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Hittin’ The Road With Travelin’ Matt (State Quarterfinals)

Tagged under: District 4, District 6, District 7, pfn, Playoffs

| November 27, 2023

Each week Travelin’ Matt traverses Pennsylvania attending the hottest high school football games and best match ups in the Commonwealth.  Follow his exploits each week as he documents his journey from Week Zero to the Pennsylvania State Football Finals!

 

Friday, November 24

1A #2 Fort Cherry (13-0) vs. #4 South Side Beaver (13-0)

2A #5 Steel Valley (10-1) vs. HM Beaver Falls (8-5)

3A #1 Belle Vernon Area (10-1) vs. #3 Avonworth (12-0)

4A #2 Aliquippa (11-0) vs. #7 McKeesport (11-1)

Saturday, November 25

1A #6 South Williampsport (10-2) vs. #10 Cambria Heights  (10-3)

ROUNDTRIP – 461 MILES

 

Friday, November 24

I’ll say it louder for the folks in the back…District 7 WPIAL football games are my favorite to attend in the state!

While Eastern and Central PA high school gridiron fans will surely take offense to my opinion there is no District in the state that can boast they play their championship games in a professional football stadium.  While the WPIAL doesn’t host all six of their title games at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh they cram their 1A-4A contests into a jam-packed four game slate every season to the thrill of players and fans alike.

My marathon high school football Friday began the day prior as I finished my regular job at 2pm and scurried home for Thanksgiving Day with the family.  A fantastic dinner commenced at 4pm, nap at 5pm and by 630pm the car was packed and headed four hours west to Pittsburgh.  I arrived in the City of Champions at 1030pm, checked into the hotel and set an alarm for 6am in anticipation of a tremendous experience on Friday.

Friday morning I excitedly beat my alarm by 30 minutes and by 8am I made my way to the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium.  Admittedly, I routinely arrive at games much too early but I thoroughly enjoy the serenity of the pre-game preparations by the field staff and the quiet of the event location that ultimately progresses to a frenzied atmosphere by game time.  Call me soft but there is a flawless beauty in a vacant and hushed football stadium prior to a big game.  Add to the recipe that I’m a lifelong Steelers fan with an opportunity to take in the stadium nearly by myself…I’ll take being called soft all day.

A few of my photos Friday morning at Acrisure Stadium…

 

 

The WPIAL Final games take place at 11am (Class 1A), 2pm (2A), 5pm (3A) and 8pm (4A) with Western PA teams and fans entering and exiting the stadium enthusiastically like clockwork every three hours.  What is most notable for anyone braving the all-day event of four games over roughly 12 hours is the consistency of passion for the ensuing game.  Imagine for a moment the unbridled joy for a 15-18 year old football player, their parents, coaches and fans to settle a District Championship game in the grandeur of the Steelers home stadium.  If you’ve never experienced the District 7 WPIAL Finals…mark your calendars for next season you won’t be disappointed.

While the day begins with the smallest schools and builds towards the largest schools the action on the field is is not beholden to the myth that lower class teams are less talented or exciting to watch.

The 1A morning contest featuring undefeated Fort Cherry and South Side Beaver was an excellent start to the day as both teams traded scoring jabs throughout the game before the Rangers of Fort Cherry pulled away in the second half led by Penn State offered do-everything signal-caller Matt Sieg in a 42-28 final.  The victory was the first WPIAL title for Fort Cherry and a highlight reel Division 1 offer confirming performance by Sieg.

While larger schools (4A and higher teams) routinely feature numerous players with Division 1 offers it is rare for a 1A school to have a highly-touted player.  Sophomore Matt Sieg for Fort Cherry is a dynamic athlete and a well-deserved recipient of such accolades.  The Ranger QB darted his way to 344 total yards and four scores and was clearly the best player on the field.

Check out some Matt Sieg highlights from his dominant performance in the WPIAL 1A title tilt (QB/DB #3 in white)…

Read the full Fort Cherry vs. South Side Beaver game story here…

Fort Cherry rolls through South Side, winning first 1A WPIAL title

 

The 2A contest was a matchup between #1 WPIAL seed Steel Valley and #10 seed Beaver Falls.  While most would imagine a heavily favored top seed would cruise to a convincing win this title game proved why District 7 football is ultra-competitive as the lower seeded Tigers of Beaver Falls pulled the “upset” over the Ironmen of Steel Valley by a score of 14-12.

