Hurricanes, Vikings seek spot in District 11 AA title game
Schuylkill Haven's Niko Carestia rushed for 313 yards and scored three touchdowns in Haven's 64-14 victory Saturday over Palisades (Photo by Ashley Donatti).
When the brackets were unveiled for the District 11 Class AA football playoffs, talk immediately began of a possible Schuylkill Haven-Williams Valley rematch in the championship game.
The top-seeded Hurricanes and second-seeded Vikings remained on that collision course with easy quarterfinal victories last Saturday. Haven decked Palisades 64-14, while the Vikes routed Mahanoy Area 60-13. To finalize the heavyweight showdown, they’ll need to survive semifinal challenges from first-round upset winners Saturday night.
Schuylkill Haven (10-1) hosts No. 5 Executive Education (6-4-1), which knocked off Minersville 26-6 in the quarterfinals, at 6 p.m. at Rotary Field. Williams Valley (10-1) entertains No. 6 Pen Argyl (5-6), which downed Northern Lehigh 32-14, at 6:05 p.m. at Gerry Stauffenberg Field at Viking Stadium in Williamstown. The semifinal winners will square off in the championship game next weekend at a neutral site, date and time TBA.
The Schuylkill Haven-Executive Education game can be heard live on WPPA 1360 AM and A-106 (105.9 FM). The Williams Valley-Pen Argyl game will be broadcast live on T-102 (101.9 FM). There are links to the live broadcasts in the upper right-hand corner of the T102sportsnow.com home page.
Tickets for both games cost $7 (plus applicable fees) and must be purchased online at www.districtxi.hometownticketing.com.
Here’s a look at Saturday’s Class AA semifinals.
Executive Education at Schuylkill Haven
Where: Rotary Field, Schuylkill Haven
Live Updates: Follow T102 Sports Now content editor Leroy Boyer on X @pubsportsboss. Get score updates on Facebook by following the T102 Sports Now page.
Previous meetings: The Hurricanes defeated the Raptors 71-12 in last year’s District 11 AA semifinals.
About the Raptors: Not much was known about Executive Education before its upset win over Minersville. What the Raptors showed against the Miners is that they have a quality ballclub with a lot of speed and some size.
QB Zion Brake runs the show for Executive Education. He completed 17-of-20 passes for 228 yards against Minersville, hooking up with speedy wideout Caz Richardson for a pair of touchdowns. Richardson finished with 10 catches for 162 yards and scores of 63 and 26 yards and also had two interceptions. RB Sylis Styles paced a potent ground game by rushing 21 times for 157 yards and two TDs. Defensively, the Raptors held Minersville to 129 yards rushing and 75 yards passing, picking off three passes.
Executive Education is also an undisciplined club, committing 12 penalties for 125 yards against the Miners, with several infractions being personal fouls. The Raptors’ Week 10 game against Academy of the New Church ended in a 32-32 tie due to similar actions on the field.
About the Hurricanes: Schuylkill Haven continued its blistering run through the latter portion of the season, winning its 10th straight game and scoring more than 50 points for the seventh time in that span in its quarterfinal rout of Palisades. The Hurricanes average 53.9 points per game and allow just 15.7 ppg.
Schuylkill Haven rushed for 550 yards against Palisades, averaging 12.8 yards per carry. Junior RB Niko Carestia gained 313 yards and scored three TDs on 21 carries, upping his season totals to 2,437 yards and 33 total TDs. Sophomore Colton Reber ran for 147 yards and two TDs, moving him over 1,000 yards for the season at 1,057, while junior Niko Castillo had 85 yards and two TDs on eight carries. Castillo has 751 yards and 11 touchdowns on the season.
Quotable: “Executive Ed has great athletes and some size up front,” Schuylkill Haven coach Mike Farr said. “Executive Ed was a good matchup for Minersville because their styles match up well. The Miners just did not play up to their standard.
