The 2023 WPIAL Championship Games will take place at Acrisure Stadium on Friday, November 24. This will be an all-day event starting with the 1A Championship game at 11am and concluding with the 4A title game at 8pm. Our friends on KDKA Radio will be broadcasting all of the games and they will also be televised on KDKA+ (Formerly the CW). Last week, the Champions in 6A and 5A were crowned with North Allegheny defending their WPIAL crown with a 44-41 victory over Central Catholic and Peters Twp continuing their dominant run by thrashing defending champs Pine-Richland. North Allegheny will move on to face former WPIAL foe Erie McDowell and Peters Twp will play Erie Cathedral Prep, the team Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak once dubbed “That all-star team up North.”
On this week’s edition of the WPIAL Blitz Show, we discussed these two State Quarterfinal matchups in depth with Tom Reisenweber from the Erie Times News as well as diving into the four WPIAL Championship Games that will take place on Friday at Acrisure Stadium.
This year, our WPIAL coverage is proudly presented by GoMVB Sports and Sports Solutions Marketing. High school athletes should check out GoMVB Sports – SSM for tips on how to beef up their social media presence to attract college coaches and college recruiters. The Sports Solutions network provides pay per view hosting and broadcasting for high school sporting events. More information is available via EasternPAFootball.com.
Be sure to follow our WPIAL Twitter account @WPIAL_Blitz and check out our WPIAL Blitz Facebook Page. We hope you all have an enjoyable Thanksgiving!
4A Championship Game
1. Aliquippa (11-0) vs 2. McKeesport (11-1)
Acrisure Stadium, 8pm
WPIAL Blitz Show 4A Breakdown
How They Got Here
Aliquippa started the 2023 season by christening their new stadium, “Heinz Field” thanks to a donation from the Kraft-Heinz corporation. The Quips had high hopes entering the season as the two-time defending WPIAL Champions. After beating Bishop McDevitt for the state title in 2021 and falling to them last year, the Quips were focused on a rubber match in Cumberland Valley. Aliquippa looked dominant in their first three home games at Heinz Field, then escaped a tough road contest at West Allegheny on a last-minute touchdown pass. From there, the Quips rolled into a Week 9 showdown with rivals Central Valley and claimed the Parkway Conference title. They were challenged by an up-and-coming Latrobe team in the Quarterfinals before blowing out Mars to reach their 16th consecutive Championship Game. Aliquippa enters the Championship Game as the highest-scoring team in 4A (41.2 PPG) and a defense holding opponents to just 15 points per game.
On the other side, McKeesport’s only defeat this season came in overtime against defending 3A State Champions Belle Vernon. After Belle Vernon scored first, McKeesport faced a 4th and goal from the 2. While McKeesport is traditionally a ground-and-pound team with their triple-option wishbone attack, they tried to catch Belle Vernon off guard and attempted a pass on the decisive play. The pass was incomplete, marking the only blemish on the Tigers record. McKeesport’s resume includes victories over 5A playoff teams Penn-Trafford and Gateway. In conference play, the only team to hold McKeesport under 30 points was Thomas Jefferson whom they beat 28-7. In the Quarterfinals, McKeesport beat Trinity thanks in part to a 100-yard missed field goal return for a touchdown before the half. They won both playoff games by identical 28-14 scores with their ground game and defense controlling the game. McKeesport has the best defense in 4A, holding opponents to just 10.6 points per game with an offense averaging a shade under 35 per game.
Recent History
This is the third consecutive year that Aliquippa and McKeesport have met in the playoffs. The last two years these teams faced off in the semifinals with the Quips winning both. The 2021 meeting was an all-time showdown that Aliquippa won in double overtime. Aliquippa is appearing in their 16th consecutive WPIAL Championship Game. Their streak dates back to 2008 when the Quips played in AA and stretched through 4 years in 3A and 4 more years in 4A during the 6-classification era. Aliquippa is the two-time defending WPIAL 4A Champions and have reached the State Championship each of the last two seasons. The Quips faced Harrisburg-area powerhouse Bishop McDevitt both times, winning in 2021 and coming up short last year. McKeesport’s last trip to the WPIAL Championship Game was in 2016 when they lost in overtime to Bob Palko’s West Allegheny squad. Including that year, the Tigers have made the semifinals in 6 of the 8 years of the 6-classification era and are now back in the title game.
