When they needed it, Raiders were prepared to make epic defensive stand

By Mike Drago Last updated Nov 30, 2025

Ryan Rementer and his Twin Valley teammates stop Aliquippa's JJ Work Friday in PIAA semifinal. (Luke Bender)

2025 Berks football coverage presented by

Utilities Employees Credit Union

By Mike Drago — MikeDragoSports.com Managing Editor

LEWISTOWN — Nothing Twin Valley faced in its first 13 games prepared it for the excruciating final minutes of its PIAA Class 4A semifinal against hard-charging Aliquippa.

The Raiders had mercy-ruled 10 opponents, including one on the way to their first District championship. They had won every prior game by three touchdowns, most by twice that many.

They were never required to come up with any critical defense stands yet when they needed to Friday they were prepared for it.

Final
Twin Valley	28
Aliquippa	24

“We do this exact thing every Wednesday,” Raiders coach Brett Myers said of defending the end zone against a last-ditch pass. “We’ve done it 13 times at practice. They’ve been prepared for that.”

The unbeaten Raiders acted like it, cooly standing down the Quips as linebacker Keenan Munn batted away a fourth-down pass in the final seconds to preserve a 28-24 victory and clinch a spot in Thursday’s championship game.

“We do a last-drive drill every week,” said Munn, who could’ve had his second interception of the night but instead knocked the ball to the ground with 27 seconds remaining. “You don’t catch the ball, you bat it down. Live to play another game.”

That next – and final – game will come against District 11 champ Southern Lehigh, which cut short Cardinal O’Hara’s comeback bid to win by the same 28-24 score.

Aliquippa (10-4) was on the verge of a historic comeback. It trailed 28-6 at the half before quarterback Marques Council Jr. led them back, throwing a pair of third-quarter TD passes.

When Akiva Woods turned the left corner and raced 39 yards for a score in the final minute of the third quarter Twin Valley’s lead was all but gone.

The Raiders, a team averaging better than 50 points per game, were completely stoned by Aliquippa’s stout defense. They scored four touchdowns in the first half but three of them came when returns – one on a kickoff, two on interceptions – set them up at the 4-, 1-, and 9-yard lines, respectively.

Otherwise, they went nowhere. Aliquippa held Twin Valley without a second-half first down, and to just 8 total yards after intermission. Overall, Twin Valley was held to a season-low 103 yards.

Raiders’ Keenan Munn steps in front of final pass to knock it down. (Luke Bender)

“They didn’t score the second half,” Aliquippa coach Mike Warfield said proudly, “so our kids maintained (after trailing by 22 at the half). It shows you the resilience they’ve had all year just to keep fighting.”

That defense put Council Jr. in position to pull it out at the end.

The Quips took over at their 30 with 6:19 left and needing a touchdown to extend their season. Council Jr., throwing in sub-freezing temperatures and into the teeth a 13 mph wind, passed his team down to the 11 with two minutes left. He completed 5-of-7 passes on the final drive but the Raiders came up with just enough defensive plays to keep the Quips out of the end zone.

Twin Valley sacked Council Jr. three times on the final drive, once by Liam Sheehan, once by Ryan Rementer, the last by Lucas Myers, who blitzed from his linebacker spot constantly, bothering Council Jr. several times.

“Our coaches trusted me (and put me in) position to go get him, and it worked out,” Myers said.

That final sack pushed the Quips back to the 25. Two plays later, on fourth-and-24, Council Jr. avoided another sack, stepped up in the pocket, and fired into a crowd in the end zone.

“My first look wasn’t there,” the quarterback said. “I felt their pressure caving in, I saw a little bit of daylight, a window I thought I could fit the ball through. It just didn’t happen.”

Twin Valley took over with 27 seconds left, then went into Victory Formation for the 14th time this season.

“That kid was on fire,” Twin Valley coach Brett Myers said of Council Jr., who completed 12-of-14 passes for 198 yards in the second half. “I was thinking we better get some pressure on him, make him uncomfortable. You’re either feeling pressure or applying it, and that last couple plays we were applying it.”

