Penn-Trafford wins WCCA 7-on-7 football tournament
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Thursday, July 18, 2024 | 7:18 PM
Latrobe’s John Wetzel defends against Penn-Trafford’s Jessie Lisbon during the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Larry Sellitto Memorial 7-on-7 on Thursday.
Penn-Trafford’s Tyler Boss breaks up a pass intended for Latrobe’s Alex Tatsch in the end zone Thursday.
Penn-Trafford’s Tyler Boss stretches the ball to the end zone against Labrobe during the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Larry Sellitto Memorial 7-on-7 on Thursday.
Penn-Trafford’s Tyler Boss breaks up a past intended for Latrobe’s Andy Tatsch in the end zone during the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Larry Sellitto Memorial 7-on-7 on Thursday.
The championship plaque and the balance of power at the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Larry Sellitto Memorial 7-on-7 football passing tournament are back in the hands of Penn-Trafford.
The Warriors, a perennial contender in the event, reached the final for the 10th time in 13 years and claimed their sixth title with a 24-7 victory over two-time defending champion and host Latrobe on Thursday at Rossi Field.
It was their first county championship since 2018.
“We feel good about this group,” Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane said. “We corrected a ton of mistakes. I think we’re more mature as a group than we were at this time last year.”
The Warriors finished 6-0 playing 25-minute games on 40-yard fields and collected a convincing win in the final, with the two-quarterback rotation of seniors Jonny Lovre and Derek Carr working in tandem.
Carr threw two touchdown passes, both to senior running back Tasso Whipple, and Lovre opened the scoring with a scoring strike to junior Tyler Boss as the Warriors scored 17 unanswered points, including a pair of defensive stops.
Senior Jesse Lisbon caught two conversion passes.
Touch football in July doesn’t excite too many coaches, but it gives teams a chance to compete and allows quarterbacks, receivers and defensive backs to work on their timing.
“It’s good to compete and win,” Ruane said. “But at the end of the day, it means nothing. Everyone is competing in underwear.
“Latrobe has a big, strong, physical football team. We’ll see them again in Week 10. This is 7-on-7. That will mean a lot more.”
Latrobe, much improved and expected to be a factor in 5A this season, was trying to become the first team to win three straight WCCA titles since Penn-Trafford in 2013, ’14 and ’15.
Penn-Trafford lost to Latrobe in the championship in 2022, 15-9.
The Wildcats’ Division I duo hooked up early as Senior John Wetzel hit senior Alex Tatsch with a touchdown pass to tie it 7-7.
Wetzel is headed to Marshall to play safety, Tatsch to Penn State as a linebacker.
“We played well most of the day, and we saw some things we wanted to see,” said Latrobe coach Ron Prady, who was an assistant at Penn-Trafford for 10 years. “The day was productive. (Penn-Trafford) does a good job of taking away windows.”
Penn-Trafford was efficient finishing drives, scoring 172 points in six games for a 28.7 average.
It also defeated Valley (33-12), Mt. Pleasant (33-10), Yough (24-0), Latrobe’s B team (30-7) and Ligonier Valley (28-6).
“After not playing well last year, this was more of a solid performance,” Lovre said. “Our receivers meshed a lot better. We’re all a big band of brothers, and we want to win.”
Lovre said he is unsure if he and Carr will share reps during the season.
“Coach Ruane likes to play two quarterbacks and has done it before,” Lovre said. “We played rock paper scissors to decide who started (the first game) today.”
Latrobe (5-1), which scored 30 or more points in three of six games, saw two key cornerbacks go out with hamstring injuries early in the day. It played the final without senior Vince Gaskey and junior Sawyer Butina.
Their absence prompted Tatsch’s move to receiver.
“I didn’t know I’d be catching passes until right before (the final),” Tatsch said.
The Wildcats had only been stopped twice on downs all day before the title game. Wetzel appeared frustrated after the championship.
Wetzel was efficient and did not throw an interception.
“I told him, hey, you’re 17-1 in this (event),” Prady said. “Don’t worry about it.”
Southmoreland, which has several offensive weapons, finished second in Pool B behind Latrobe (4-1).
The Scotties also played two QBs in impressive freshman Anthony Smith and junior Caden Matthews.
“I thought we played well,” Scotties coach Tim Bukowski said. “A lot of guys made plays on both sides of the ball. There was good competition, and I thought Elliot Premus put on a show.”
Franklin Regional had a shot at winning Pool A, but a tie took away the Panthers’ chance at a point-differential tiebreaker with Penn-Trafford.
The Panthers tied Norwin, 15-15.
“I think we did a lot of good things,” Panthers coach Lance Getsy said. “The kids had fun and competed. Competition is always nice, but we are excited to put on pads and get into football mode.”
Kiski Area scored the most points in a single game in a 35-14 win over Greensburg Salem.
Kiski Area, Greensburg Salem and Mt. Pleasant all finished 3-2 in pool play.
Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.
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