Championship Pedigree
Aliquippa has won 19 WPIAL Championships, the most of any school. This will be their 16th straight Championship Game, which is still less than half of their all-time total (this will be their 34th appearance in the finals). The Quips are the two-time defending WPIAL 4A Champions and have won four State Championships (1991, 2003, 2018, and 2021). In the Quarterfinals, Aliquippa became the first team in WPIAL history to win 100 WPIAL playoff games. The Quips also surpassed Jeannette this season for the most total wins in program history and now sit with 781. McKeesport is also one of the winningest programs in WPIAL history, currently with 713 all-time victories (the 6th most in the WPIAL). The Tigers have won four WPIAL titles, the first a three-way shared title in 1932. They won Championship Games in 1938, 1995, and 2005. Those later two teams also went all the way to Hershey and won State titles.
Dramatis Personae
In their last two WPIAL Championship seasons, Aliquippa’s team was built around the Trench Dawgs who controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and averaged more weight than the Steelers offensive line. With most of those players graduated, it is the skill positions that have driven Aliquippa’s success this season. Penn State-commit Tikey Hayes has run for 1645 yards and 18 TDs. Joining Hayes in the backfield is Jon Tracey (414 yards, 10 total TDs) who scored touchdowns in 5 different ways against Chartiers Valley. Senior QB Quentin Goode (1568 yards, 21 TDs) broke Aliquippa’s all-time passing record earlier this season. Aliquippa has an electric trio of receivers who also play defensive back. Yale-commit Brandon Banks (441 yards, 3 TDs) is the first player from Aliquippa to go to an Ivy League school in over 30 years. Joining him on the outside are Arison Walker (273 yards, 6 TDs) and Demarkus Walker (235 yards, 5 TDs). Arison Walker scored twice last week in the win over Mars – on a receiving touchdown and a kickoff return touchdown. Pitt-commit Cam Lindsey anchors the Quips defense as a hard-hitting linebacker and has also been used sporadically on offense. Lindsey has run for 251 yards and added 58 receiving yards, scoring 5 TDs (including rushing and receiving touchdowns last week).
McKeesport’s triple-option offense rolled over the competition this year. Leading rusher Anthony Boyd (1300 yards, 13 TDs) has been a workhorse that is also capable of breaking off a big play, like the 90-yarder he scored to break open the game against Thomas Jefferson. McKeesport put a Spell on Montour last week, as the Spell brothers combined for all of the Tigers touchdowns. Keith Spell is built like a monster truck and absolutely dominated Montour last week to the tune of 190 rushing yards, 3 TDs, and 4 sacks on defense. Keith Spell was inserted in Week 7 and brought a power back dynamic to the Tigers ground game. He has rumbled for 659 yards and 10 TDs on the season. His younger brother Kemon Spell is a speedster who has run for 494 yards (averaging 15 yards per carry!) and scored 11 times (including on the aforementioned missed field goal return against Trinity). McKeesport does have a little bit more of a passing game this year with Garrett Tarker at the helm as he has thrown for 667 yard and 8 TDs, outpacing his rushing totals of 249 yards and 6 TDs. On the outside, Dominique Cochran (222 yards, 4 TDs) has been the top receiver but keep an eye out for Anthony Cromerdie (6 total TDs) and Valdez Stuvaints (2 TDs) who is the son of former Steeler Russell Stuvaints.
