Week 6 Glance: Berks Catholic seeks to even the score against Schuylkill Valley
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Berks Catholic was essentially two plays away from winning a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 title a year ago.
A late fumble in the red zone derailed their comeback bid in a 30-28 Week 5 loss at Lancaster Catholic. A last-minute touchdown bomb a week later was the difference in a 14-20 loss to Schuylkill Valley, which remained unbeaten the rest of the way to win the Section 5 title.
“I don’t like how that game ended last year,” Saints senior lineman Palmer Reber said before the season. “I want to get our get-back this year.”
The Saints (2-0, 3-2) got the first of those two back a week ago, dominating the Crusaders 35-6.
Friday they get a chance for payback against the Panthers (2-0, 3-2), who are part of a three-way tie for first place in Section 5 lead along with the Saints and Annville-Cleona (2-0, 4-1).
Turnovers essentially cost the Saints in last year’s two key losses, as well as in early losses this season to Twin Valley and Bethlehem Catholic. They’ve been better about that in league play, going without a turnover against Pequea Valley or Lancaster Catholic.
“We certainly did some things to hurt ourselves,” Saints coach Dave Stahler said of last year’s loss to Schuylkill Valley, which saw them turn it over four times, one of them ending up as a Pick-Six. “We turned the ball over way too much to have a chance to win.”
Turnovers have been a problem for the Panthers this year; they’ve given the ball away nine times, fourth-most among Berks teams.
“We’ve yet to play a clean game on both sides of the ball,” said Schuylkill Valley coach Bruce Harbach, “and that’s our goal.”
In other key games this week:
- Governor Mifflin (2-3) heads to Wilson (4-1) in the 68th meeting of arguably the most storied rivalry in Berks football. Even though it’s a non-league game the temperature will be high at Gurski Stadium as the underdog Mustangs attempt to snap a three-game losing streak in the series. Mifflin has had its difficulties on defense; it has allowed more total yards than any team in the league. That could spell trouble against a Wilson team that features quarterback Mason Young, who has passed for 906 and 13 TDs, All-State tight end Michael Glover, and tailback Correll Akings, who has scored nine TDs.
- Muhlenberg (2-0, 5-0) tries to remain perfect in Section 2 play as it hosts Elizabethtown (0-1, 3-2). The Muhls are coming off an emotional 35-17 win over rival Governor Mifflin and are one week removed from a showdown against state-ranked Exeter, making this a dangerous sandwich game. The Bears posted shutouts in Week 3 and 4, against McCaskey and South Philly, and are coming off a tough 20-14 loss to Ephrata. The Muhls have been torching team up top with their dangerous wideouts, Michael Miller Jr. and Freddy Lacey, but the Bears rank No. 4 in the 37-team Lancaster-Lebanon League in pass defense. Elizabethtown got a late touchdown last year to pull out a 36-34 win. The Muhls haven’t opened a season 6-0 since 2007.
- Exeter (2-0, 5-0) begins a month-long road trip Friday with a game at Ephrata (1-1, 4-1); the Eagles won’t play at home again until the regular season finale Oct. 24 against Elizabethtown. The Eagles, ranked No. 5 in the state in Class 5A, haven’t had a close call yet. Jake Hafer has taken over at quarterback after Riley Martinez was lost with a shoulder injury and has thrown five TD passes. Leo Brown has emerged as one of the league’s most dominant backs; he’s averaging 10.1 yards per carry and has run for 11 TDs. The Mounts have been playing without starting quarterback Carson Martin the past week few weeks. Exeter dominated last year’s game, winning 43-6 to improve its all-time record against the Mounts to 5-0.
- Kutztown (0-2, 1-4) will try to do Berks Catholic and Schuylkill Valley a favor Friday by knocking off (2-0, 4-1) Annville-Cleona, which is in a three-way tie for first place in Section 5. The Cougars have had the most productive offense in the league, churning out 434 yards per game, most of it on the ground. That hasn’t netted many wins, in part because of their 13 turnovers – including seven the past two weeks. The Dutchmen, meanwhile, have allowed fewer rushing yards than any team in Section 5. Kutztown has never beaten Annville-Cleona.
- Conrad Weiser (1-1, 4-1) will have its hands full when it heads to Quarryville to face Solanco (1-0, 4-1) in a Section 3 battle. The Scouts saw their unbeaten start snapped last week with a 20-7 loss to Manheim Central when they were held to 81 total yards. The Golden Mules have been on a tear, winning four straight since a 45-44 loss to Lampeter-Strasburg in the season-opener. They got 161 rushing yards and three TDs from All-State tailback Johnny Garcia last week in a 49-7 non-league win over Eastern York. In dominating Warwick 35-7 in their league opener the Mules reaffirmed their status as Section 3 favorites.
Keeping the ball away from the Saints and their aggressive defense will be a challenge for the Panthers. Berks Catholic’s strength comes up front, where Reber returns after being named a first-team all-league pick, as was defensive tackle Damoni Daglis and defensive end Eric Bennethum.
“Their front four is pretty good,” Harbach said, “and that’s the bulk of their defense. They put a lot of pressure on you. We’re going to have to do some different schemes to take care of those people. It’s gonna be tough running inside (against them).”
Friday’s winner will have the upper hand in the race for the section title. Annville-Cleona, despite it strong start, has had issues at quarterback, where it has started three different players due to injuries. The Dutchmen earned some narrow victories in non-league play, beating Biglerville (1-4) in Week 1 and Hanover (2-3) by a field goal in Week 2.
The Saints have been without their No. 1 quarterback, Cole Harter, the past two weeks because of an injury; he could miss this game as well. Senior Johnny Sauppee has filled in well; he completed 7-of-10 passes last week and ran for two TDs.
If Annville-Cleona continues to win the Section 5 title could be determined in the final weeks of the season. Schuylkill Valley plays at Annville in Week 9; the Dutchmen come to Berks Catholic in Week 10.
