. 3 Altoona or No. 2 Mifflin County
District 6, AAAAAA Championship
Friday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m.
The State College Little Lions came back to form in their final regular season game in a 21-14 victory over Mid Penn foe Chambersburg at home on Friday, Oct. 27.
The Lions went ahead at the half 14-0 and then had to hold on for their sixth win of the season against three losses.
SC will now wait to play the winner of the No. 3 Altoona vs No. 2 Mifflin County D6, AAAAAA semifinal game, which will be held on Nov. 3 at Mifflin.
The championship game will be played at Hollidaysburg High School on Nov. 10 at 7 p.m.