3A Championship Game
1. Belle Vernon (10-1) vs 2. Avonworth (12-0)
Acrisure Stadium, 5pm
WPIAL Blitz Show 3A Breakdown
How They Got Here
Belle Vernon is the defending WPIAL and State Champions. The Leopards faced one of the toughest non-conference slates in the entire WPIAL to start the year. They defeated 4A finalist McKeesport and 5A playoff team Penn-Trafford before falling to Thomas Jefferson (another 4A playoff team) on a late touchdown. Once the Leopards entered conference play, which marked their first games against 3A opponents, they returned to dominant form. In their 7 games against 3A competition they have averaged over 50 points per game. The only 3A team to score more than once against Belle Vernon was Elizabeth Forward in a 49-28 Week 9 game that decided the conference title. Belle Vernon enters the title game with the top-ranked offense (42 points per game) and defense (9.7 points against per game) in 3A.
Avonworth is the only undefeated team in 3A and also has some impressive wins on their resume. In Week 0 the Lopes topped Grove City who PennLive chose to rank in the Top 10 ahead of Avonworth in their statewide rankings. That mistake has since been corrected. The Lopes also defeated a very good Central Valley team that made the playoffs in 4A. Central Valley was the only team to keep Avonworth under 33 points until last week’s semifinal with Elizabeth Forward. The Western Hills Conference was easily the best in 3A as all four playoff teams reached the quarterfinals. Avonworth ran through conference play with their biggest challenge coming in a 5-point win over Beaver. The Lopes also won a rematch with the Bobcats in the quarterfinals by an impressive 20-point margin. Avonworth averages over 37 points per game with a balanced offensive attack and has held opponents to just 13 points per game, the second-best defensive mark in 2A.
Recent History
These two teams met for the first time in WPIAL playoff history last season when they faced off for the WPIAL Championship. Belle Vernon came out on top and went on to win the State Championship, their first in school history. That was Belle Vernon’s first WPIAL title in over 25 years, though they had been knocking on the door for a number of years. This season was the 7th straight year the Leopards made it t at least the semifinals. Before last year’s title, Belle Vernon had lost in the 4A Championship Game in 2019 and 2021. While Belle Vernon moved down from 4A to 3A in 2022, Avonworth’s trajectory has been in the opposite direction. The Lopes were a Single A-sized school at the end of the four classification era and played in 2A from 2016-2019. They won the WPIAL title the final season before moving up to 3A in 2020. All told, this will be their third WPIAL title game in the last five years.
Championship Pedigree
Both teams have won two WPIAL titles in their history. Belle Vernon is the defending WPIAL and State Champions. Avonworth won the WPIAL 2A Championship in 2019, making a run to the State Championship game but falling to Southern Columbia. Previously, Belle Vernon won a title in 1995 and Avonworth’s first Championship came in 1959. Rostraver, one of the schools that merged to create Belle Vernon Area School District, won the WPIAL title in 1965. While both teams are in search of their third official WPIAL title, they are familiar to this stage. This is Belle Vernon’s fourth trip to Heinz/Acrisure in the last five seasons and Avonworth’s third appearance in that timespan.
Dramatis Personae
Belle Vernon brought back most of their team from the State title-winning squad last year. Penn State-commit Quinton Martin leads the Leopards in rushing (913 yards), receiving (620 yards), and scoring (25 total TDs). Belle Vernon limited his exposure during the regular season in an effort to keep Martin fresh for the playoffs. So far that strategy has paid off as he opened the postseason with a 4 TD performance and ran for over 100 yards and a score last week. To spell Martin, Belle Vernon has also used Kole Doppelheuer (693 yards, 13 TDs) and Jake Gedekoh (432 yards, 7 TDs) who both found the end zone last week in the semifinals. The Leopards have also opened up the passing game more this year than in prior seasons with Braden Laux throwing for 1335 yards and 16 TDs. Laux is an Eastern Michigan-commit who will likely play tight end at the next level due to his size and athleticism. Anthony Crews has been an all-around force for the Leopards with 329 rushing yards, 324 receiving yards, and 9 total TDs.
