PUP WPIAL Playoffs Week 2 Rewind (Class 2A/1A): No. 3 Ellwood City knocks off No. 6 South Allegheny for first postseason victory since 1997; Class 1A top seed Fort Cherry survives scare from No. 9 Cornell

Ellwood City’s storybook season has had no shortage of magical endings.

The Wolverines, who two weeks ago wrapped up their first conference title since 1997 and first undefeated regular season since 1944, saw five of their nine games this year result in one-score victories.

Why shouldn’t their playoff opener follow suit?

After taking a six-point deficit into the second half, No. 3 Ellwood City rallied behind standout running back Elijah Palmer-MCane’s two touchdowns to hold off visiting sixth-seeded South Allegheny and emerge with a fraught 13-12 WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinal victory Friday night at Helling Stadium.

“I’m just proud of them,” said Wolverines coach Dan Bradley of his team. “I believe they know that. We’ve had a lot of tough games throughout the season that came down to that last possession. I think being battle tested throughout the year really helped us tonight.

“It was such a stressful, highly competitive game that went to the end,” he added. “I’m just happy for our players and our community.”

The Wolverines (10-0) earned their first playoff victory since 1997 and advance to face No. 2 seed South Park next week in the semifinals where they will look to keep their run at their school’s first WPIAL championship since 1925 alive.

“I think we’re a confident group, not a cocky group,” Bradley said. “We know that we have to work hard for everything that we’re going to get. We’ll watch some film, get back to work. They’ll be excited for our next game against South Park.”

Palmer-McCane certainly worked hard against the Gladiators (9-3).

The senior rushed for 90 tough yards on 23 carries while also contributing a team-high four catches for 57 yards. He got his team on the scoreboard with a 4-yard touchdown run in the third quarter before adding the game-winning score on a 34-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Chris Smiley with 7:43 left in the fourth quarter.

Smiley completed 13-of-20 passes for 165 yards to pace the Ellwood City offense.

“He kept his head,” Bradley said of Palmer-McCane. “He could have gotten down. South Allegheny did a great job of bottling him up for the most part, but he had some good tough runs.”

That was certainly true of Palmer-McCane’s effort on the decisive touchdown.

“We scored on a screen pass,” Bradley said. “We were able to handle the pressure a little bit and Elijah made a heck of a run that got us in the end zone there. I think it was just good timing on the call. Chris made a good pass, and Elijah made a play.”

The night almost belonged, however, to the Gladiators.

Quarterback Ryan Cortes completed 16-of-30 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns in a strong effort, which nearly kept South Allegheny’s own storybook season intact.

Drew Cook caught seven passes for 144 yards and a touchdown for the Gladiators, and Camden Lewis also contributed five receptions for 52 yards and a score.

South Allegheny outgained Ellwood City, 264-232 but also committed 22 penalties for 144 yards.

A week earlier, the Gladiators won their first postseason contest in 38 years with 53-14 rout of No. 11 Waynesburg.

South Allegheny had a chance to keep its season alive against Ellwood City when it forced a turnover on downs and inherited the football at its own 11-yard line with 1:47 left in the game.

The Wolverines would, however, force a turnover on downs.

“The crowd was so electric,” Bradley said. “It was a great night. When we got stops or made plays, the crowd really erupted. It was awesome.”

And his team will be excited to keep its longest playoff run in nearly a century going next week.

“I just know they’re pretty good,” said Bradley of South Park. “They’re pretty big. We’ll get to them tonight, tomorrow. They’re a final four team, so they’re good like everybody else. They have some quality wins this year. We’ve just got to go out and play.”

Other Class 2A quarterfinals

Running back Eric Doerue carried the football 26 times for 192 yards and two second-half touchdowns as No. 2 South Park (10-1) overcame a slow start before surging for 19 unanswered points to emerge with a 19-9 victory against visiting No. 7 Mohawk (7-3). Bobby Fadden threw for 109 yards, a touchdown and interception for Mohawk. He connected for a 43-yard touchdown pass to Blake Logan, who also kicked a 32-yard field goal.
Logan King rushed for 208 yards and two touchdowns on 35 carries, while sophomore Khalil Taylor added three scores of his own as No. 1 Seton LaSalle (10-0) looked every bit the top seed in Class 2A with a dominant 34-7 victory against No. 9 Riverside (6-6) at Dormont Memorial Stadium. Taylor, a sophomore, caught 9- and 18-yard touchdown passes from Rebels quarterback Michael Pastirik, while also rushing for a 2-yard score. Pastirik threw for 180 yards. The Panthers’ lone score came after Robert Janis returned a blocked field goal 75 yards for a touchdown.
The Barksdale brothers did it all for No. 4 Steel Valley, which knocked off No. 5 Western Beaver, 36-13, at Moon. Donald Barksdale rushed for 175 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries for the Ironmen (9-3) and Da’Ron Barksdale kicked in 170 yards and two scores of his own on 24 carries. Quarterback Jaivin Peel paced Western Beaver (8-3) offensively, throwing for 137 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He found Aidan Vula for a 16-yard touchdown pass.

Riverside senior running back Robert Janis is tackled by a pair of Seton LaSalle defenders during Friday night’s WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinal playoff game at Dormont Stadium. (John Santa/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Class 1A quarterfinals

No. 1 seed Fort Cherry survived a scare from ninth-seeded Cornell, as quarterback Matt Sieg, a Penn State recruit, accounted for four touchdowns to lead the Rangers to a 27-20 victory at West Allegheny. Sieg rushed for 185 yards on 30 carries and scored on runs of 3, 4 and 21 yards for the Fort Cherry (10-0) against Cornell (9-3). He also threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Shane Cornali. Cornell initially took a 12-0 lead on a 56-yard touchdown run by Kylil Johnson before Walter Clarit found pay dirt from a yard out. Quarterback Mark Stuckey also threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Santana Lee to round out Cornell’s scoring.
Quarterback Kymone Brown threw for 133 yards and a score, while also rushing for 139 yards and a touchdown, to lead No. 13 Jeannette to a 29-23 upset victory against fifth-seeded Greensburg Central Catholic at Norwin. Jayce Powell had five catches for 102 yards and a touchdown for the Jayhawks (9-3). Quarterback Samir Crosby threw for 150 yards and a touchdown for the Centurions (8-3). He completed a 7-yard scoring strike to Landon Honick, while Luke Semelka scored on a 5-yard run for GCC and Jackson McMullen added a 12-yard touchdown run.
Quarterback Kole Olszewski completed 12-of-23 passes for 251 yards, a touchdown and interception to lead No. 3 Bishop Canevin to a 17-13 victory against No. 11 South Side Beaver at South Fayette. Olszewski threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Damar Olds, while Jermell Lindsey added a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to put the game away for the Crusaders (9-2). Andrew Corfield scored on runs of 1 and 4 yards for South Side Beaver (7-4).
No. 2 seed Clairton’s dominant defense was at it again, recording its ninth shutout of the season in a 54-0 victory against 10th-seeded California (8-4) at Charleroi. The Bears (12-0) have now outscored their WPIAL playoff competition, 110-0, after last week’s rout of No. 15 Rochester.