Game of the Week: Wilson vs. Cumberland Valley
2023 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
District 3 Class 6A quarterfinal
No. 5 Wilson (7-3) vs. No. 4 Cumberland Valley (6-4)
Kick: Friday, 7, at Chapman Field, Mechanicsburg.
Series: Eagles lead 8-6.
Last meeting, 2016: Wilson 28, Cumberland Valley 14.
Common opponents: Manheim Township and Central Dauphin. Eagles lost season-opener to Blue Streaks 35-6; Bulldogs lost season finale 49-34. Eagles beat Rams 19-14, Bulldogs lost 36-35 in OT.
Coaches: Wilson, Doug Dahms, 18th season 185-41; Cumberland Valley, Josh Oswalt, fourth season, 21-18.
Bulldogs update: Saw seven-game winning streak snapped with 49-34 Week 10 loss to Manheim Township in Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 1 finale. . . Finished second to Streaks in section race. . . Senior Tommy Hunsicker is the sixth in program history to throw for 2,000 yards in a season and the fifth to top 3,000 in his career. . . .His season completion percentage of .663 is second-highest in program history, behind Tony Cipolla (.684, 1999); his career completion percentage of .618 is third-highest. . . Hunsicker has thrown for 2,024 yards with 23 TDs and four interceptions. That gives him a 177.5 passing efficiency rating. Only Cipolla (185.2) finished with a higher mark. . . He also leads the team in rushing with 417 yards and in TD runs, with 8. . . Madyx Gruber and Correl Akings share team lead with 9 TDs. . . Madyx leads team with 27 receptions. . . Junior LB Christo Hunsicker leads team with 60 tackles, 8 TFL, 3 sacks and 3 fumble recoveries. . . Senior LB Ryan McMillan is second with 58 tackles. . . Junior Madyx Gruber leads with 3 INTs and 7 pass break-ups. . . Jonah Pertet has blocked 3 kicks. . . Bulldogs have been out-gained on the ground by more than 200 yards.
Did you know? Cumberland Valley coach Josh Oswalt has faced Wilson twice in the playoffs, in 2014 as head coach of Carlisle and in 2016 as head coach at Central York. The Bulldogs won both games, each at Gurski Stadium.
Eagles update: Ended season with 5 straight wins after starting 0-3 and 1-4. . . Each loss came to state-ranked opponent: Manheim Township, Central York (14-0), Spring-Ford (63-17) and Harrisburg (42-7). . . Three wins against playoff qualifiers: Central Dauphin, State College (17-10) and Altoona (33-20), each in the last month. . . Graduated more than 20 players from last year’s 7-4 playoff qualifier. . . Have used three different QBs, each leading team to at least one win. . . Junior Grant Shepley, who played at IMG Academy in Florida as a freshman, has started and gone the whole way the last 2 games. . . He has completed 59 percent of his passes for 490 yards and 2 TDs. . . QBs have been intercepted 11 times, with 5 TD passes. . . Senior RB Bryce Staretz carries the offensive load; he has rushed for 1,265 yards and 16 TDs. . . Staretz has accounted for 72 percent of the carries and 49 percent of the yards from scrimmage. . . LB Alex Sauve, an all-league LB as a soph and junior, leads team with 107 tackles. . . He is getting Patriot League looks, as is Staretz and WR Caiden Pines, the team’s leading receiver. . . Returned to playoffs for first time since 2019; it was first winning record since 2018.
Fast fact: Cumberland Valley won the most recent of its 13 District 3 championships in 2015. No other program has claimed that many titles in the largest classification. Wilson is next with 7.
Series flashback, 2016: The top-seeded Bulldogs went into halftime trailing by two touchdowns before dominating the second half, getting a pair of Iggy Reynoso touchdowns to win the District 3 Class 6A championship game 28-14. Reynoso ran for 208 yards and two TDs. Connor Uhrig passed for 177 yards and a TD, to Foday Jalloh. Mason McElroy and Jalloh had interceptions for the Bulldogs, who limited the Eagles to 169 total yards.
Quotable: “This guy’s different, because he doesn’t always look to throw it first. He’s slippery; if he sees a seam and he’s dropping back for a pass he’s not afraid to just put his foot in the ground and go. He’s just running all over the field, making the offense go. It really puts a lot of strain on our defense.” – Eagles coach Josh Oswalt, on Wilson QB Tommy Hunsicker.
Up next: Winner plays No. 1 Manheim Township (10-0) or No. 8 York High (6-3) in district semifinal at higher-seeded team.
