{"id":76192,"date":"2014-12-02T18:21:41","date_gmt":"2014-12-02T18:21:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sandbox.web.rcn.net\/rcntv\/?p=76192"},"modified":"2023-04-18T19:59:21","modified_gmt":"2023-04-18T19:59:21","slug":"sportstalk-shop-hs-football-playoffs-recap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/sportstalk-shop-hs-football-playoffs-recap\/","title":{"rendered":"The SportsTalk Shop:  HS Football Playoffs Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>It was another interesting high school football playoff season, with plenty of drama, surprises and exciting finishes.\u00a0 Today, we take a look at the bigger schools in the Lehigh Valley and their playoff runs in the district and state tournaments (more comments and opinions of this year\u2019s high school football season, as well as Penn State football talk, on this Thursday\u2019s \u201cRCN SportsTalk\u201d show\u2014live at 6pm).<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Class 4A<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\nAmong the most anticipated match-ups of the District XI players was the rematch of Freedom and Whitehall.\u00a0 Both teams had outstanding 2014 campaigns and their contest during the regular season ended in overtime with a thrilling, come-from-behind victory by the Patriots.\u00a0 The playoff match-up was also very competitive, with Freedom continuing its amazing turnaround season with a win over the Zephyrs.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LUAwsT7KcGc\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The Patriots, as we have discussed in earlier posts this fall, were one of the most remarkable stories in Pennsylvania this season, bouncing back from a 2-8 season last year to advancing into the quarterfinals of the District 2\/4\/11 sub-regionals before losing to Easton.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4wZkXJNKIx8\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The Rovers were another great story this year.\u00a0 While the pre-season prognosticators had Easton picked anywhere from second to fifth (and don\u2019t think for a moment that the players and coaches were not aware of those \u2018lower\u2019 expectations), one of PA\u2019s most successful programs ran through a very tough Eastern Pennsylvania Conference without a blemish, and continued to look solid in its quarterfinal game against Pleasant Valley (the Bears were making their second consecutive district playoff appearance).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/M9itdgxraCA\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>After losing to Whitehall midway through the regular season, Parkland dropped off the radar\u2014well, as much as they can due to their decades-long success\u2014and opened the sub-regional playoffs as the seventh-seeded team having to travel outside the Lehigh Valley to advance in the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GF8ExxK4sm8\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>While the Trojans didn\u2019t appear as dominant offensively as they might have in previous years, they were solid enough and teamed with a smothering defense to topple Easton in overtime and earn their third consecutive District XI championship.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uYqSWPICxHo\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Parkland became just the third school since 1993 to \u201cthree-peat\u201d as consecutive District XI football champ in ANY of the area\u2019s classifications.\u00a0 With quarterback DeVante Cross and many more talented players coming back in 2015, look for the red-and-silver again to be right in, or above, the elite teams when next season comes around.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>CLASS 3A<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\nBethlehem Catholic was once again the favorite heading into this year\u2019s District XI 3A tourney, and certainly was on a mission to prove that it was the best team in the classification this year.\u00a0 They had plenty of motivation:\u00a0 \u00a0a tighter-than-expected win in last year\u2019s district playoffs, a quicker-than-expected exit in the state playoffs in 2013, a disappointing loss to Stroudsburg destroying their hopes of a perfect season this fall and, oh, yeah, the initial report that they were going to be excluded from the new league.<\/p>\n<p>Despite any potential distractions, the players went out and clearly took care of business in both the opening round of the districts and the PIAA playoffs.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UrAwdOVmTQs\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Two of the most exciting games I got a chance to call on RCN TV all year were the two games played between Saucon Valley and Southern Lehigh.\u00a0 In the first matchup, the Panthers jumped out to a huge lead and then hung on to beat the Spartans.\u00a0 In their second contest, with the right to move on to the District 3A title game up for grabs, the roles were reversed, with the Spartans taking a big lead early.\u00a0 However, that didn\u2019t stop Saucon Valley from making for an exciting finish.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/b_DHfMCfAHA\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>I wouldn\u2019t be surprised to see Saucon Valley as the 2015 favorite in the Colonial League. \u00a0However, they weren\u2019t very happy, as were quite a few area football fans, by the end of their 3A championship game against Becahi.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/U3r2G-YkfZ0\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>There were some interesting comments about the ending of the game, and some of the late-game actions and post-game comments did not sit well with each other\u2019s fan base.\u00a0 It would certainly be interesting to see a rematch between these two programs next year\u2026but, well, let\u2019s just enjoy the holiday season for now and some other sports action before we start going there!<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t forget, you can relive all of these teams\u2019 biggest playoff games by watching them again, for free, on RCN On Demand.\u00a0 These games will be available to watch for two months following their initial airdates, and you can purchase DVD copies of the games as well by contacting us at RCN. \u00a0And don\u2019t forget to join us on next week\u2019s \u201cSportsTalk\u201d show as we\u2019ll feature some of the state championship teams on our Thursday program.<\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It was another interesting high school football playoff season, with plenty of drama, surprises and exciting finishes.\u00a0 Today, we take a 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