Things get real for Berks Catholic, Schuylkill Valley in early Section 5 showdown
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Summer officially ended just a few days ago, right?
We’re at the midpoint of the 10-week regular season in high school football.
It seems a bit premature to be talking about league championships and elimination games, doesn’t it?
Not for Berks Catholic or Schuylkill Valley. Listen to their coaches talk and they make their inaugural Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 meeting Friday sound as though they’re playing for all the marbles.
The Saints (1-1, 2-3), coming off a tough 30-28 defeat at Lancaster Catholic, know they can’t afford another loss if they want to contend for a title in their first season in Section 5.
| Section 5 | ||
| Hamburg | 2-0 | 4-1 |
| Lanc. Catholic | 2-0 | 3-2 |
| Sch. Valley | 2-0 | 3-2 |
| Berks Cath. | 1-1 | 2-3 |
| Ann.-Cleona | 1-1 | 2-3 |
| Pequea | 0-2 | 2-3 |
| Kutztown | 0-2 | 0-5 |
| Columbia | 0-2 | 0-5 |
“(That loss) makes this week that much more important for us,” said first-year Berks Catholic coach Dave Stahler. “It’s gonna be tough to win the league (outright) now. We’ve gotta keep playing and hope something breaks our way. They’re all must-win games now.”
The Panthers (2-0, 3-2) won their first two league games but know the real heavy lifting is in front of them. Kutztown and Pequea Valley, their first two Section 5 opponents, are a combined 2-8 and are not considered contenders.
The Saints are. So are Hamburg, Annville-Cleona, and Lancaster Catholic, teams Schuylkill Valley faces in the final three weeks of the regular season.
“If we want to contend for the title and make districts we can’t afford to lose any more,” said Schuylkill Valley coach Bruce Harbach. “(We) know every week is a championship game for us.”
As Harbach alluded to there’s more at stake here than just the Section 5 race. Berks Catholic and Schuylkill Valley are contenders for a District 3 Class 3A championship; slow starts have them back in the pack at this point. The Saints are No. 7 in the power ratings, the Panthers No. 6; only the top six make the field.
That adds even more importance to their meeting Friday at 7 at Forino Sports Complex.
The Saints have played the much tougher schedule to date. They opened with Twin Valley, which is unbeaten and No. 1 in the state in Class 4A. They lost at Bethlehem Catholic in Week 3. Last week they fell behind 16-0 and 24-7 at Lancaster Catholic before putting on a big second-half push.
Bryce Gumby broke out with a record rushing performance, his four touchdowns and then a long run into the red zone in the final minutes pushing the Saints to the cusp of a huge comeback victory. A fumble in the final minute ended their chances.
That, said Gumby, who set a program record with 268 rushing yards, makes Berks Catholic’s first meeting against Schuylkill Valley in five years all the more important.
“We’re all taking this game to heart,” said the senior halfback. “We all went through the loss together as a team. It’s just something we don’t want to go through again. We’re looking to win out.
“We didn’t play our best in the beginning (at Catholic). The second half . . . we’re rolling off that into this week.”
The Saints got a spark when Gumby returned after missing three games due to injury. He adds a breakaway element that the offense had been missing. He had TD runs of 70 and 72 yards.
“They present problems up front and present problems in the running game,” Harbach said of the Saints. “Bryce Gumby’s a heckuva football player. We’ve gotta contain him, that’s for sure. He’s a play-maker so he’s going to be getting the ball a lot.”
Until last week, when they beat Pequea Valley 33-0, the Panthers hadn’t really contained anyone. They allowed 29 points to Muhlenberg in a season-opening loss and had trouble slowing winless Daniel Boone in a Week 2 shootout that saw the Blazers rack up 397 total yards.
Berks Catholic’s defense will be challenged, too. Schuylkill Valley quarterback Logan Nawrocki has thrown for 946 yards, second-most in the league, and 13 TDs, third-most.
He’s got outstanding targets in wide receiver Kowen Gerner, an all-league pick last year who had over 900 receiving yards, and tight end Luke Spotts, a second-team all-league pick. Gerner has 18 catches and four TDs this season; Spotts has a team-leading 22 catches and four TDs.
“They throw the ball really well, and they’re dangerous on the outside,” Stahler said of the Panthers. “They do some good stuff to manufacture a screen game on the edge. Them throwing the ball deep has me really, really concerned; it only takes one misstep (to give up) a touchdown.
“Even though we gave up four touchdowns, I thought our defense played really well (against Lancaster Catholic). Our defensive line is playing at a really high level right now.”
The Panthers earned a piece of the Section 5 title last season, sharing it with Lancaster Catholic and Annville-Cleona. Beating the Saints will go a long way toward helping them do that again.
“It’s a challenge every week, and that’s what’s fun about it,” Harbach said of Section 5. “You have to be your best. (Adding) Berks Catholic (to the mix) makes it a little bit more interesting.”