Avonworth also has a star playmaker in Andrew Kuban who has run for 588 yards, leads the team in receiving with 862 yards, has thrown 2 touchdown passes, and scored 18 times. Kuban is also a safety on defense who made a game-clinching interception in the end zone to secure the victory over Central Valley. The Lopes passing attack is led by Carson Bellinger (1487 yards, 21 TDs). While Kuban is the top target, Jackson Vogt (188 yards, 4 TDs), Cooper Scharding (171 yards, 2 TDs) and Ben Barnes (161 yards, 5 TDs) have also contributed on the outside. Avonworth’s strong ground game has four backs averaging over 7 yards per carry, led by Dimitri Valisaris (895 yards, 13 TDs). Bucknell-commit Brandon Biagiarelli (263 yards, 4 TDs) missed some time due to injury but returned for the playoffs.
2A Championship Game
1. Steel Valley (10-1) vs 10. Beaver Falls (8-5)
Acrisure Stadium, 2pm
WPIAL Blitz Show 2A Breakdown
How They Got Here
Steel Valley is the defending WPIAL Champions but had to replace a number of key starters from last year’s team. To the surprise of many, they lost a double overtime game to Seton LaSalle in Week 2. As the year went on, Seton made some noise in 3A so the loss was not as surprising. Steel Valley bounced back the following week with a gritty 17-6 win over a tough Imani Christian team who was considered the top challenger to their reign atop the conference. With that win in hand, Steel Valley caught fire and blew out their next 6 opponents, scoring at least 35 points in every game. The Ironmen have faced three of the top passing offenses in 2A over the last three games. They defeated Serra Catholic in the season finale to clinch the conference title, edged Western Beaver by 3 points in the quarterfinals (needing a last-second interception at the goal line to clinch it), and ran past Mohawk 34-21 last week (in Mohawk’s first ever semifinals appearance). Steel Valley is averaging 35 points per game and giving up just 11.5 per contest.
Beaver Falls has now reached the WPIAL Championship in all four years since moving down to 2A. The trip to the finals was not a certainty for the Tigers this season as they finished the regular season with just a 5-5 record. But records can be deceiving. Two of those losses were in non-conference play against 3A opponents by less than a score – a 3-point loss to rival Beaver and a 4-point loss at Knoch in a game they had a chance to win at the end. Beaver Falls also lost to conference champs Neshannock 27-26 in OT when they went for 2 and were unsuccessful. The other two losses were to pass-heavy offenses in Mohawk and Western Beaver. In the postseason, Beaver Falls has flipped the script and come out on top in close games. After beating Keystone Oaks in the opening round, they got revenge on Neshannock with a 14-13 win. Where they failed on a 2-point conversion in the regular season, the decisive score in the quarterfinals came when Beaver Falls returned a blocked punt for a touchdown and converted the 2-point try. In the semis, the Tigers went back-and-forth with Washington, surviving three defensive touchdowns by the Prexies to come out on top 28-26. Beaver Falls has averaged 28 points per game and allowed 18 per game. Half of their games were decided by single-digits. Where the Tigers went 0-4 in those games during the regular season, they are 2-0 in the playoffs.
Recent History
These two teams have dominated 2A over the last eight years. This is a rematch last year’s 2A Championship Game which saw Steel Valley emerge victorious. Beaver Falls has reached the title game in all four seasons since moving down to 2A in 2020. For Steel Valley, this will be their 5th Championship Game appearance during the 8 years of the six classification era. All told, only once in the last eight years has there been a 2A title game without one of these two teams. This will be the third straight year these two have met in the playoffs and the 7th time since 2007. Beaver Falls holds the all-time edge 4-2 in these meetings.
Interestingly, Beaver Falls will be the 5th double-digit seed to reach the WPIAL Championships at Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium since it opened in 2001. The four preceding teams are 4-0, including 10-seed Union’s victory over top-seeded and defending champions Bishop Canevin last year. The other victors include 14-seed Central Valley in 2010 (the first year of the school’s existence), 11-seed GCC in 2009, and 10-seed Rochester in 2001. Beaver Falls could add their name to the list of Beaver County schools (Central Valley and Rochester) who have won WPIAL titles from a 10-seed or lower.
