District 3 Class 3A preview: Berks Catholic vs. Bermudian Springs
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District 3 Class 3A semifinal
No. 1 Berks Catholic (8-2) vs. No. 4 Bermudian (8-3)
Kick: Friday, 7, at Forino Sports Complex.
Series: Tied 1-1
Last meeting: Berks Catholic turned the ball over four times and didn’t come up with a takeaway in losing 42-25 last year at Bermudian Springs in a District 3 Class 3A semifinal. The Saints got 135 rushing yards from Nataniel Rose and outgained the Eagles in total yards and first downs but couldn’t overcome their mistakes. Quarterback Lane Hubbard passed for three touchdowns and ran for another for Bermudian, which went on to beat Trinity 34-30 in the championship game.
District playoff history: Berks Catholic making its 11th appearance and second straight after two-year hiatus. Opened with 48-7 win over Biglerville last year. Overall, 20-6 with four championships, the most recent in 2017. . . Bermudian Springs is looking for second straight championship after beating Trinity 34-30 last year. Overall, have a 17-17 district record with championships in 1992, 1993, 1998.
Fast fact: Berks Catholic is averaging 35.6 points, highest among the 12 3A teams in District 3.
Eagles update: Have won seven straight after 1-3 start. . . Went unbeaten in league play to capture York-Adams Division III title for second year in a row. . . Rallied from 21-6 halftime deficit last week to beat No. 5 Big Springs 25-24 in quarterfinal. . . Head coach John Livelsberger was named York-Adams Division III Coach of the Year. . . Do-it-all senior QB Lane Hubbard completed 18-of-26 passes for 189 yards and rushed for 97 yards on 13 carries to lead last week’s comeback. He also caught a 21-yard pass. . . He threw the last of his 4 touchdown passes with 2:38 remaining. . . Hubbard has thrown for 1,301 yards and 13 TDs, with 7 INTs. . . He also leads the team in rushing with 695, and with 12 TDs. He’s averaging 7.2 yards per carry. . . He also handles kickoffs and kickoff returns. . . Hubbard was named York-Adams Division III Offensive Player of the Year. . . Averaging 25.5 points per game. . . Top receiver is all-league RB Brayden Heller, who has 41 receptions for 630 yards. He caught a 17-yard TD last year against Berks Catholic. . . Heller has 9 TDs and handles PATs. . . O-line includes three all-league picks: T Dru Speelman, T Preston Gladfelter, and G Cameron Hackman. . . Hackman, a soph LB, is the York-Adams Division III Defensive Player of the Year and leads team with 92 tackles and 13 tackles for loss. . . He’s one of seven all-league picks on the defensive side. . . Three other defensive players earned second-team all-league recognition. . . Hubbard, Heller, Hackman, Gladfelter, and Speelman are two-way all-league picks. . . Team has recorded 80 tackles for loss, 22 sacks, and 77 QB Hurries. . . Defense has 17 takeaways. . . Team is plus-6 in takeaways. . . Roster includes just eight seniors. . . Opened season with 48-7 loss to New Oxford, which went unbeaten and is the No. 1 seed in the Class 5A Tournament. . . Other losses came to York Suburban and Manheim Central. . . Only wins over playoff qualifiers came against Delone Catholic (30-7) in Week 5 and York Catholic (35-14) in Week 8.
Did you know? Berks Catholic once strung together 10 consecutive district playoff wins, three straight championships (2015-17) and seven straight championship-game appearances (2013-19).
(PhilMarPhoto)
Saints update: Ended regular season with seven straight wins to capture first Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 championship. . . Beat Annville-Cleona 14-7 in OT in regular season finale to claim the title. . . Owen Schalk, who had missed previous three games with shoulder injury, returned against A-C and scored winning touchdown. . . Had scored 19 or more points in every game prior to facing Annville-Cleona. . . Ranked No. 2 in league in rushing (342) and No. 5 in total offense (378). . . Were averaging 38.0 points per game before facing A-C. . . No 1,000-yard rushers but offense features five different backs averaging better than 8.0 yards per carry. . . Xavier Gerald leads the way with 748 rushing yards; he’s averaging 10.2 yards per carry. . . Schalk is averaging 12.8 yards per carry. . . Five different players have rushed for 100 yards or more in a game, led by Jeremiah Camara, with four. . . Six different players have scored 6 or more touchdowns; Schalk and Coy Koller share lead with 8. . . Schalk has scored twice on receptions and once on a punt return. . . PK Alex Reali leads team in scoring; he has 5 FGs and is 44-for-45 on PATs. . . DE Faith Zudie leads team with 78 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 4 forced fumbles, and 3 blocked kicks. . . LB Mason Mace has 63 tackles. . . LB Ryan Spatz has 59 tackles. . . Ranked No. 6 in the league in total defense (214 yards per game), No. 9 in scoring defense (15.9). . . Ranked No. 8 in state by PennLive.com.
Fast fact: Bermudian Springs is allowing 14.0 points, second-fewest among the 12 3A teams in District 3; Trinity is No. 1 at 11.5. Berks Catholic is allowing 15.9.
Quotable: “The quarterback is a difference-maker. He’s dynamic, a big, strong powerful kid. He can run, he can throw. Their skill kids can make plays in space. They catch the ball (even) with people around them. You can play it perfectly and they can still make something happen. It’ll be a challenge for us to respond when things don’t go our way.” — Berks Catholic coach Dave Stahler, on Bermudian and QB Lane Hubbard
Winner plays: No. 2 Annville-Cleona (8-2) or No. 3 Trinity (8-3).
Championship: Nov. 14 at neutral site to be determined.
