Fort Cherry drove 83 yards in 13 plays, took nearly five minutes off the fourth-quarter clock and scored with less than three minutes to play to beat Clairton, 21-20, and win a second straight WPIAL football championship. Shane Cornali threw an option pass early to Ryan Huey to convert one fourth down and Matt Sieg’s 13-yard scoring pass to Huey capped the drive, also on fourth down to lead the comeback. Nick Massey hit all three of his point-after attempts, the difference in the game. Sieg scored on two short runs in the first half, giving the Rangers a 14-6 lead at intermission. Clairton dominated the third quarter, rushing for nearly 150 yards and a pair of touchdowns to take a 20-14 lead into the final period, setting the stage for another fourth-quarter Fort Cherry rally. After the Rangers took the lead, the Bears had no timeouts and couldn’t move the chains. Eli Salvini sacked Bears’ quarterback Jeffrey Thompson to seal the win. Fort Cherry’s 21 points matched what the Bears had allowed all season. The back-to-back championships by Washington County teams had only happened twice previously: McDonald (1951 & 1952) and Chartiers-Houston (1971 & 1972). Fort Cherry will play District 9 champion Port Allegany in the PIAA Quarterfinals.
Peters Township struggled on the ground all night and turned the ball over twice in the second half as the Indians fell to top-seeded Pine-Richland, 20-9, in the WPIAL 5A championship game. Quarterback Nolan DiLucia managed just 62 yards on 18 carries while three running backs combined for 12 yards on 11 runs. DiLucia connected with Eli Prado for a 23-yard scoring pass midway through the second, giving Peters Township a 6-3 lead. Two possessions later, Pine-Richland QB Aaron Strader found Tanner Cunningham on a deep post pattern for a 64-yard touchdown and a lead the Rams never surrendered. Down 10-9 at the half, Peters Township received the second half kickoff. On the third play of the possession, DiLucia was hit and fumbled with the Rams recovering at the Indians 43 yard line. Four plays later, Strader connected with Jay Timmons for a 22-yard touchdown. Grant Argiro kicked 24 & 47 yard field goals for the winners.
WPIAL Football Brackets: 6A 5A 4A 3A 2A 1A
PIAA Football Brackets
Friday, Nov. 29, PIAA Semifinals:
4A Thomas Jefferson vs. Lampeter-Strasburg, 12:45 pm at Mansion Park, Altoona, WJPA-AM (1450) Listen / Watch Here (NFHS subscription required)
1A Fort Cherry vs. Port Allegany, 6:30 pm at Penn West Clarion, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen / Watch Here (NFHS subscription required)