“Executive Ed has some new faces on the roster. We know how Executive Ed will attack us defensively and look to stop our running attack. We will be prepared for both. We need to execute and keep the ball out of their hands. Defensively, we cannot give them big plays.”
Player Spotlight, Colton Reber, Schuylkill Haven: The sophomore has provided a speed element to Haven’s rushing attack and perfectly complements the bruising style of Carestia and Castillo. He has rushed for 1,057 yards and 17 TDs on the season, averaging 13.9 yards per carry. He’s also excelled defensively from his defensive back position, ranking third on the team in tackles (68) with two interceptions, six tackles for loss and four pass break-ups. Reber is also Haven’s punter, averaging 38.8 yards per punt with a long of 54 yards.
“Colton Reber is a great football player,” Farr said. “As a sophomore, he is on the field for every play. Offensively, he is a great weapon as a runner and a good blocker. On defense, he is settling into his role in the secondary.
“Colton continues to get better every week. This past offseason in the weight room has helped Colton mature his body and ultimately is a major part of his success this season.”
Pen Argyl at Williams Valley
Where: Gerry Stauffenberg Field at Viking Stadium, Williamstown
Previous meetings: This is their first meeting.
About the Green Knights: Pen Argyl went 4-6 in the regular season, 4-5 in the Schuylkill/Colonial White Division. The Knights’ four wins were over teams that did not qualify for the postseason: Palmerton (24-7), Wilson (42-0), Salisbury (21-3) and Catasauqua (14-7). After losing to Northern Lehigh 26-14 on Sept. 7, Pen Argyl flipped the script in the district quarterfinals, winning 32-14.
Junior quarterback Mason Soos has completed 62-of-118 passes for 769 yards and four touchdowns, with 11 interceptions. Junior Caiden Faust is the team’s leading rusher with 1,067 yards and 14 TDs, while Soos has rushed for 826 yards and nine scores. Lucas Lerch (14-200), Zachary Metzgar (10-131), Faust (10-121, 2 TDs) and A.J. Sora (10-99) all have double-digit receptions.
Faust rushed for 80 yards and two TDs in the win over Northern Lehigh, while Soos ran for a score. Lerch also returned an interception for a touchdown and sophomore kicker Reid Kotulka booted a field goal.
The Green Knights have won four District 11 championships, claiming Class AA crowns in 2012, 2011 and 2001 and the 1986 Class A title.
About the Vikings: Williams Valley is in the District 11 playoffs for the 17th consecutive season, looking to repeat as Class AA champions. The Vikes have won or shared seven District 11 crowns since 2012 and reached the finals two other times. The Vikings average 44.4 points per game and allow an area-low 14.0 ppg. Their only setback was a 38-30 loss at Schuylkill Haven on Sept. 27.
Freshman RB Fletcher Thompson rushed for 106 yards and scored three TDs in the quarterfinal rout of Mahanoy Area, pacing an attack that compiled 291 yards on 35 carries. For the season, Thompson has 1,210 yards rushing and 17 total touchdowns. Senior WR Kian Krzyzanowski had six receptions for 75 yards and a pair of scores and also had two interceptions. Krzyzanowski leads the area in receiving yards with 1,125 and has 16 touchdown catches.
Defensively, Williams Valley held Mahanoy Area to 79 yards rushing and 133 total yards. Senior LB Skylor Green (112 tackles, 12 TFLs) and sophomore LB Trevon Bair (105, 7) each had 10 tackles against the Bears. Senior kicker Sage Smeltz has a school-record 58 conversion kicks.
Quotable: “Pen Argyl is physical up front. They have a balanced attack and they get the ball to a lot of different players,” Williams Valley coach Stephen Sedesse said.
“We played very well on both sides last week. We have to be disciplined and focus on executing our playbook. To win in the playoffs you have to win the line of scrimmage, and move the football in the run game. Defensively we have to play sound and attack the ball.”