The week-to-week grind of a WPIAL schedule often tags teams with losses that would likely not occur across the state in other Districts.  Most notably, the Beaver Falls victory marked the second consecutive season a #10 seed has proved victorious in the 2A WPIAL Finals.

Check out some highlights from the 2A WPIAL Finals contest between Steel Valley and Beaver Falls…

Click below for the full game story…

Beaver Falls wins thriller over Steel Valley

 

The 2A game theatrics quickly shifted to the 3A WPIAL Championship as reigning State Champion Belle Vernon Area challenged undefeated Avonworth for the District title for the second consecutive season.

The Leopards of BVA featured 4-star Penn State commit running back Quinton Martin and the highly-touted senior was a present force throughout the game chewing up yardage on numerous drives despite not hitting paydirt in the contest.  Martin is a threat from the backfield and in open space as a receiver and Avonworth shaded to his side of the field all day to keep the talent out of the end zone.  The PSU-bound Martin accounted for 71 total yards while playing solid defense in the shutout victory for the Leopards.

Check out some highlights from Belle Vernon Academy’s victory over Avonworth…

For the full game story click below…

Belle Vernon Goes Back to Back with a Dominant 26-0 win over Avonworth

The 4A WPIAL Finals matchup was the most anticipated of the day as PA powerhouse and 19-time District 7 champion Aliquippa battled McKeesport for gold.

The four-time state champion Aliquippa Quips are an aberration among Commonwealth high school football teams as they compete at the 4A level while only qualifying as a 1A enrollment school by PIAA standards.  The Quips storied history features three NFL Hall of Famers in Mike Ditka, Ty Law and Darrelle Revis and their fan base is arguably the most raucous across the state.  Additionally, despite their small school status, Quips players are routinely recruited to Division 1 and high-level D2 and D3 schools.  Aliquippa’s football program is highly regarded across the country and their success speaks for itself without debate.

An ardent crowd piled into both sides of the stadium as the Quips and Tigers had their sights set on a WPIAL championship.  Both fan bases were at the top of their games as they witnessed two highly-talented teams trade blows for four quarters before Aliquippa secured their record 20th WPIAL District 7 title with a hard-hitting 35-21 victory.

Check out some highlights from the Aliquippa vs. McKeesport 4A WPIAL Championship…

 

Click below for the full game story…

Aliquippa outlasts McKeesport, wins third straight 4A WPIAL title

 

 

Saturday, November 25

After my 12 hour, four game day on Friday and with no local afternoon game to attend Saturday it was a rare “no alarm clock” morning at the hotel.  The only Saturday games scheduled were across the state in Philly so my Saturday schedule included just a 7pm contest roughly three hours away in Williamsport.

I left the hotel around 11am and moseyed my way east towards “Billtown” with a a pit stop for coffee and another stop for gas.  Four hours later I was in Williamsport with a couple hours to kill and I searched out Mileto’s Sub Shop in Newberry…my favorite pizza shop just one mile from Williamsport High School where that night’s game was taking place.  Mileto’s hit the spot again with their tremendous thin crust pizza (sausage, mushrooms and black olives this time).

My Saturday State Semifinal game was 1A South Williamsport (District 4) taking on Cambria Heights (District 6) on a chilly 30 degree night.  South Williamsport entered the game on a playoff hot streak having avenged regular season losses to Canton and Muncy while Cambria Heights made their way through the District 6 bracket with three wins as the #4 seed which included victories against D6 #1 seed Northern Cambria and D6 #2 seed Purchase Line.

South Williamsport imposed their will in the contest early beginning with a powerful 79 yard seven minute drive to open the game.  By half the Mounties were up 27-0 before finishing out the game with a convincing 33-0 victory.  South Williamsport qualified for the State Semifinals next week where they will challenge defending state champion #1 ranked Steelton-Highspire and PA All-Time Passing Leader Alex Erby.

View some highlights from the South Williamsport vs. Cambria Heights game below…

 

For the full game story click the link below…

South Williamsport Ends Cambria Heights Season

Follow along next week as Travelin’ Matt takes you on another PA High School Football journey.

Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews

 
 
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