It’s a PIAA semifinal rematch, of sorts, for Wyomissing, Wolfrum
The PIAA Class 3A semifinals will feature a rematch between coaches Bob Wolfrum of Wyomissing and Albie Crosby of Neumann-Goretti.
They faced each other in a 2012 semifinal when Crosby coached Imhotep Charter. The Spartans won that game 35-13 and went on to beat Aliquippa 17-14 to complete a perfect season and become the only Berks team to win a PIAA football champ.
Crosby has been coaching the Saints for the past five seasons. He’ll get another shot at the Spartans when they play Friday at 7 at Pennridge High School.
The other 3A semifinal between defending champ Central Valley (13-0), the top-ranked team in the state, and District 6 champ Central (14-0) will be played Friday at Central Valley in Monaca, at 7.
Central Valley defeated Wyomissing 35-21 in last year’s championship game.
The PIAA championship game will be played Saturday, Dec. 11, at Hersheypark Stadium, at noon.
Neumann-Goretti (13-1) set a program record for wins in a season with a 28-0 victory over District 2 champ Danville in the quarterfinals. The Saints have won 12 straight since a Week 2 loss to Archbishop Wood, 28-6.
Goretti features at least four Division I recruits, led by cornerback Shawn Battle, a junior who has 16 major college offers. He’s been offered by Penn State, Oregon, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, among others.
Linebacker Anthony Johnson is committed to Rutgers and two players have committed to West Virginia: wide receiver Kevin Thomas and safety Raleigh Collins. Thomas has 14 major offers.
Johnson, Battle and Collins were among eight All-Catholic League Blue Division first-team picks. Crosby was Coach of the Year. The Saints also had seven second-team picks.
The Saints have gone 27-3 over the last three seasons. They played just four games last season, due to the coronavirus.
This is Goretti’s third PIAA appearance under Crosby. It lost a first-round game to Pope John Paul in 2019 and a quarterfinal to eventual champ Southern Columbia in 2017.
Crosby won the 2015 PIAA Class AA championship with Imhotep, beating Erie Cathedral Prep 40-0. His Panthers lost the 2013 title game to South Fayette. He was 53-6 in four seasons and coached 20 Division I recruits.
Neumann-Goretti shuttered its program late in the 2016 season because of a lack of numbers. Crosby was hired the following spring.
The Saints posted a pair of shutouts last week. The day before they beat Danville they topped South Philadelphia 54-0 in their annual Thanksgiving morning game. They have four shutouts this season and have allowed only seven touchdowns over their last nine games.
Their closest game in the last two months was a 26-21 win over North Schuylkill on Nov. 19.
Wyomissing advanced with a 35-14 win over Scranton Prep Saturday at Mifflin Stadium.
The Spartans have gone 34-2 over the past three seasons, with a 20-10 loss to Tamaqua in a 2019 PIAA quarterfinal and last year’s title-game loss to Central Valley.