Week 9 preview: Central Valley-New Castle leads a playoff-shaping night in Beaver, Lawrence and Butler counties

By Keystone Clutch Sports

Week 9 is the next-to-last weekend of the WPIAL regular season, and across Beaver, Lawrence and Butler counties it is full of games that will decide who is still playing in November. The biggest one is in New Castle, where Central Valley needs a win to keep its Parkway Conference hopes alive. Conference titles and playoff spots are also on the line in the Midwestern Athletic, Western Hills and Big 7 races.

Most local games kick off at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 23, according to TribLive’s Week 9 schedule and the Beaver County Times. The week starts a night early with OLSH at Beaver on Thursday. Records below are through Week 8. Conference records come from TribLive’s playoff picture, and we checked them against Steel City Blitz’s WPIAL standings.

Game of the week: Central Valley (2-6, 0-2) at New Castle (2-1 Parkway)

Friday, Oct. 23, 7 p.m., Taggart Stadium, New Castle. Class 4A Parkway Conference.

The two teams are coming off very different Fridays. The Red Hurricanes forced four interceptions and won 47-14 at Mars, the Cranberry Eagle reported. TribLive points out that New Castle has also scored 50 against Blackhawk in recent weeks, in a 50-34 win on Oct. 2. Central Valley lost 42-41 in overtime at Blackhawk, according to a USA TODAY Network game story. That followed a 47-7 home loss to McKeesport on Oct. 9 (CBS Pittsburgh/AP scores). The game is on New Castle’s athletics schedule for 7 p.m. at Taggart Stadium, and TribLive says it is the Steelers High School Showcase Game of the Week.

What’s at stake: In Class 4A, the top two teams in each conference make the playoffs, plus two wild cards picked by the WPIAL football committee, per TribLive. This is New Castle’s last Parkway game. Its Week 10 game against Seneca Valley is nonconference. Lawrence County SportsNet writes that New Castle can’t win the conference outright, but a win would put it in position to share the title and, in that outlet’s view, “should” make it safe for the playoffs. Central Valley quarterback Braddock Ambrose summed up his team’s situation to TribLive: “We gotta win two in a row now.”

The math is harsh for Central Valley. Montour, New Castle and Blackhawk each already have two conference wins. A loss would drop the Warriors to 0-3, and they would have no way to finish in the Parkway’s top two.

Also in the Parkway: Mars (2-6, 0-2) at Montour (6-2, 2-0), Friday, 7 p.m.

According to TribLive, Montour clinches a playoff spot and at least a share of the conference title if it beats the Fightin’ Planets. The Spartans beat Elizabeth Forward 49-12 last week, and Mars lost at home to New Castle (CBS/AP). The last Parkway question comes in Week 10, when Montour plays at Blackhawk (7-1, 2-1). Blackhawk plays a nonconference game at Kiski Area on Friday.

Class 3A Western Hills: a three-way fight for third

Aliquippa and Hopewell have both clinched playoff spots at 3-0 in the conference, and they meet at Aliquippa in Week 10, TribLive’s playoff picture shows. In 3A, the top three teams in each conference qualify, plus four wild cards. That leaves Beaver, Ambridge and OLSH tied for third at 1-2.

• OLSH (1-7, 1-2) at Beaver (2-6, 1-2), Thursday, Oct. 22, 7 p.m., Gypsy Glen Stadium. Hopewell beat OLSH 42-14 last Saturday in the 412 Football Classic at F.N.B. Stadium, the West Hills Gazette reported, and Aliquippa shut out Beaver 31-0 last week. The winner moves to 2-2 and takes the lead in the race for the third playoff spot.
• Ambridge (2-6, 1-2) at Hopewell (7-1, 3-0), Friday, 7 p.m. The Vikings play at Aliquippa in Week 10, according to their MaxPreps schedule. Ambridge closes its season at OLSH in Week 10, a game that could decide third place.
• Aliquippa (5-2, 3-0) at Ellwood City (0-8, 0-3), Friday, 7 p.m. The Quips are coming off a 31-0 win over Beaver (CBS/AP). NGSC Sports notes that Aliquippa has outscored its last three opponents 131-7.

Class 2A Midwestern Athletic: Western Beaver at Beaver Falls leads a big night

• Western Beaver (4-4, 4-0) at Beaver Falls (5-2, 3-1), Friday, 7 p.m. Western Beaver has clinched a playoff spot, and Beaver Falls clinches with a win, per TribLive. Quarterback Jeremiah Pratt ran for 285 yards in the Golden Beavers’ 26-10 win over Freedom last week, NILE1 reported. Beaver Falls is coming off a 20-7 win over Riverside, a game in which Xavier Clark ran for 197 yards, according to TribLive. The Beaver County Times said in its Week 9 schedule that a Western Beaver win would set up a conference championship game.
• Riverside (2-2 MAC) at Neshannock (6-2, 4-0), Friday, 7 p.m. Neshannock clinches a playoff spot with a win. If both the Lancers and Western Beaver win, the Week 10 game between them at Neshannock is “for all the marbles,” Lawrence County SportsNet writes. The same outlet says a Riverside win would leave the Panthers at 3-2 in the conference and give them a wild-card case.
• New Brighton (1-3 MAC) at Freedom (4-4, 1-4), Friday, 7 p.m. Lawrence County SportsNet lists both teams as eliminated from the MAC playoff race.

Class A Big 7: Union at Northgate is a play-in game

• Union (3-2 Big 7) at Northgate (3-2 Big 7), Friday, 7 p.m. According to TribLive, either team clinches a playoff spot with a win. That makes this the clearest playoff game of the night for Lawrence County.
• Laurel (6-2, 5-0) at South Side (2-6, 2-3) and Summit Academy (0-8, 0-5) at Shenango (7-0, 5-0), both Friday at 7 p.m. Laurel and Shenango have both clinched, and they meet at Shenango in Week 10 to decide the title. Lawrence County SportsNet says that game will settle the crown either outright or as a share. Last week, Laurel beat Rochester 43-0 and Shenango beat Union 41-0 (CBS/AP).
• Cornell (3-5, 1-4) at Rochester (1-7, 1-4), Friday, 7 p.m.

Butler County and nonconference games

• Norwin (4-4, 1-3) at Seneca Valley (2-5, 0-5), Friday, 7 p.m., Class 6A Quad County. TribLive lists Seneca Valley as eliminated from the playoff race. Norwin plays North Allegheny in Week 10, according to Norwin’s MaxPreps schedule.
• Butler (4-4) at Erie, Friday. The Butler Eagle’s Week 9 picks report that Erie is 2-5 and has lost five straight, and that Butler can still finish with a winning record for the second year in a row.
• Knoch (4-4) at Greensburg Salem (0-8), Friday, 7 p.m., nonconference. The Butler Eagle’s picks column says the Knights’ “faint playoff hopes need this non-conference victory.” Knoch is 1-4 in the Allegheny Seven and finishes at Deer Lakes in Week 10.
• Blackhawk at Kiski Area and Maplewood at Mohawk, both nonconference, Friday at 7 p.m.

What comes next

Week 10 is the last weekend of the regular season, with most games on Friday, Oct. 30. TribLive reports that the 17 WPIAL wild cards will be awarded the morning after the regular season ends, and Lawrence County SportsNet expects the brackets out Halloween weekend. For who has clinched across the WPIAL and how each bracket works, see our WPIAL playoff picture explainer. For several teams in Beaver, Lawrence and Butler counties, Friday decides whether Week 10 is a playoff tune-up or a last chance.

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