Gateway vs. Pine- Richland showdown canceled
Gators player’s test comes back positive
A high school football showdown between Gateway and Pine- Richland scheduled for Friday night was canceled because a Gateway player tested positive for COVID- 19.
Gateway found out Friday morning of the positive test. The player was tested Wednesday night and the status of the game was up in the air until the test results were available. Gateway coach/ athletic director Don Holl was unsure if the Gateway team will have to shut down for 14 days. Regardless, the game against Pine- Richland will not be rescheduled because it is a non- conference game.
“We will talk to the Allegheny County Health Department, and they will give us guidance,” Holl said. “We know the health department takes things case by case. It could be 14 days or it could be something else. Our Number 1 concern right now is to make sure of the safety of the kids, the school and the staff.”
Some other WPIAL teams that have had a player test positive have been shut down for 14 days. Gateway did not practice Thursday because of the pending test result. The team had a meeting through Zoom to go over plans Friday for the game.
Gateway is scheduled to play a WPIAL Big East conference game next Friday against Latrobe and will play Penn- Trafford Oct. 9.
The game against Pine- Richland was one of the best on the third weekend of the WPIAL season. Pine- Richland is the PostGazette’s No. 1- ranked Class 5A team in the WPIAL and state. Gateway is No. 2 in the WPIAL and the state.
East powerhouses gear up
Philadelphia powerhouses St. Joseph’s Prep and Archbishop Wood will get a chance to win another state championship after all.
Both teams had won five PIAA titles since 2013, but it looked as id they would have no chance to win another when the Philadelphia Catholic League decided August 24 to cancel all fall sports because of the COVID- 19 pandemic. Both teams are members of the Catholic League. But the Archdiocese of Philadelphia Schools announced Friday that all 17 high schools may resume interscholastic sports, meaning St. Joseph’s Prep and Archbishop Wood now are cleared to resume play.
St. Joseph’s Prep has won three of the past four Class 6A titles and was the favorite to win a fourth. St. Joe’s lost in the 2017 PIAA Class 6A championship to Pine- Richland. Some national polls had St. Joseph’s ranked among the top 20 teams in the country for this season. St. Joseph’s features quarterback Kyle McCord ( Ohio State recruit), receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. ( Ohio State) and linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. ( Clemson).
In a statement, Sister Maureen McDermott, superintendent of secondary schools for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, said, “Since the late August announcement, our school administrators have worked closely with leadership from the office of Catholic Education and Faith in the Future to meticulously study pandemic metrics, guidelines and school COVID profiles as part of our continuous assessment process. After carefully reviewing all possible factors, including the successful opening of our schools, we believe the environment has changed for the better over the past month.”