The Funding Zone
 
SAFR: Safer Through Science
 
 
SAFR: Safer Through Science
 
CoachComm Cobalt Plus
 
Turf Tank
 

Penn-Trafford wins first round of playoffs over South Fayette 49-28

Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News, Playoffs

| November 2, 2024

The Penn-Trafford Warriors’ strong defensive line and running game helped them secure the win against the South Fayette Lions this Friday in the first round of 5A WPIAL playoffs.

South Fayette could not rush past the Warriors’ solid defensive line, led by Jamison Yurt, Jake Briggs, and Dom Smith.

After receiving the ball from South Fayette’s kickoff, the Warriors pushed upfield with handoffs to Tasso Whipple, who rushed for 150+ yards throughout the night. Penn-Trafford’s passing QB Jonny Lovre threw a lateral pass to Ben Grabowski who chucked it down the field to Jack Weishaar for the first down. Grabowski was out earlier in the season due to injuries and hadn’t had significant playing time until tonight’s game, where he played a QB/RB combo.

Penn-Trafford’s Tasso Whipple had over 20 carries throughout the night.

When stalled on fourth down, P-T put in Whipple, who rushed down to the 5-yard line. Rushing QB Derek Carr ran the ball to the 1-yard line, and Lovre was tush-pushed into the endzone the next play. The Warriors led 7-0 with 5:07 left in the first. 

South Fayette responded quickly to the Warriors’ score. Sylas Aitken caught a deep pass thrown by Drew Welhorsky to put the Lions on the 48-yard line. Aitken rushed again, then Bo Stover caught another pass downfield. Welhorsky took the football himself the next play, a common theme throughout the game, and had a 26-yard run for a touchdown. South Fayette’s Luke Gillen kicked a successful extra point, tying the game 7-7 with 2:04 left in the first.

P-T ended the first half with a catch by senior Jack Weishaar on the 16-yard line. Weishaar had almost 50 receiving yards throughout the night. A rush by Carr then Whipple put the ball on the 6-yard line for the Warriors. Carr increased their lead 14-7 scoring a touchdown with 9:10 left in the second quarter.

The Lions could only make little progress the next drive. Attempted rushes from Welhorsky were quickly shut down by P-T’s defensive line, forcing South Fayette to kick off on fourth down. 

The Warriors slowly but surely carried the ball down the field. Runs from Grabowski and Whipple kept the ball moving. Derek Carr scored his second touchdown rushing into the endzone again with 2:04 left in the first half. The Warriors maintained their 21-7 lead until Ben Cavenaugh caught a touchdown pass from Welhorsky with 0:20 until halftime. P-T still led 21-14 going into half.

Despite Welhorsky not being able to run past the line, he was able to throw to his receivers for significant yardage. A huge catch by Lion’s Aiden Martincic, followed by dodged tackles put the ball on P-T’s 25-yard line. South Fayette couldn’t convert this to a score though; Weishaar knocked down the ball in the endzone on fourth down to turn the ball over.

With 7:21 left in the 3rd, Lovre threw a pass to junior Colton Tyburski at the 50-yard line. Tyburski caught the ball, shifting the momentum in favor of the Warriors. Grabowski rushed the ball to another first down, then ran to the Lions’ 14-yard line. Whipple had consecutive rushes the next plays– his first got him to the 1-yard line, and the second was a diving touchdown with 5:39 left in the 3rd. Warriors were leading 28-14.

Linemen Lucah Butler and Dom Smith shake hands.

The Lions were inconsistent in their next drive. Welhorsky had a long rush, but was sacked the next play. The following play, he dodged multiple tackles before passing to Aitken at the 20-yard line. Another rush by Stover put the Lions in scoring range. Welhorsky had a 10-yard rushing touchdown making the score 28-21, still in P-T’s favor.

South Fayette seemed to have the momentum– the Warriors could not get downfield and had to punt off on 4th and 7.

However, this momentum was quickly lost, as a flag on the next play put the Lions on their own 14-yard line. South Fayette could not run past P-T’s defensive, and only made a 1-yard increase in the drive. On 4th and 9, at their own 15-yard line, they were forced to punt off.

During the final quarter, the Warriors’ strong defense rubbed off on their offense. A mix of rushes from Grabowski, Carr, and Whipple helped them quickly make their way down the field. Carr finished off the job again, scoring a 9-yard rushing touchdown. A successful extra point from Miller boosted the Warriors’ score to 35-21 with 8:26 left in the fourth.

The Warriors continued their scoring streak with a pick-six from Whipple. He intercepted the ball around the 40-yard line, then carried it down to the endzone. Miller completed the extra point, and P-T led 42-21 with 7:32 left in the game.

“>

The Lions could not seem to make their way down the field. A huge sack by Briggs forced a turnover on downs, and P-T ended up the with ball again.

Grabowski took the snap on their next touchdown play, dodged past defenders, then as he was pushed out to the sideline, fumbled the ball into the endzone where lineman David Dziedzic recovered it for his first touchdown of the season. Miller made another extra point (he went 7/7 for the night), and the Warriors were up 49-21 with 3:47 left in the game.

“>

South Fayette made one last push to score. The Lions made their way past the 50, and Welhorsky threw a pass to Aitken. Aitken carried it the rest of the way to the endzone, and Gillen kicked the extra point to make the score 49-28 final.

Penn-Trafford will play away at Peters Township next Friday for the second round of 5A WPIAL playoffs.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
QwikCut
 
GoRout
 
Sports Paradise
 
 
x