Tough week, tough season for Greene County squads
Geibel Catholic’s Trey Holmes (22) is stopped short of the end zone by Carmichaels’ Brennan McMinn (23). (Photo by Holly Tonini)
Holly Tonini
Geibel Catholic’s Santo Piccolomini (18) carries the ball downfield as a Carmichael defender attempts to tackle him during Friday’s game in Carmichaels.
Geibel Catholic’s Santo Piccolomini (18) avoids the Carmichaels defense to get a first down during last Friday’s Tri-County South Conference game in Carmichaels. (Photo by Holly Tonini)
Week Eight was a tough week in high school football action around Greene County, as only one team was victorious and two more were officially eliminated from the WPIAL postseason.
This is the first football season since 1995 that no team from the county will be playing November football in the WPIAL playoffs.
So week nine is all about one thing for the five teams within the county lines — pride.
There’s a lot of rivalry games in the final week of the regular season, and four of the schools will be staying within Greene County.
Carmichaels was the lone winning team in week eight with a 27-12 victory over Geibel Catholic last Friday night.
The Mighty Mikes (2-5, 3-5) got behind the 8-ball early after the Gators scored on their opening drive and returned an interception for a score in the final seconds of the second quarter for a 12-0 halftime lead.
“It was an intense halftime for us,” Mikes coach John Menhart said. “We had no inspiration in that first half and we were getting our butts kicked up front. Geibel had all of their guys covering us and were packing it in on us. In that second half we were able to hit some big pass plays and beat them one-on-one on the outside.”
Carmichaels responded in the third quarter with a big pass play on its first drive of the second half when quarterback Brandon Lawless threw a pass out in the flat to tailback Brennan McMinn for a 75-yard touchdown.
After forcing Geibel to turn the ball over on downs after a failed fourth-and-one, Carmichaels’ dynamic running back Josh Mundell dashed 56 yards into the end zone that gave the Mikes their first lead of the game, 13-12.
Mundell, who missed the previous two games due to an arm injury, rushed for 62 total yards and was a force in the defensive secondary, as he had a huge interception in the end zone in the third quarter and shut down half the field from his cornerback position.
“Josh just got cleared to play Thursday (Oct. 20),” Menhart said. “And he was a factor for us. I can’t say enough about that kid, he played an excellent game defensively, too. He is a hard worker and is able to shut down half the field in the secondary.”
Lawless hit receiver Colton Yoders for a 79-yard touchdown play with 7:31 left in the contest for the backbreaking score. McMinn added a 4-yard touchdown run for the Mikes’ final points in the Tri-County South Conference affair.
McMinn gained 82 yards on 26 carries, while Lawless added a season-high 216 yards through the air. Yoders recorded three catches for 122 yards.
“We were very patient with our running game tonight,” Menhart said. “Brennan had a big workload and Josh just gives us that extra dimension. They both run strong in between the tackles and were able to get loose on a couple of plays.”
McMinn has collected 683 yards rushing (4.8 yards per carry average) this season with nine total touchdowns (54 points). McMinn is currently tied for eighth place in the HeraldStandard.com Touchdown Club with 56 points (seven touchdowns and a two-point conversion).
Mapletown played its first non-conference opponent of the year, but fell to Wilkinsburg 33-6 last Saturday.
The Tigers picked up its first win of the season, scoring 19 points in the fourth quarter to secure the victory.
Wilkinsburg held a 7-0 lead at intermission, and held a 14-0 lead before the Maples (2-5, 2-6) put some points on the scoreboard via a Sam Cossick fumble recovery in the end zone. Mapletown missed the two-point conversion and was held scoreless in the fourth.
“It was a lot closer than what the score would indicate,” Mapletown coach George Messich said. “We shot ourselves in the foot several times and just made too many mistakes on offense. I still like our effort, and I really liked the play of our defense.”
Running back Michael Rumble led Mapletown on the ground with 111 yards. Rumble is tied for 14th place in the HeraldStandard.com Touchdown Club race with 38 points.
The Maples will battle one of its fiercest county rivals tonight when they host the Mikes on Senior Day. The game will be the Greene County Gridiron Game of the Week on WANB 105.1-F.M. Pregame starts at 6:30 p.m., with kickoff slated for 7 p.m.
“It’s always going to be a good game when you get Mapletown and Carmichaels together,” Messich said. “I don’t care if it’s softball or basketball, these two teams always produces great moments. Both teams know each other, and I have known Coach Menhart for almost my whole life. It’s a strong rivalry within the county, and it will definitely add a little bit of an atmosphere this Friday.”
Jumping to the Interstate Conference playoff race, Waynesburg Central saw their postseason hopes dashed and its three-game winning streak snapped when the Raiders dropped a 31-6 road decision to Mount Pleasant.
The Raiders offense, more specifically their running game, couldn’t get started early on in the must-win game for both teams, but Mount Pleasant’s rushing attack caught fire with multiple ball carriers getting the job done for the Vikings.
The Vikings had a 21-0 lead at halftime, and after a scoreless third quarter, they racked up 10 more points in the final period.
Waynesburg (3-4, 3-5) avoided the shutout when tailback Nick Zupper rumbled into the end zone from seven yards on the last play of the game. Zupper ran the ball 26 times for 103 yards and is currently the third-leading rusher in the WPIAL with 1,277 yards.
Despite the loss, Zupper still holds first place in the 2011 HeraldStandard.com Touchdown Club. The senior running back eclipsed the 100-point mark with 17 touchdowns and a two-point conversion for a total of 104 points.
Zupper currently holds a 28-point lead over Beth-Center quarterback Sal Faieta in the heated scoring race among the local schools.
The Raiders close out the 2011 regular season at home against one of their biggest rivals, Brownsville (0-7, 0-8) on Senior Night. The game will be broadcast on Greenesports.net, with the coverage starting at 7 p.m.
Another county team that saw its postseason aspirations end last Friday was Jefferson-Morgan. The Rockets fell to Monessen on the road, 36-0.
The Rockets (4-3, 4-4) fell behind early in the opening stanza with the Greyhounds mounting a 15-0 lead. Monessen added two touchdowns in the second quarter, and finished off the scoring in the third quarter with a long touchdown pass.
The Greyhounds has had Greene County’s teams number this season, posting a 4-0 record and outscoring them by a 105-0 margin.
Jefferson-Morgan, who has been held scoreless the past two weeks, looks to rebound and end the year on a winning note against conference-leading Beth-Center (7-0, 7-1). Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Parker Field in Jefferson.
Speaking of the Bulldogs, Beth-Center pounded West Greene last week, 59-0, in the Pioneers’ last conference game of the season.
The scoring in the lopsided contest started with the opening kickoff returned for a touchdown, and was followed by 21 more points in the first 12 minutes of action.
West Greene’s spread offense was slowed down in the contest, and the Pioneers didn’t help their own cause when Beth-Center scored two defensive touchdowns to end the first half with a 47-0 lead.
The Bulldogs added two more touchdowns in the third quarter, with no scores in the final 12 minutes of action with the mercy rule in place.
The Pioneers (0-8, 0-8) will conclude the season with a non-section contest at Our Lady of Sacred Heart (4-4, 4-4). OLSH plays their home games at Robert Morris University football stadium in Moon Township. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m.
Last year, OLSH defeated the hosting Pioneers by a 10-6 margin in Rogersville.