Final push to the playoffs has begun
Pennridge, Souderton in, CB West out of 6A field with two weeks to go
After a 2-3 start to the season, the Pennridge football team has put itself back into the District 1-6A playoff mix with three straight wins, the most recent a 45-3 rout of William Tennent last Friday.
Yet with two weeks to go until the inaugural six-class postseason kicks off, the Rams — along with several other local squads — still have plenty of work to do to secure their spots.
Pennridge (5-3) is tied with Garnet Valley for 11th in the most recent district power rankings but has a big opportunity to move up as the Rams visit Central Bucks South for Suburban One League Continental Conference clash 7 p.m. Friday.
“It’s our step four of five,” said Pennridge’s Josh Pinkney of facing CB South last Friday after the Rams’ win over Tennent. “We just need to play hard, run hard. Be smart. Be smart and just play hard.”
The Titans (6-2) sit in sixth place in the rankings after ending a two-game skid by holding off Central Bucks West 14-7 last Friday.
The five combined losses between Pennridge and South — who are tied for second in the SOL Continental at 3-1 — have all come against the top three teams — North Penn, Neshaminy and Perkiomen Valley, respectively — in the 6A rankings.
Just ahead of Pennridge are Plymouth Whitemarsh at eighth and Spring-Ford at 10. PW (7-1) took control of the SOL American race with wins over Upper Dublin (24-21) in Week 7 and Hatboro-Horsham (35-13) last Friday and at the most is in line for host a district first round
game. Staying on that path means earning a win over visiting Cheltenham Friday. The Colonials have won seven straight since dropping their season opener to Souderton.
Spring-Ford (6-2), meanwhile, has its eyes on getting into the district top eight and a home opener to being the postseason. The Rams bounced back from a loss to Perk Valley by blasting Boyertown 52-0 last Friday and at home against 4-4 Owen J. Roberts 2 p.m. Saturday.
Souderton is just in the 6A field, holding the 15th spot ahead of No. 16 Haverford, which hosts Lansdale Catholic 7 p.m. Friday. Souderton (4-4), which steps out of Continental play to host Truman 7 p.m. Friday, began the season 3-0 but has lost four of its past five, last week trailing North Penn 41-0 at half en route to a 48-13 defeat.
Central Bucks West has followed a similar route to 4-4 as the Indians, but finds itself outside the playoff field at No. 19. After a 3-0 start, the Bucks have gone 1-4, losing their last two and need to knock of visiting Central Bucks East (6-2) — ninth in the power rankings — to keep playoff hopes going.
In Class 5A, which like 6A has a 16-team tournament, Upper Dublin (6-1) is currently fourth in the power rankings behind No. 1 Springfield-Delco, No. 2 Academy Park and No. 3 Marple Newtown. After dropped their first game of the season to PW in Week 7, the Cardinals were off last week but picked up a forfeit win over Springfield-Montco and are back in action Friday visiting Hatboro-Horsham at 7 p.m.
In Class 4A, Pope John Paul II is tied for the fourth and final playoff spot with fellow PAC Freedom Division member Pottstown at 81.25 points. The Golden Panthers (3-5) have dropped two straight after a three-game win streak that included a 20-6 win over Pottstown (2-6) and now host a Pottsgrove team Saturday that has scored 50.3 points per game in division play.
Catholic League
The first place in the Philadelphia Catholic League is on the line 2 p.m. Saturday at Plymouth Whitemarsh as La Salle clashes with rival St. Joseph’s Prep. La Salle (5-2, 4-0 division) comes into the matchup having won four straight after a 1-2 start, last Saturday edging Roman Catholic 17-16. Prep (6-0, 4-0) is 18th in USA’s Super 25 national ranking after rolling past Father Judge 35-13 last Friday.
The last time the Explorers and Hawks met was at PW in the 2015 PCL Class AAAA Division championship game with Nick Rinella’ 24-yard touchdown grab in the final minute giving La Salle a 29-28 win that ended Prep’s run at a third consecutive PIAA title.
Lansdale Catholic (2-5, 2-3 PCL Blue) which ended a three-game skid last Saturday in a 41-8 win over Neumann-Goretti, steps out of league play to visit 6A Haverford looking to keep alive its chances to make the four-team District 1/12 3A subregional playoff. LC currently fifth in the standings with the four-team postseason qualifying a team each from the PCL, Philadelphia Public League and District 1 along with a four team based on the power rankings.