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District 1 5A Quarterfinal Preview

Tagged under: District 1, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

| November 10, 2021


(1) West Chester Rustin vs (9) Kennett 

(1) West Chester Rustin: The top seeded Golden Knights survived a scare from Interboro in the first round. Rustin came out victorious 34-17 over the Bucs, but the final score didn’t indicate how close the game actually was. Midway through the fourth quarter, Rustin led by only 3 points, but finished the game with 14 unanswered points to shut down the upset bid. Dayshawn Jacobs carried the load for Rustin, rushing the ball 14 times for 137 yards and three touchdowns. Jacobs also got it done on defense, sealing the game with a 62 yard interception return for a touchdown. Jacobs had a 5 touchdown game against Wissahickon in the semi final of the Districts last year. Rustin’s only loss came against Unionville this year and they defeated Kennett 23-0 earlier in the season as well. 

(9) Kennett: In the most competitive game in the 5A classification and maybe every classification, Kennett scraped by Chester 31-28 on Saturday. After Chester recovered an onside kick, Jaedon Waterman came up with a huge interception for Kennett and they were able to kill some time off the clock. Waterman came up big again for the Blue Demons, picking off Chester quarterback Isiah Freeman again with 36 seconds left to seal the game. Quarterback Kalen Frazier threw for 110 yards and rushed for 85 to lead the offense for Kennett. 

3 Things to Watch

(1) Dayshawn Jacobs. To put it simply, this guy is electric every time he touches the ball. When he gets to the outside it’s very difficult to keep up with his speed, so it’ll be interesting to see what the Kennett defense will try and do to contain him.

(2) Does Rustin come out and show that they’re the true number one seed? After an unexpected tight game in the first round, the Golden Knights have a chance to prove themselves against a familiar foe. 

(3) Can Kennett overcome their shutout loss earlier in the season? The Blue Demons lost to the Knights earlier in the season 23-0. Can they make the right adjustments to try and pull off the upset?

Prediction: (1) West Chester Rustin 24 (9) Kennett 13  

(4) Upper Dublin vs (5) Plymouth Whitemarsh 

(4) Upper Dublin: The defending 5A champions didn’t mess around on Friday, defeating West Chester Henderson 35-7. The Cardinals were dominant in their first “home” night game since their opening game. The game was played at Wissahickon since the lights at Upper Dublin’s stadium are still damaged. Colin O’Sullivan was poised in the pocket as per usual and might’ve had his best game of the season. The Junior threw for 272 yards, and 4 touchdowns, completing 14 of his 19 passes. Noah Lee was a big target once again for O’Sullivan, catching 5 passes for 55 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Cardinals defense continued to be stingy, shutting out Henderson in the first half and allowing only one touchdown on the day. 

(5) The Colonials were even more dominant than Upper Dublin in their first round matchup with Cheltenham. P.W dismantled a beat up Panther squad 49-0, dominating in all three phases of the game. This game was completely different from the matchup between the teams earlier in the season where P.W won a tight game 21-13. By the time Cheltenham had run 3 plays, P.W was already up 21-0.  P.W surprisingly had success throwing the ball, which isn’t common for them considering they run a triple option offense. Quarterback Aidan O’Brien only completed 4 of his 5 passes, but 3 of those went for touchdowns, including a 77 yard bomb to Phil Taormina. O’Brien finished with 148 yards through the air and 48 on the ground. The Colonials have won 9 straight since an opening game loss 35-27 against C.B South. 

3 Things to Watch

(1) Neither team has played a close game in a few weeks, in the past two games for both teams, they’ve combined to outscore their opponents 178-14. Will this have an effect on either team, in what is expected to be a tightly contested affair

(2) Does P.W continue to catch teams off guard with their passing game. Last week against Cheltenham, Aidan O’Brien threw for nearly 150 yards and three touchdowns. In a run heavy offense, will O’Brien have success when he’s called upon to pass the ball against a stingy Upper Dublin defense. 

(3) Colin O’Sullivan. I said to watch out for him last week and all he did was have his best game of the season, throwing for 272 yards and four touchdowns. O’Sullivan played his best football in the playoffs last year and it’s been no different so far. The P.W defense hasn’t been tested the past couple weeks, but O’Sullivan will be a handful for them.

Prediction: (4) Upper Dublin 31 (5) Plymouth Whitemarsh 23

(2) Strath Haven Panthers vs (7) Marple-Newtown Tigers

Central League rivals Strath Haven and Marple meet for the second time this season.

Last Meeting: The Panthers bested the Tigers 41-13 back in September behind a 116-yard rushing effort by Chase Barlow and QB Sam Milligan going a perfect 5 for 5 passing for 134 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Tgers were led by running back Charlie Box who rushed for 94 yards on 11 carries

Last week:

Strath Haven: Last week the second seeded Panthers routed the 15th seed Upper Merion 35-0 behind a balance running game that saw them rack up 297 yards rushing.

Marple-Newtown: Last week the seventh seeded Tigers survived a scare from tenth seeded Phoenixville 21-14. Box rushed for 180 yards on 32 times.

Three Things to Watch:

  • How healthy is Charlie Box? Having been out for some of the game last week vs Phoenixville how healthy is arguably the Tigers MVP
  • Can the Tigers slowdown the Panthers rushing attack?
  • What will either team change up from their previous meeting?

Prediction: Strath Haven 35 Marple Newtown 14

(3) Unionville vs (6) Academy Park

The Longhorns and Knights will do battle in what could be the game of the week in District 1.

Last Week:

Unionville: On the strength of three field goals by Brian Dym and two rushing touchdowns by QB Matt McCloskey the Longhorns knocked off the feisty 14th seed Springfield 23-13

Academy Park: Last week behind a pick six and a receiving touchdown by Eric Willis the 6th seeded Knights knocked off the 11th seed Oxford 40-15

Three things to watch

  • Both teams possess a fearsome defense which offense can break through
  • How will the Longhorns handle the Eric Willis?
  • Can the Knights keep the Longhorns out of field goal? Dym showed his leg strength last week kicking a pair of 35 yard field goals last week

Prediction: This game is truly a coin flip as I can see either team pulling this out but Unionville 31-Academy Park 28

Staff Writer Willie McGonigle contributed to this preview

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