Football Preview: Port Allegany Gators vs. Keystone Panthers
Port Allegany has been away from home for two games now, but on Friday they'll finally make their return. They will square off against the Keystone Panthers at 7:00 p.m. One thing working in Port Allegany's favor is that they have posted at least 31 points every time they've taken the field this season.
Port Allegany is headed into the matchup after thoroughly thrashing Cameron County: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Port Allegany blew Cameron County out of the water with a 48-0 final score. The contest was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Gators had established a 41 point advantage.
Aiden Bliss was his usual excellent self, rushing for 219 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 9.5 yards per carry. Bliss is crushing it when it comes to rushing yards: he's rushed for at least 120 every time he's taken the field this season. Tristan Kiser also helped out as he racked up 117 rushing yards.
Port Allegany was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 417 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 179 rushing yards in 21 consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Port Allegany didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Kellen Veilleux, Julian Kaple, and Nick Wilfong picked up one apiece.
Meanwhile, it can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Keystone had no problem doing just that on Friday. Everything went their way against Ridgway/Johnsonburg as they made off with a 42-21 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Panthers.
A big part of Keystone's win came down to the chemistry between Dom Corcetti and his top target Eli Nellis. Corcetti rushed for 206 yards and three touchdowns on only 13 carries while Nellis gained 203 total yards and three touchdowns. Nellis also posted 102 receiving yards, which is notable because Keystone is 2-1 when he posts at least 80 receiving yards, but 3-4 otherwise. Keystone also got help from Drew Keth, who showed off his sure hands for 82 receiving yards.
Keystone pushed their record up to 5-5 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 39.8 points per game. As for Port Allegany, their record is now 10-0.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Port Allegany has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 369.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Keystone struggles in that department as they've been averaging 169.4. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Port Allegany strolled past Keystone in their previous meeting back in August by a score of 35-18. Will Port Allegany repeat their success, or does Keystone have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
