Hamburg, Lancaster Catholic ready to state their case in Section 5 showdown
When the new Lancaster-Lebanon League football map was drawn up a year or so ago Section 5 looked like Lancaster Catholic and a bunch of other programs that had never won much.
The Crusaders, mostly under former head coach Bruce Harbach, have been a force in District 3 over the past two-plus decades, with six district championships and two state titles.
The others programs?
| Section 5 | League | Overall |
| Hamburg | 2-0 | 5-0 |
| Lancaster Catholic | 2-0 | 5-0 |
| Schuylkill Valley | 2-0 | 3-2 |
| Annville-Cleona | 1-1 | 3-2 |
| Northern Lebanon | 1-1 | 2-3 |
| Columbia | 0-2 | 2-3 |
| Kutztown | 0-2 | 1-4 |
| Pequea Valley | 0-2 | 0-5 |
Columbia’s won a couple of district titles, but none in the last decade. The other six have combined for a total of three district playoffs wins in the 40-year history of the tournament.
Hamburg didn’t get it’s first until a year ago.
That made it interesting when the Hawks came into the inaugural season of Section 5 play as the favorite and the Crusaders as one of several closely bunch contenders, along with Columbia, Annville-Cleona and Schuylkill Valley, where Harbach now coaches.
What’s even more interesting is that when the Hawks and Crusaders meet for the first time Friday in Lancaster they’ll both been undefeated and — get this — state-ranked.
Lancaster Catholic (2-0, 5-0) is No. 8 in Class 3A, according to PennLive.com. Hamburg (2-0, 5-0) is No. 10 in 3A and state-ranked, it’s believed, for the first time in program history.
Section 5 includes the eight smallest schools in the 37-team mega-conference. The beauty of it is that it matches programs with similar challenges; some have struggled at times over the years just to put a team on the field each week. Did anyone ever think it would boast two teams ranked in the Top 10 in the state at the same time?
The season has been a boon for both programs.
The Hawks, with Xander Menapace back at quarterback for a third season, figured to be strong but there were question marks, for sure. They had a new coach in Matt Hoffert, a new offensive coordinator and a new offensive scheme. The line seemed a little thin. And they didn’t know they’d have Pierce Mason in the backfield until just before camp opened; he thought about skipping his senior season.
The Crusaders, coming off a 4-7 season, had similar questions. They lost fullback Kyle Wassell, a team captain, to a season-ending injury during Heat-Ac week. There were several key guys making position switches. Head coach Chris Maiorino had concerns.
He never envisioned being part of a midseason battle of state-ranked unbeatens.
“Being undefeated is something you don’t think about (before the season),” said the Crusaders’ third-year coach. “Our guys have done a great job of making some sacrifices, playing different positions, taking on different roles. That helps the team. When kids take that team-first mentality it’s good to see you have some success.”
The Hawks and Crusaders are very similar, especially on offense.
Quarterback Will Cranford is running Catholic’s Spread effectively, just as Menapace is running Hamburg’s. Cranford has completed 63 percent of his passes, with 12 touchdowns and just one interception.
“Having three years under his belt, it makes him that much better, especially with the guys he has around him,” said Hoffert. “We expect him to give us fits. We’ve gotta pressure him and make sure of our coverages are great behind it because he’s gonna take advantage if not.”
Cranford has a pair of talented receivers in Jaevon Parker, an all-league second-team pick in Section 3 last year, and R.J. Gonzalez.
Parker played quarterback at McCaskey before transferring to Catholic before last season. This year he’s averaging 24.9 yards on his 16 catches, with seven TDs. He had three scoring catches last week in a 55-20 win over Northern Lebanon.
“When he gets the ball in his hands he makes a lot happen,” Hoffert said. “We’ve gotta be on him as quick as possible because those are the kind of guys that are game-changers. Big plays win games and we’ve gotta try to eliminate that stuff.”
Maiorino is just as impressed with the Hawks as Hoffert is with the Crusaders.
“They’re as good as advertised (coming into the season),” he said. “They run the ball extremely well; they’ve got a tough runner (in Mason). Xander is athletic back there, has a nice arm and he does a nice job getting the ball to their receivers.
“They’re rolling, and Xander’s certainly a big part of that, along with (Mason).”
Mason has a league-leading 18 touchdown, six short of the program record. He reached the end zone twice in last week’s 42-7 win over Kutztown before leaving with an ankle injury. Hoffert listed him as day-to-day early in the week but believes he’ll be able to go Friday.
Mason’s 847 rushing yards are second-most in the league, behind Annville-Cleona’s Phoenix Music, who has 987.
Both coaches have downplayed their respective state rankings.
“We can’t let other people tell us how good we are,” Maiorino said. “We’ve got to go out and prove it.”
