Six Ches-Mont squads advance in district playoffs
By Peter DiGiovanni
@PeteDLNontwitter
Week one of the District 1 playoffs is in the books and the opening round in the 4A, 5A and 6A brackets went pretty close to form as just one lower seeded team defeated a higher seed. The Ches-Mont League went 6-2 in the opening round with only West Chester Henderson and Oxford going down to defeat.
One of those Ches-Mont league winners was in the 5A bracket where No. 9 Kennett went on the road and defeated eighth-seeded Chester 31-28, handing the host Clippers their fourth straight loss. The game was sealed when Jaedon Waterman picked off two Isaiah Freeman passes in the fourth period. Kennett now goes on the road again to take on top-seeded West Chester Rustin this Friday. The Golden Knights defeated Kennett, 23-0 in the regular season.
A week after they put up over 400 rushing yards on Downingtown East, Coatesville started the playoffs by blowing out Owen J. Roberts 48-10 in the opening round of the 6A playoffs. The Red Raiders kept up the ground assault by gaining 311 yard on the ground. Coatesville quarterback Harrison Susi ran for 118 yards and threw for 145 yards and is becoming noticed around District 1 as a top quarterback. Coatesville hosts Perkiomen Valley in the second round, team the Red Raiders defeated 35-27 back in week two.
Downingtown East rebounded from a bad loss to Coatesville in the Cougars’ regular season finale with a 21-14 win over Spring-Ford. The Cougars had to withstand a 364 yard passing night from Rams’ quarterback Ryan Freed. Bo Horvath rushed for 170 yards on 33 carries as the Cougars relied on their rushing attack to get the win. Downingtown East will have a tough matchup this Friday as the Cougars host undefeated Quakertown. The Panthers will likely not love being an undefeated team and having to play on the road against the 9-2 Cougars.
West Chester Rustin had a tougher than expected bout with 16th-seeded Interboro in the opening round, but the Golden Knights pulled away in the fourth period for a 34-17 win. Dayshawn Jacobs continued his stellar play by rushing for 137 yards on just 14 carries and sealing the windy returning an interception 62 yards in the fourth period.
Unionville defeated Springfield (Delco) 23-13 in the opening round but the Longhorns were not as sharp as they have been in the second half of the regular season. Unionville lost three fumbles and threw an interception which kept Springfield in the game longer than expected. Unionville will host a tough Academy Park team in the second round this Friday.
Malvern Prep downed Episcopal Academy 17-7 and once again the Friars defense dominated the opposition. Malvern Prep gave up just 41 yards rushing to the Churchmen and now needs a win over Springtide Chestnut Hill on the road this Saturday to claim an outright Inter-Ac League title.
Around District 1, the top seed in the 6A bracket, Garnet Valley, continued to roll as it defeated Haverford 42-0, and No. 2 North Penn rolled over Council Rock South 42-21. Along with Quakertown, the Jaguars and Knights are the only undefeated teams in 6A.