The Raiders applied just enough to stop the Quips from scoring on a drive that spanned 14 plays, netted three first downs, and lasted nearly six minutes. Three sacks for minus-28 yards and a 10-yard holding penalty kept pushing them away from the end zone.

“Everybody gave everything they’ve got every play,” Lucas Myers said. “Everybody just did their job and it worked out.”

“Give them a lot of credit,” Brett Myers said of Aliquippa. “They were slinging it around at the end. Our defensive players made a stand. Coach (Scott) Ryan (the defensive coordinator) called some great stuff and some guys were able to get some pressure and make their quarterback uncomfortable.”

Twin Valley was in complete control in the first half, taking advantage of Aliquippa mistakes to take a 28-6 lead into halftime.

The Raiders scored on their first drive, getting a 37-yard TD run from Lucas Myers.

Aliquippa answered with a TD on its first possession, but the PAT was blocked.

Drew Engle, who passed the 4,000-yard career rushing milestone despite being held to 64 yards, returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards to the 4; three plays later quarterback Maverik Foster scored on a 1-yard run for a 14-6 lead.

Rementer’s interception and 30-yard return to the 1 set up Myers’ short dive out of the Wildcat formation, and the Raiders led 21-6.

Raiders’ Lucas Myers runs for a first-quarter touchdown. (Luke Bender photo)

Munn picked off a Council Jr. pass and returned it to the Aliquippa 9. Myers ran for a 2-yard TD on fourth down on the final play of the half to make it 28-6.

“The kids played well,” Warfield said, “we just put the defense in tough positions early on. They had three short fields. That put us behind.”

Aliquippa stormed back, scoring three third-quarter touchdowns, Council Jr. throwing a 48-yard TD pass QaLil Goode and a 19-yard bullet to Antonio Reddic in the back of the end zone.

In the end, the difference was mistakes: The Quips made them, the Raiders, as usual, didn’t. Aliquippa turned the ball over twice on interceptions and fumbled three times. They recovered each of the fumbles but one in particular was costly, leading to a 12-yard loss that forced the Quips to punt early in the fourth quarter.

Aliquippa also lost valuable field position in the first half when it saw a punt into the gusting wind go backwards for a 17-yard loss.

The Raiders played error-free football for the ninth time this season; they have committed a Berks-low six turnovers in 14 games. They also alertly recovered an Aliquippa pooch kick in the final minute of the third quarter.

Now they’ll play for a state championship and try to become just the second Berks team to record a perfect season during the playoff era.

“I’m overjoyed right now,” Rementer said, “it’s an amazing feeling. But I know that we have another game next and the job’s not finished.”

Raiders Ryan Rementer returns interception Friday against Aliquippa. (Luke Bender)

	1	2	3	4	Final
Aliquippa	6	0	18	0	24
Twin Valley	14	14	0	0	28

Scoring summary

1	Twin Valley	Myers, 37 run (Shaffer kick)	9:05
1	Aliquippa	Work, 2 run (kick failed)	2:41
1	Twin Valley	Foster, 1 run (Shaffer kick)	0:41
2	Twin Valley	Myers, 1 run (Shaffer kick)	7:29
2	Twin Valley	Myers, 2 run (Shaffer kick)	0:00
3	Aliquippa	Goode, 48 pass from Council (run failed)	9:18
3	Aliquippa	Reddic, 19 pass from Council (pass failed)	4:06
3	Aliquippa	Woods, 39 run (kick failed)	0:36

Team statistics

	ALIQUIPPA	TWIN VALLEY
First downs	16	5
Rushes-yards	34-101	32-108
Passing yards	229	-5
Total yards	330	103
Passes	15-21-2	3-8-0
Fumbles-lost	3-0	0-0
Punts-average	2-(-1)	4-29.5
Penalties-yards	8-55	4-35