High school football kicks off Friday night

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Mercer High senior quarterback Andrew Erdos. Patrick Connelly/Allied News.
Slippery Rock High running back Justin Angerett. Patrick Connelly/Allied News.
Grove City High head football coach Jeff Bell. Patrick Connelly/Allied News.
Lakeview High quarterback Jeremy Westlake. Patrick Connelly/Allied News.

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September 3, 2009

By Patrick Connelly/Sports Editor Allied News Thu Sep 03, 2009, 11:53 AM EDT

The 2009 high school football season kicks off this weekend, with all four local teams meeting non-region opponents.

Here’s a look at the opening games for Mercer, Slippery Rock, Grove City and Lakeview:

— MERCYHURST PREP AT MERCER — Four-year Mercer High starting quarterback Andrew Erdos and the Mustangs will begin the team’s quest to return to the playoffs at 7 p.m. Friday when the Mercyhurst Prep Lakers come to town for what could very well be a District 10 Class A championship preview.

The Mustangs were 11-2 last season under head coach Pat McClearn, with both losses coming against Linesville. Mercer launched one of the best seasons in school annals with a 26-14 win at Mercyhurst Prep.

The key to Mercer’s success will be replacing five starters on the offensive line who graduated. In addition to the leadership of the veteran Erdos (6-2, 215), the Mustang backfield will also include senior Rawlins Huntley (5-9, 180).

Coach Matt Morgan’s Lakers are coming off a 5-5 season. Tony Cordovano, a senior, is projected as the team’s quarterback in place of Marshall Huntsman, who averaged about 69 yards passing per game in 2008, but had only eight against Mercer.

— SLIPPERY ROCK AT FORT LeBOEUF — Coach Glenn “Pops” Hazlett’s first game as Slippery Rock High’s head coach will come at 7 p.m. Friday when the Rockets visit Fort LeBoeuf.

Coach John Campbell’s Bison are coming off a 4-6 season and junior Jake Green is expected to make his first start for Fort LeBoeuf against Slippery Rock.

Hazlett said he believes senior Ayron Gallagher (5-11, 190) has the edge over sophomore Sean White (5-10, 155) as Slippery Rock’s starting quarterback, while senior Justin Angerett (5-9, 150) and junior Alec McDeavitt (6-1, 170) will handle rushing duties.

— GROVE CITY AT ERIE CENTRAL TECH — Jeff Bell will begin his 13th season as Grove City High's head coach at 1 p.m. Saturday when the Eagles visit Erie Central Tech.

Grove City suffered a 21-12 setback at home last season when the Eagles opened with the Falcons and Bell said it will be important for his team to get wins in the first few games before beginning a rigid schedule in District 10’s Class AAA Region 5.

Central Tech went on to win just one other game in 2008 — a 16-8 triumph over Erie East who Grove City meets Sept. 11.

Head coach Jason Beer is the Falcons taskmaster this season and will guide a team that had 26 juniors and sophomores on it’s roster in 2008, including projected quarterback Erick Blue, a junior.

Grove City sophomores Tyler Dagres (6-0, 180) and Mason DePeal (6-2, 170) are competing for Bell’s nod as the starting quarterback and the coach said he expects both will see playing time against Central Tech.

Seniors Marty Phipps (5-10, 170) and Nick Reddick (5-11, 200) will share running back duties in the game, Bell said.

— UNION CITY AT LAKEVIEW — Coach Dan York’s Lakeview High Sailors will open the season at 7 p.m. Saturday when Union City visits Stoneboro.

The Sailors will look to avenge a 14-0 defeat at the hands of the Bears when Lakeview visited Union City to open the 2008 campaign.

Union City finished last season with a 7-3 record, but ended it with a downer after being shutout 25-0 by Farrell in the District 10 Class A playoffs.

Lakeview is looking to rebound from a 4-5 season under York as senior Jeremy Westlake (6-1, 175) takes the reigns of the Sailors’ run-first offense that includes new running back Kyle Scott (5-10, 155), a senior who York said has the ability to pick up big yards when the team needs them most.

Senior quarterback Lewis Pisani is expected to guide the Union City charge under coach Brian Patten, who is just 9-21 since becoming the school’s coach.

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STONEBORO – In high school, teachers will give pretests as a way for their students to prepare for an upcoming exam.
The Lakeview Sailors (13-4) received their ‘pretest’ last Monday in the form of Region 5-AA foe Iroquois (8-7) and passed it with a solid ‘A’ by beating the Braves 73-53.
“We really wanted to make this somewhat of a statement game,” Lakeview coach Gary Burke said. “We know Iroquois is fighting for their lives to get into District 10 playoffs. We knew they took Mercyhurst Prep to the wire Friday night. We wanted to prove that we can play the game pretty well down here in the south. It’s been a long time since (Mercer County) team has gone to the playoffs and performed well. This was a great test for us to give us that Erie County flavor. I couldn’t be happier with the performance.”

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