By Philip See for WVMetroNews.com
Class AAA No. 6 Capital (8-3) at No. 3 University (11-0)
Capital finds itself back in the quarterfinals after a 63-21 blowout victory over Wheeling Park, marking the fifth consecutive season the Cougars will appear in the second round of the playoffs.
Junior quarterback Kerry Martin was again the pacesetter for the Capital offense, racking up more than 300 yards of total offense. Martin threw for 139 yards and 3 touchdowns and added another 170 yards and two more scores on the ground in just 10 rushing attempts.
“He did a good job of getting the ball to the right places,” Capital coach Jon Carpenter said of his quarterback. “We called all those plays at the line of scrimmage.
“Wheeling Park does a great job on defense. He (Martin) did a good job of getting us in the right play and executing it. It gives us a good shot when he’s on.”
The focus for Capital in its quest to make a fifth consecutive trip to the semifinals turns to undefeated University. The Hawks advanced to the second round with a comfortable 37-7 victory over Spring Mills.
University is a constant in the AAA playoffs, but it has struggled against Kanawha Valley playoff opponents in recent years. The Hawks lost big to Capital in the 2013 quarterfinals and then dropped home contests against South Charleston in the 2014 quarterfinals and Hurricane in the opening round last year.
“They don’t make many mistakes,” Carpenter said of University. “You can tell they’re coached by some people who have been around for a while. They have a good quarterback and good receivers, just like we do.
“They’re on a roll and have won all of their games,” he continued. “They must be doing something right. They don’t have many weaknesses and they have a mental edge to them – it’s hard to go undefeated.”
While University looks to snap its playoff skid against Kanawha Valley teams, Capital looks forward to a tough road test to try to make it back to the semifinals and beyond.
“We’re excited to go up there,” Carpenter said of the trip to Morgantown. “I think it’s a neat place to go in football season. Every kid in West Virginia thinks that’s the mecca of football, with everybody being a West Virginia fan.
“With an undefeated team, your work’s cut out for you. I think our kids will be excited for it.”
Class AA No. 11 Winfield (8-3) at No. 3 Bridgeport (10-1)
Winfield was finally able to break through against James Monroe, knocking off the Mavericks 29-0 to advance to the quarterfinals. The win marks the first playoff victory for the Generals since 2000.
“I think we’re playing very well,” Winfield coach Craig Snyder said. “Had it not been for three turnovers in the second quarter (against James Monroe), we possibly would have been closer to our regular scoring average.
“I really think the key to this (win) was our defense. Going into the fourth quarter, James Monroe only had one first down. Our defense was really key.”
The Generals will need to continue to play well as they go on the road in the second round to face Bridgeport. The Indians are certainly no stranger to this situation, as they look to make their sixth consecutive trip to the semifinals.
“What really strikes me about Bridgeport is that they’re probably the most disciplined team that we’ve played this year,” Snyder said. “One of our biggest challenges is that we need to not let them control the game. We need to control the game with our offense. If they do that, that’s their formula for success.”
The last playoff matchup between these two schools came in the 1988 AA state championship game at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown. Bridgeport squeaked out a 29-28 victory in four overtimes.
Class AAA No. 9 Hurricane (7-4) at No 1 Huntington (11-0)
Hurricane kept its season alive with a strong 52-21 opening round win at Hedgesville. The win gives Hurricane its second consecutive trip to the quarterfinals and its fourth in the last eight seasons.
The quarterfinal round has proven to be a wall that Hurricane has been unable to climb. Though it has played in the second round a number of times, the team has never been able to break through and reach the semifinals.
If Hurricane is going to break through and reach the semifinals this season, it will certainly be earned. Hurricane makes the short trip to Huntington for the second round to take on the top-ranked, undefeated Highlanders.
These squads met earlier in the year at the end of Hurricane’s toughest three-game stretch of the season. Huntington took that competitive game at Hurricane by a final of 34-14.
“We had our opportunities to go down and put points on the board in the first game, we just didn’t,” said Hurricane coach Jeremy Taylor. “We’ve got to finish drives. Against good teams that we’ve played this year, with the exception of Spring Valley and last week in the playoffs, we drive down the field, get inside the 30 and someone puts a brick wall up.
“Anyone who is going to beat (Huntington) is going to have to commit people to the line of scrimmage and try to control (Jadon Hayes),” Taylor said. “If he gets 200 or 300 yards, that means they’re winning big time. He’s going to get 100 yards – we’re not going to stop him. He’s going to score, he’s going to break tackles and make people miss. We have to control the ball, be able to run it and keep (Huntington) off the field.”