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By Brian Carroll
Taking nothing away from the massive preparation and effort that has gone into the first six weeks of the 2023 football season, Week 7 of the Central League schedule has had a game circled for months. After Strath Haven and Garnet Valley did not meet in 2022 and both ran the table to share the Central League title, fans of both programs wondered if this week’s game could have similar implications. Sure enough, the Panthers and Jaguars both sit undefeated in league play, and two of Delaware County’s most dominant programs of the last 40 years will indeed battle for first place in Glen Mills this Friday.
Garnet Valley sits at 5-1 this season, their only blemish being a 17-13 loss on opening weekend to 6A #1 seed Central Bucks West. Since then, Head Coach Erik Van Wyk and the defending District 1 6A champions have stayed the course, riding their veer/triple option offense and an aggressive defense to five straight victories, including last week’s 10-8 defensive gem against Lower Merion. Injuries have necessitated a bevy of ball carriers, with quarterbacks #9 Tyler Lassik and #19 Luke O’Donoghue each having success on the ground and connecting on timely passes through the air. Top targets in the passing game include seniors #11 Dante DeVuono and #1 Kai Lopez, while eleven different runners have followed senior linemen #69 Dylan Bledsoe, #78 Max DiAntonio, and #73 Lucas Possenti to big gains on the ground. Defensively, Bledsoe and DiAntonio have been tough to move in the middle, while junior linebackers #21 Luke Vaughn and #42 Caden Olinger have made big plays on the edges. Injuries have reshuffled some of the back seven, but senior #7 Nick Romaniello and juniors #47 Chase Britton and #20 Nolan Carroll are amongst the Jags’ leading tacklers, with recent contributions from #4 Chase Wilt and #44 Paxton Hunt.
Strath Haven got the offense rolling last week in dominating fashion, piling up 462 rushing yards and finding the end zone on every offensive possession in a 54-7 pounding of Radnor. Six different Panthers found the end zone, including #34 Vince Hales and #35 Ryan Mudrick for the first time this season. #5 James Fisher continued to be a threat from all directions, rolling for 123 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and finding the end zone for a third time on a 23-yard pass from #6 Jake Kitchin as time expired in the second quarter. Defensively, #44 Sean Henry and #20 Marco Kaufman were excellent at linebacker, while #81 Jahi Curtis was disruptive up front with a fumble recovery, a tackle for loss, and two passes batted down at the line of scrimmage. Leading into this week, the Panthers defense will be tested at every level in trying to slow down a unique and strong Garnet Valley attack.
The Panthers win last week was the 350th of Head Coach Kevin Clancy’s career, 283 of those coming at Strath Haven. Amongst those wins include 12 Central League titles, 12 District 1 titles, and two PA State titles. Yet Garnet Valley has piled up quite a resume over the last two decades, as well, winning or sharing 9 of the last 15 Central League titles, and grabbing back-to-back District 1 titles in both 2006-2007, and 2021-2022. And with a winning streak in the Central League that dates back to October 2017, the Jaguars have no interest in seeing that end on their home turf this week.
The Panthers’ third road trip in a row will give them an opportunity to knock off Garnet Valley for the first time since 2010, so plan to arrive at the stadium early for the pregame musicians and fanfare before the 7pm kickoff. If you cannot attend in person, all the action will be on the livestream beginning at 6:45pm on www.havenfootball.net. Both the Panthers and Jaguars this season have had convincing blowout victories, and both have pulled off wins in down-to-the-wire nail-biters, so this Friday certainly should not lack for excitement! Go Panthers!
