South Park put up some big numbers offensively and defensively on Friday.
The Eagles collected 362 yards rushing, and defensive lineman Troy Cunningham set a school record with six sacks.
And while the special teams wasn’t one of the biggest stories of the night, the Eagles certainly showed that this is a special team by doing something they had not done in 19 years.
Eric Doerue and Colsen Heynes combined to rush for 289 yards and four touchdowns to put No. 2 South Park into the WPIAL final for the first time since 2005 following a 28-7 win against No. 3 Ellwood City in a Class 2A semifinal at North Allegheny.
“We’re rich in our history,” second-year coach Brian Abbey said. “We talk to our kids a lot about what’s already happened here, and now they’re cementing their own legacy.”
South Park (11-1) will face No. 1 Seton LaSalle (11-0) in the championship at 2 p.m. Nov. 23 at Acrisure Stadium. It will be South Park’s third time in the final, and Abbey will have been a part of all three teams. A 2001 South Park graduate, Abbey was a freshman on the 1997 team that won the title at Three Rivers Stadium and was an assistant coach on the 2005 team that claimed the title at Heinz Field. Ellwood City (10-1), which won its only title in 1925, was seeking its first trip to the final since 1987.
In a matchup of two of the stingiest defenses in Class 2A, South Park flexed its muscles. The Eagles forced four turnovers, held Ellwood City to 198 yards, and allowed the Wolverines to go just 3 of 14 on third downs. The Eagles give up 11.6 points a game on the season and have not surrendered more than 13 in a game since Sept. 20.
“They were getting after it,” Abbey said. “Our guys had a nice plan. We got off to a slow start offensively, but the defense helped us get going.”
Of Cunningham’s record-setting performance, Abbey said: “He’s been playing well all year. I couldn’t believe it when I heard that number (six sacks), but he was in the backfield all night.”
Ellwood City scored the game’s first touchdown when Chris Smiley hooked up with DaiLonn Currie for an 18-yard score to give the Wolverines a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, but that’s the last the Wolverines’ offense would be heard from.
Doerue and Heynes accounted for all four South Park touchdowns. Heynes ran for a 37-yard touchdown in the first quarter and Doerue a 48-yard touchdown in the second. Heynes would add a 30-yard touchdown and Doerue a 1-yard score in the third to give the Eagles a commanding lead.
Heynes, who entered the night with 113 yards and two touchdowns the entire season, finished with 151 yards and two touchdowns on five carries. Doerue, who came into the game with 1,458 yards and 21 touchdowns on the season, added to his season total by running for 138 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries.
“Establishing a running game, it’s what we pride ourselves in,” Abbey said. “It wears on you.”
South Park now gets a familiar opponent in the final. Like the Eagles, Seton LaSalle moved down from Class 3A to Class 2A this season. The two played in the same conference the previous two seasons. South Park won at Seton LaSalle, 35-28, a season ago.
“We respect them and we know the challenge that lies ahead of us,” Abbey said. “We’re going to get back to work and prepare to play them. They’ve got playmakers all over the field and big strong kids. It should be a good game.”
Other Class 2A semifinal
• Logan King ran for 134 yards and three touchdowns to vault Seton LaSalle into the final for the first time since 2004 courtesy of a 27-13 win against No. 4 Steel Valley (9-4) at West Mifflin.
All three of King’s touchdowns (17, 3 and 1 yard) came in the first two quarters for Seton LaSalle, which built a 27-0 halftime lead. King also played a part in the Rebels’ other touchdown, as he tossed a 5-yard touchdown to Khalil Taylor, who finished the game with seven catches for 75 yards.
Steel Valley was attempting to advance to the final for the third year in a row. The Ironmen won the title in 2022 and were the runners-up last season. Da’Ron Barksdale had touchdown runs of 35 and 10 yards in the fourth quarter for the Ironmen, who committed five turnovers.
Seton LaSalle, which went 0-10 two seasons ago and 5-5 last season, has won all but one of its games by double-digits.
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.