Championship Pedigree
These are two highly-decorated programs with Steel Valley having six WPIAL titles and Beaver Falls having five. Both have also won the State title once. Interestingly, their State Championships both came in 2016 when Steel Valley’s Mercy Boys won the 2A title and Beaver Falls won the 3A crown. Beaver Falls first two Championships (in 1928 and 1960) were both awarded by virtue of having the most Gardner Points and no championship games were played. The Tigers also won titles in 1984 then twice in the six classification era (2016 and 2020). Steel Valley is the defending WPIAL Champions and is 6-1 in WPIAL title games. The Ironmen won titles in 1982, 1988, and 1989 before their recent run of success in 2016, 2018, and 2022.
Dramatis Personae
Coming into the season, Steel Valley’s Barksdale brothers were the headliners of 2A. Unfortunately, Da’Ron Barksdale suffered an injury early in the season. Donald Barksdale has shouldered the load of the offense, running for 1958 yards and scoring 34 times. Last week, Barksdale put up 4 total touchdowns – running for two, throwing for one, and scoring on a pick-six. Due to a number of injuries at quarterback, Tyson Barron stepped in midseason for the Ironmen and added a new element to their offense. Barron has thrown for 724 yards and 10 TDs since stepping in in Week 6. Del Shields has been an all-around offensive threat with 369 receiving yards, 232 rushing yards, and 5 total TDs. Last week also saw the return of Quaron Pierce who scored a touchdown after missing most of the season due to injury.
Beaver Falls has also shuffled around their offensive starters this season. Da’Sean Anderson has spent time at quarterback (throwing for 779 yards and 5 TDs), receiver (109 yards), and has run for 435 yards. Anderson has scored 9 times. Da’Talian Beauford (1308 yards, 17 TDs) leads a Tigers backfield brimming with big play talent that also includes Brixx Rawl (715 yards, 7 TDs). Beauford has scored the game-winning two-point conversions in each of the last two games to get Beaver Falls back to the Championship. With Anderson’s move to receiver, Kaiden Brickner (299 yards, 3 TDs) has stepped in at quarterback. While Beaver Falls’ offense is mostly run-oriented with Beauford and Rawl, when they do take to the air Di”nari Harris (403 yards, 5 TDs) and Michael Blackshear (156 yards, 4 TDs) are the top targets on the outside.
1A Championship Game
1. South Side Beaver (13-0) vs 2. Fort Cherry (13-0)
Acrisure Stadium, 11am
WPIAL Blitz Show 1A Breakdown
How They Got Here
This is the only Championship Game which features a matchup of undefeated teams. This is a matchup of strength-on-strength as Fort Cherry’s top-ranked offense (45.6 points per game) faces off against South Side’s top-ranked defense (8.7 points against per game). On the other side of the ball, the respective units rank 3rd in 1A with South Side’s offense averaging 43 points per game and Fort Cherry holding their opponents to 11 points per contest. Fort Cherry’s defensive number may be a bit deceiving as 62 of their 146 points allowed came in two games against Bishop Canevin.
South Side has run through their schedule, putting up over 30 points in every game until last week’s semifinal against Clairton when they scored 28. During the regular season, Shenango and Union were the only teams to score more than once against South Side’s defense. Throughout the season, South Side has shown a willingness to go against the grain in big games. Against defending champions Union, they started the game with two onside kicks and were up 14-0 before the Scotties even touched the ball. Last week against Clairton they deployed a play-action passing game they had shown little of all year.
