To prevent the big play against a formidable opponent, you level the playing field.

When the opponent is the second-seeded team in the District Three 6A football playoffs, letting them get away with a couple of big plays early in the game can be devastating.

Hempfield's football team found that out when facing Harrisburg Saturday afternoon, November 13, in the district semifinals at Walter E Severance Field at Harrisburg High School. The Cougars' 1-2 running attack of juniors Mahkai Hopkins and Kyle Williams hurt the Black Knights on special teams as well as rushing yards and stopped Hempfield's quest for a district championship. The Cougars (11-1) punched their ticket to the district title game against Wilson as they defeated Hempfield (7-5) by a 32-10 score.

"When you find yourself in a 14-0 hole early in the game, it's hard to climb out against a really good team," Hempfield head coach George Eager said, referring to the 77-yard punt return by Williams and, on the Cougars' next possession, an 88-yard run by the 6-foot-1, 235-pound Hopkins.

Williams gained 108 yards on 15 carries on the afternoon while Hopkins racked up 206 yards of real estate on 17 rushing attempts.

"They had a really nice tandem in the backfield - a power back and a speedy shifty runner too," Eager said, referring to Hopkins and the 6-foot, 175-pound Williams, respectively.

The Hempfield offense did respond with a drive that reached the Cougars' four-yard line. Cannon Biscoe split the uprights on a 21-yard field goal attempt, making it 14-3 Harrisburg.

"We drove all the way inside their five-yard line," Eager noted. "That was a difference maker because we had to settle for a field goal.

"We were able to have some success [on drives] but stalled out either close to the red zone or even before that," the coach continued. "In the second half there were at least two drives that stalled out near midfield - one of them on a fourth-and-one that we didn't convert."

Williams capped third-quarter drive with a 22-yard touchdown dash to make it 20-3 Cougars. He added a 17-yard touchdown run to increase the home team's lead to 26-3.

"What hurt us in the third quarter was our struggle to tackle," Eager noted, referring mainly to the drive that put Harrisburg up 20-3. "On that drive, they converted a third-and-long where the quarterback scrambled for a first down. Instead of keeping them to a three-and-out right there, we got down 20-3 and with the momentum on their side."

Senior quarterback Cam Harbaugh, who finished with 130 yards passing on 15 completions, put the Knights in the endzone with a seven-yard scoring toss to Aidan Shorter in the fourth quarter. Harbaugh found Andy Garcia for six of his 15 completions and for 44 yards. Micah Gates had four catches for 37 yards while Tom Minnich grabbed three passes for 30 yards.

Harbaugh added 43 rushing yards to his offensive contribution. Stephen Katch carried the ball 10 times for 41 yards and Grant Hoover had seven carries for 33 yards.

Looking ahead to next season, Eager pointed out the departure of senior signal caller Harbaugh.

Cody Gehres and Jackson Landis could be competing for the starting position behind center. Gehres will be a senior while Landis will be playing his junior season.

"We're excited to have Michael Shaffer and Deyvid Palepale back next year," Eager said. "With those two, we would be able to run the ball behind them.

"Grant Hoover will give us a boost at running back, and kick return plus Stephen Katch will be coming back. Both of those guys will be our new quarterback's best friend in terms of running the ball."

The defensive secondary could also be returning plenty of experience with Gabe Benjamin, Braydon Felsinger, and Brian Williams - all of whom will be seniors.

"They played the majority of the year," said Eager. "We should be strong in that department."

"Aidan Shorter and Jacob Karkoska - our inside linebackers - are also coming back," he added.

As for the loss to end the strong 2021 campaign, Eager said, "When you have a tough loss and you have guys that are done playing here at Hempfield, I just wanted to recognize the seniors and give them the credit they deserved."

VOLLEYBALL

Hempfield's volleyball team traveled to Altoona as the neutral site for the PIAA Class 4A state quarterfinals on Saturday, November 13, where they faced District Three runner up Shaler.

The Titans came back to win the tiebreaker fifth set of the match by a 15-13 score and advanced to the state semis, where they faced District Seven champ North Allegheny. It was actually a doubleheader at Altoona where No. Allegheny swept Elizabethtown (another District Three entry) by a 3-0 count.

Hempfield (18-1) battled back in this match after trailing 2-0. The Titans opened with a 25-17 victory and eked out a 25-23 win in the second set only to see the Black Knights post 25-20 and 25-19 victories to knot the match at two sets per side.

Senior Camille De La Torre came through with 10 kills, 10 digs, and six aces for the Black Knights. Fellow seniors Allison Cummings (31 digs) and Joslene Morgan (14 kills, five blocks) also paced Hempfield while junior Sarah Hess equaled De La Torre's total of 10 kills. Freshman Addie Leber led the squad in kills with 15 while sophomore Melody Butzer dished out a team-high 46 assists to go along with her 20 digs and three aces.