Class 1A Quarterfinal Preview: Wilmington vs. Port Allegany
Tagged under: District 10, District 9, News, pfn, Playoffs
Phil Myers | November 20, 2024
Wilmington vs. Port Allegany at DuBois – Friday November 22 at 7:00 PM
Wilmington Greyhounds (8-2)
Wilmington is coached by Brandon Phillian and ranked 7th in the state. He has been the head coach since the 2018 season and has compiled a record of 44-20. He took the Greyhounds to the state championship game in 2019, but lost to Southern Columbia. He was named the Class 2A Coach of the Year that season. Wilmington is run-oriented and does not pass very much. They employ the double wing-T usually quite effectively.
The Greyhound offense averages 32.8 points a game and centers around four running backs, Chase Mitcheltree, Jamie Miller, Michael Mistretta, and Cael Kettering. Mitcheltree is the main guy and has 906 yards rushing with 14 touchdowns. Miller is a big contributor too with 811 rushing yards and 7 TDs. Mistretta and Kettering don’t handle the ball as much but when they do, they average 10 and 9 yards a carry respectively. Both have scored 5 touchdowns.
Coach Phillian’s defense is fourth in Pennsylvania as they only give up an average of 7.2 points per contest. They have allowed just over 1,200 yards passing in ten games, but are even stingier when it comes to the run. The Greyhounds have only permitted 880 net yards rushing this year.
Port Allegany Gators (12-0)
Port Allegany is ranked 5th by PFN and is coached by Justin Bienkowski, who is in his ninth year of coaching. He is 54-40 overall, but in the past three seasons his teams are 24-5 which included a close loss in the state semifinals to the Union Scotties two years ago. Port is also a run heavy team, but can pass a little if they want to. On the ground, as a team, the Gators average over 10 yards each time they touch the ball.
Aiden Bliss is the man so far this year for the Gators. He leads the state in total touchdowns (49) and points scored. He has dashed around people or bulled his way through them for a state third best 2,596 yards and 45 TDs to date. He averages 11.3 yards a tote. His sidekick, Tristan Kiser, is no slouch either running the ball. He averages 13 yards a carry. Kiser has 1,226 yards running and has scored 26 touchdowns. Quarterback Brennan Fillhart has thrown for 698 markers and 9 touchdowns but he apparently did not play against Redbank Valley last week. Kiser is the leading receiver. The Gators are tied with Central Clarion for the second highest point scoring offense in 2024. They average 53.5 points a game.
The Port Allegany defense has 30 quarterback sacks so far and has intercepted 25 opposition passes. Nick Wilfong has 6 of those. Bliss, Kiser, and Gavin Moses lead the team in tackles. The Gators defense has given up an average of 18.5 points a game, but that may be a bit deceiving due to Port mercy ruling so many teams and generously playing their subs in the second half of games.
The Outlook
This game should go fast with each team running the ball so much and controlling the clock. It is going to come down to this question. Can the Wilmington defense stop the Port Allegany offense? If they can, the ‘Hounds will have a very good chance of winning. If they can’t, it’s probably not possible for their offense to be able to keep pace with the Gators’ offense for the whole game. And in that case, it will be a long night for Wilmington. The forecast right now looks like it will be wet, so turnovers may play a factor too.
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