Fort Cherry’s offense has put up at least 42 points in every outing this year. Sophomore quarterback Matt Sieg is one of the most exciting players in the WPIAL with the ball in his hands and became just the second player in WPIAL history to have two 1000/1000 seasons. Their most impressive victoy was a 48-41 shootout with Bishop Canevin in Week 5. The Rangers clinched their first conference title since 2013 by beating Cornell in Week 7. In the playoffs, they blew past Jefferson-Morgan and Rochester, the later they had never beaten in the postseason. In a semifinal rematch with Bishop Canevin, Fort Cherry came from behind in the second half with an offensive outburst to win 33-21, the first time all season they were held below 42 points.
Recent History
South Side Beaver moved down from 2A to 1A in 2022 and found immediate success. The Rams made the semifinals last year and are in the title game this year. Their last Championship Game appearance was in 2018 when they made a run from the #8 seed to the 2A finals where they lost to Steel Valley. Fort Cherry lost in the quarterfinals last year to long-time foe Rochester. That was the Rangers first playoff appearance in 5 years. Now, they are in the title game for the first time since 2001 (when they also lost to Rochester). Fort Cherry’s quarterfinal victory over Rochester this season was the first time they ever beat the Rams in the postseason.
Championship Pedigree
This has been a historic season for South Side Beaver. The Rams won their first conference title since 1999, which was also the year of their last WPIAL title. That 1999 season was the pinnacle of South Side football as they also went on to win the State Championship. South Side has won two WPIAL titles with the other coming in 1970. This will be just their 5th appearance in a Championship Game in school history. Interestingly, South Side defeated Fort Cherry en route to winning that 1999 title, the only playoff meeting between the two schools. Fort Cherry has never won a WPIAL title and is 0-2 in Championship Games. They lost to Rochester in 2001 and to Riverview in 1997. Fort Cherry was formed by the merger of Midway, McDonald, and Hickory school districts. McDonald was the Class B runner up in 1953 and 1954 and Midway won the 1956 WPIAL title.
Dramatis Personae
South Side runs a Wing-T triple-option offense that features a variety of playmakers. Dual-threat quarterback Brody Almashy has thrown for 1082 yards and 17 TDs and run for 669 yards and 18 TDs. Out of the backfield, leading rusher Ryan Navarra (1369 yards, 26 TDs) has been a load. Slot back AC Corfield has been an all-around threat, leading the team in receiving (407 yards) and topping the 1000-mark on the ground (1198 yards) and scoring 16 total TDs. Last week against Clairton, the Rams went to the air with play-action passes and Almashy hooked up with AC Corfield for 3 touchdown passes. While the three-headed monster of Almashy, Navarra, and Corfield has been outstanding, South Side’s biggest strength is in the trenches where their line has dominated on both sides of the ball this season. As a testament to the line up front, South Side’s top three rushers all average over 9 yards per carry.
Fort Cherry’s offense runs through dual-threat QB Matt Sieg. Last year, Sieg became the first freshman to ever have a season with 1000 passing yards and 1000 rushing yards. This year, he became just the second player in WPIAL history to have TWO 1000/1000 seasons (Shady Side Academy’s Skyy Moore was the first). Including the playoffs, Sieg has thrown for 1338 yards and 18 TDs and run for 1785 yards and found the end zone 36 times this season. Fort Cherry will also use Sieg on defense at safety and as a kick returner, utilizing his speed any time he can get his hands on the ball. In Fort Cherry’s win over Bishop Canevin last week Sieg scored 5 rushing touchdowns and had over 100 yards on the ground and over 100 through the air. His favorite target is Shane Cornali (488 yards, 8 TDs) but he has also gotten Evan Rogers (288 yards, 8 TDs) and Braydon Cook (259 yards, 2 TDs) involved in the passing game. Joining Sieg in the backfield is Ethan Faletto (1020 yards, 18 TDs) who averages 9 yards per carry. Nate Heirendt (447 yards, 8 TDs) has also seen a fair share of work out of the Rangers backfield. The one potential difference in this game is at the kicker position where Nik Massey has made 2 field goals this season while South Side has not converted a field goal yet this year.
