3A Semifinal Preview: Neumann Goretti & Wyomissing Meet Again

Tagged under: District 12, District 3, Playoffs

Anthony Franklin | December 2, 2022

The 2021 3A semifinal game between Neumann Goretti and Wyomissing High was thought to be a clash of two heavyweights up until kickoff when Wyomissing came out firing away on offense and bottled up the Saints defensively. They surprisingly came away with a resounding 42-6 win before falling to Central Valley 7-0 in the state finals. This season Wyomissing has had a pretty dominating year thus far as they sit 13-0, averaging 42 points per game and 344 rushing yards per game behind their dominant offensive line spearheaded by Penn State commit Guard Jven Williams, Guard Jack Garter, Tackles Pacen Ziegler & Cooper Young and center Issac Focht.  Last week was their toughest and closest game of the season as they went toe to toe with Danville coming away with a 21-19 win after Danville missed a 32-yard field goal with 10 seconds remaining.

The leading offensive guys for the Spartans are Sr Fullback Matthew Kramer, Sr Running back Drew Eisenhower as they run the wing T offense relying on the offensive line and ends to open holes for the workhorse backs. Defensively Kramer doubles as a LB and is key to their stout unit who only has given up 109 points this season (8 points per game). Junior nose guard Cole Brewer has also been a key cog for the defense and holds offers from Maryland, Pittsburgh, Boston College, Duke and a couple MAC schools. Ryker Jones leads the team with a whopping 75 tackles. Prior to last week Wyomissing hadn’t had a game in which they didn’t outscore their opponents by at least 21 points. Even last week they were up 21-0 before Danville ran off 19 consecutive points. Head Coach Bob Wolfrum is in his 36th season and a win would set him up for a return to the state finals in search of his 2nd state title.

Neumann is led by HC Albie Crosby who owns 1 state title via the 2015 championship he earned while leading Imhotep Charter. He returns to the semifinals facing the same opponent who kept him from playing for a 2nd state title last year. Leading the Saints offensively is Mr Do it all athlete Shawn Battle (Boston College) who has rushed for over 900 yards & 13 scores on the ground. He also has another 454 yards in the air and 5 scores. He is the engine that pulls this Saints team offensively behind a big line led by Sr. Michael Gargano, Sr. Jose Rivera, Jr. Samier Bromfield, Sr. Louis Governatore, Jr. Koren Robinson & Sr. Deshon Dodson. The leading receiving threat for the Saints is Sr. Denim Smith with 509 yards & 7 TDs. Defensively this group gets after it. Their backs come up and aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty making big hits and tackles on running QB and running backs. Junior DB Khari Reid l(3 interceptions), Sr. DB Yasir Williams (5 interceptions) and Sr. LB Sam Hobbs (62 total tackles with 4 sacks) lead the back unit. Upfront the Saints are large and very agile led by Robinson, Jabril Nuriddin, Dodson & Christopher Bressi. The Saints are no slouching offensive team either as they’ve averaged 31 points per game and only given up 9 points per game.

This game will be a battle of who can control the line of scrimmage as both teams have great size on the lines. Neumann is a more diversified offense as Jr. QB Mekhi Wharton has 1400+ yards & 16 TDs. The Saints Northwestern gave them a preview of what to expect as Wyomissing while running the Wing T offense is predominantly up tempo running the ball and looking for ways to get their ball carriers into open space once they get past the LOS. This game should not resemble last year as both teams anxiously want to get that elusive championship and are heavy on the senior class. With two seasoned veteran Head Coaches this game will be very entertaining and a great chess match between two great programs. Both teams know what the other will do and it’ll be up to the defenses to make a stand and secure the W.

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