What are Berks teams facing this weekend in the District 3 playoffs? (updated)
Six Berks teams qualified for the District 3 playoffs; five remain alive.
Hamburg defeated Upper Dauphin 49-35 in a Classs 3A quarterfinal last week. Wilson (6A), Exeter (5A), Twin Valley (4A) and Wyomissing each had first-round byes.
The Eagles, Raiders and Spartans each open at home. The Hawks don’t have to travel far: They play at Wyomissing.
Here’s a brief look at what’s in store for each Berks team this weekend:
Wilson (8-2) vs. Harrisburg (7-2)
The Bulldogs have seen their last three trips to the District 3 Class 6A Tournament ended by the Cougars; they’ll be up against it again Saturday at 1 at Severance Field.
Calvin Everett needed to replace just a few parts from the team that beat the Bulldogs 14-10 in last year’s district championship game. Nine starters returned to the defensive side, including speed-rushing defensive end Terrell Reynolds, a guy Everett compared favorably to Micah Parsons — yes, the Dallas Cowboys linebacker and NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021.
The Cougars have a pair of losses but both have asterisks attached. They lost at home in Week 2 when Manheim Township quarterback Hayden Johnson tossed a short TD pass with four seconds remaining. Everett, who’s won three district championships in the past six seasons, was not on the sidelines for that one He was serving a three-game, non-football-related suspension.
Their only loss came in Week 7 (also at home) to unbeaten and state-ranked State College, 20-6. They were without their two-year starting quarterback Shawn Lee Jr. (Interesting to note that Harrisburg’s only regular season loss last season, at Gov. Mifflin, came with Lee MIA, as well.)
Lee, a sophomore, has completed nearly 70 percent of his passes with 15 touchdowns, most of them to Temple recruit and dynamic receiver/back Kyle Williams — the Cam Jones of of the Cougars. He’s a threat to go the distance any time and any way he touches the ball.
If Lee’s not throwing in Williams’ direction he’ll toss it to freshman sensation Elias Coke, a 6-1, 187-pound wide receiver who has six scoring catches.
The Cougars can also pound it with 240-pound Mahkai Hopkins, who averages 6.7 per line smash. He battered a stout Wilson defense for 130 yards on 25 line slams a year ago.
Exeter (10-0) vs. Dover (9-2) (postponed to Saturday at 7)
The Eagles from York County did an about-face this season, rebounding from a 1-9 record to make the district tournament for the first time since 2013 and to win a playoff game for just the second time in program history.
After getting knocked around in Section 1 of the York-Adams League the past two seasons — they won a total of two games — they returned to Section 2, where they finished second to New Oxford and ahead of Kennard-Dale, West York, Susquehannock and Eastern League (only one of which finished with a winning record).
Dover scored three regular season wins over District 3 playoff qualifiers, then added a fourth last week with a 40-21 win over Garden Spot. It’s opportunistic defense intercepted three passes and forced two fumbles in that one; it opened the game with a blocked punt for a touchdown. Dover has recorded 33 sacks and 19 interceptions and has 24 takeaways.
Quarterback Aric Campbell has thrown for 2,227 yards, nearly half of it to Thomas Smyser, who has 54 catches for 1,037 yards. He’s also dangerous in the return game where he averages 17.2 yards on punt returns.
Dover has won seven straight.
Twin Valley (6-4) vs. Milton Hershey (6-4)
The Trojans are back in district for the time since 2019 when they lost at Berks Catholic (a 49-18 Saints victory that featured a long punt return by Anthony Myers in his final game).
They finished fourth in the Keystone Division of the Mid-Penn Conference, behind Bishop McDevitt, Cedar Cliff and Hershey.
Milton Hershey owns two wins over district playoff qualifiers, Susquehanna Township and Mifflin County. One of its wins came via a forfeit from Middletown, which suspended its program before the season.
It’s interesting to note that the Trojans breat Lower Dauphin 49-21 in Week 8; Twin Valley lost to Lower Dauphin 17-14 in Week 2. Does that carry any weight at this point?
The Trojans have had a revolving door at quarterback where injuries have played a part. Whoever’s throwing it is looking for playmaker Mohamed Koroma, a threat on both kickoff returns and in the receiving game.
Backup quarterback Jason Burney passed for 284 yards and three TDs in a season-ending loss to Cedar Cliff; he was also picked off three times.
Hamburg (9-2) vs. Wyomissing (10-0)
The Hawks thrived this season after finally escaping Wyomissing’s ominous shadow in Section 2 of the Berks Football League. They came within a whisker of winning the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 championship and last week won their district opener for the second straight season.
Their prize?
A trip back to the A-Field Saturday at 1 to face the top-ranked Class 3A team in the state.
The Spartans had a week off after recording one of the greatest regular seasons in Berks football history. They won their games by an average of 35.2 points, third-highest in Berks history.
They recorded four shutouts, including one against unbeaten Lampeter-Strasburg in the regular season finale. They are allowing 6.9 points per game, the lowest figure of any team in District 3, in any class, and the second-lowest of any Class 3A team in the state.
They have beaten the Hawks 31 straight times over the last 33 seasons. In their last eight meetings they have pitched five shutouts and allowed a total of 20 points.
It’s safe to say this is the most explosive offensive team in Hamburg history. It’s averaging a program-record 44.8 points and features tailback Pierce Mason and quarterback Xander Menapace — arguably the two best ever at their positions in program history.
It’ll be interesting to see how big a dent the Hawks can leave in the Spartans’ iron-clad defense.
