District 1 5A Championship game preview: West Chester Rustin vs Strath Haven

Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub, News

Zak Wolf | November 24, 2021

We’ve made it! After a long season, a champion will finally be crowned in District 1, on Friday and we couldn’t have a better matchup in the 5A classification. Throughout the season West Chester Rustin and Strath Haven have been among the top teams in the District, with both teams having not suffered a defeat since September. It’s going to be Chester vs Delaware county to decide which top seed will be crowned champion in District 1 and a birth in the State semi final.

(1)West Chester Rustin vs (2) Strath Haven 

(1) West Chester Rustin: The Golden Knights needed a fourth quarter comeback to defeat a tough Plymouth Whitemarsh team 19-14. Rustin fell behind twice, once in the first half and another time in the second half. Rustin led 7-6 early in the second half, before P.W hit them with a trick play, in which the running back threw the ball down the field. Rustin responded with a Deshawn Jacobs touchdown, but were still behind one after a missed extra point. Taking advantage of a short field, the top seed went ahead for good when Senior Quarterback Kolbe Freney took a run up the middle for a five yard score. The Golden Knights were led by Senior Running Back Deshawn Jacobs, who added to his record setting season with 24 carries for 193 yards and two touchdowns. Jacobs now has a Ches-Mont League record 2,500 yards on the ground to go along with a school record 40 touchdowns. His younger brother, Daimon a Junior Defensive Back had the game sealing interception with just over two minutes remaining last week and he’ll be a big factor in the secondary for Rustin

(2) Strath Haven: The two seeded Panthers haven’t had any trouble this post season outscoring their opponents 101-22 in their three playoff games. Strath Haven tore apart Academy Park in their semi final game 34-6 and their only loss this season has come to the top seeded team in 6A, Garnet Valley. Strathen Haven are led by their own running back Matt Shuller who ran for over 100 yards and two touchdowns in their semi final victory. The Panthers run the Wing-T offense so Chase Barlow, Anthony Crawford and Quarterback Sam Milligan all get carries. Strath Haven averages 7.9 yards per carry on offense to go along with a stingy defense.

3 Things to Watch

(1): Dayshawn Jacobs. Plain and simple one of, if not the best running back in District 1 in 5A. Jacobs has yet to be stopped by any team this season and even though P.W was able to hold him without many explosive runs, he still had almost 200 yards.

(2) Both teams run defense. Rustin got experience playing against an option look last week when they played P.W, so going up against another option look should give them a sense of confidence. The Knights held the Colonials rushing attack in check and forced them to pass more than they probably had hoped to, especially in the second half. The key to winning this game is who can stop the run better and who’s able to control the clock more.

(3) Will either team be able to pass the ball? Both teams love to run the ball and are physical teams, but neither has shown that they are willing to pass the ball. What happens if either team falls behind by two possessions, do they stick to the run? Or do they open up the play book and pass?

Prediction: 

West Chester Rustin 28  Strath Haven 24

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