PIAA Class A Playoff Home

By Chris Rossetti

SHARON – Fresh off district titles, Clarion-Limestone (11-0) and West Middlesex (9-2) meet at 7 p.m. Friday night at Sharon in the opening round of the PIAA Class A Playoffs.

C-L earned the right to play in the state playoffs with a 27-14 win over Kane in the District 9 Class A playoffs, while West Middlesex defeated Eisenhower 21-17 in the District 10 Class A title game to reach the state playoffs.

The game marks the first trip to the PIAA playoffs for C-L since they lost 20-18 in the opening round to Eisenhower in 1993. It is the first-ever trip to the title game for West Middlesex.

"Everybody is excited about being here," West Middlesex head coach Rick Resatar said. "The kids have been working real hard for a long time to get to this point. We have come a long way in six years. This is what we have been working toward. It is where every program wants to go."

"It is just great for these kids," C-L head coach John Kundick. "They have been working toward this for a long time."

Clarion-Limestone comes into the game ranked ninth in Class A in the state by the Pennsylvania Football News, while West Middlesex is Honorable Mention.

The Lions success this season has come on both sides of the football. C-L is averaging 38.7 ppg while allowing 7.5 ppg. The Lions are ranked 14^th in the state in scoring offense and 19^th in scoring defense.

"I have told our kids that we have to respect the things that they have done, but we don’t have to be impressed by them. By that I mean we can’t be in awe of what they have done. We have to come out and play our football game."

The Big Red are averaging 20.6 ppg while allowing 12.8 ppg. They rank 259^th in the state in scoring and 123 in defense.

Sophomore quarterback Hayden Johnston paces the Lions offense. Johnston is 48-for-102 passing this season for 782 yards and 14 touchdowns while throwing just five interceptions. He has also run the ball 132 times for 698 yards and nine touchdowns. In the District 9 title game he threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third.

"Hayden is an important part of our offense," Kundick said. "He plays the position well. He ran run and throw the ball well, and he can read the defense well."

Junior running back Brendan Huwar is the leading rusher for the Lions carrying the ball 163 times for 876 yards and 22 touchdowns. Senior fullback Ben Brooks is adding 96 carries for 868 yards and five touchdowns.

"Both Brendan and Ben are hard workers," Kundick said. "They have been real keys to our success. At the same time our offensive line deserves a lot of credit. Those kids have done an outstanding job this season."

The main receivers for the Lions are junior wide receiver Brad Beggs and senior tight end Harley Doane.

Beggs has 26 catches for 430 yards and eight touchdowns, while Doane has 12 catches for 153 yards three scores. Both players had touchdown catches in the district title game.

The Lions defense has played a big role in C-L’s postseason success scoring a touchdown in each of the Lions playoff games. Ben Brooks took back an interception for a score in C-L’s 21-19 opening round win over Ridgway, while his younger brother David took back an interception for a touchdown in the title game.

C-L’s defense has also come up with the big stop when need. In the Ridgway game it came on the Elker’s two-point conversion attempt late in the game that would have tied the game, while in the Kane game it came on a fourth-and-1 play at the C-L 19-yard line late in the third quarter with the Lions clutching to a 20-14 lead.

Senior quarterback Jake Buzard directs West Middlesex’s attack. Buzard is 65-for-119 passing this season for 907 yards and five touchdowns. Buzard threw for over 1,400 yards his junior season and has thrown for the third most yards in Mercer County history.

"Jake is an outstanding player," Resatar said. "The reason we haven’t thrown the ball much this season is because we have been able to run the ball. We are a little bit more of a smash-mouth football team."

Dan Michalcak and Josh Fette lead the Big Red rushing attack. Michalcak has rushed for 610 yards and seven scores in 2002, while Fette has 415 yards and seven touchdowns.

"Dan is a hard-nosed runner," Resatar said. "He has pretty good speed and great vision. He is a dangerous runner in the open field.

"Josh is a little fireplug. He wants the football every play. He won’t make many moves. He just wants to run over you. He is a bruising, punishing kid. I can’t say enough about both kids. They have been outstanding."

Giani Ruffo is the leading receiver for West Middlesex with 19 catches for 276 yards and two touchdowns.

Another key offensive player for the Big Red, especially in the playoffs, has been Joe Habarka. Habarka caught two touchdown passes in the West Middlesex game, and also had a key catch in the playoff win over Cambridge Springs.

"Those were two clutch touchdown catches he made last week," Resatar said.

On defense, West Middlesex has held its opponents to 7 or fewer points in five of its 11 games. The most points scored on the Big Red this season was 38 in a 38-16 loss at Saegertown Sept. 27. Since that loss, its second in a row, West Middlesex has rolled off six straight wins outscoring its opponents by an average of 20-9.5.

In the playoffs, the Big Red have won the close ones defeating Cambridge Springs 7-6 and Eisenhower 21-17.