PIAA Class 5A Semi-Final Preview: Peters Township

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

Brett Gombita | November 30, 2023

Peters Township vs Cocalico Friday, December 1st 7:00pm

Mansion Park (Altoona)

How did they get here? 5A Bracket HERE!

2023 SCHEDULE

RECAP:

The Peters Township Indians are coming off of a 19 point win over the Cathedral Prep Ramblers in the PIAA state quarterfinals. Going undefeated in the regular season, Peters Township then easily defeated Franklin Regional and Moon, before taking down the defending 5A champions, Pine Richland, in the 5A championship. 

KEYS ON OFFENSE:

Sophomore quarterback Nolan DiLucia was able to get off to a hot start, throwing two long touchdowns to Ethan Wertman and Thomas Aspinall, both in the first quarter. DiLucia has now thrown for over 2500 yards in 2023, and has run for over 400 as well. The team’s leading rusher, Vinny Sarcone, scored a touchdown late to put the game out of hand. Sarcone is averaging well over a touchdown per game, as he has scored 21 so far this season.Carter Shanafelt, who was the team’s regular season leader in receptions, was also four-for-four on field goals against Cathedral Prep. Shanafelt had only made four field goals all season heading into the quarterfinals, before matching his season total.
They’ll need to continue those trends against a tough Cocalico defense that doesn’t bend much. If the Eagles offense controls the ball like they normally do, the Indians may need to use that quick strike ability they have. 

KEYS ON DEFENSE:

Their path to the state playoffs was almost flawless, as the Peters defense did not allow a team to score more than ten points until the 10th game. Their defense also held up strong in the second half of last week’s matchup as well. At one point, it looked like Cathedral Prep had momentum in this game, as they tied the score at 14. Peters would go on to hold them scoreless for the rest of the game and ultimately get the win, 33-14. Now, the Indians will face Cocalico in the PIAA Semifinals. Cocalico is coming off of a 23-9 win over Ephrata and is looking to take down Peters Township to punch their ticket to the state finals.

This is a tricky one. The Indians need to play disciplined defense against an offense that runs the ball non-stop. They can’t get caught cheating up too much or the Eagles will try to connect on a long strike.

The winner of this game will go on to play the winner of Imhotep Charter vs Strath Haven in the PIAA Finals. 

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