MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Fifteen quarterfinal berths were decided Friday night in contests around West Virginia. Nine more matchups are scheduled for Saturday afternoon.
Capital scores biggest upset on opening night
Chance Knox and Tay Calloway combined for 291 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns as No. 11 Capital defeated No. 6 Wheeling Park 45-21 at Wheeling Island Stadium.
Evan Landers passed for 244 yards and a touchdown as the Cougars (6-5) advanced to the Class AAA quarterfinals for the seventh consecutive season. Alex Dunlevy tossed three touchdown passes in the losing effort for the Patriots (8-3).
Capital will face the winner of Saturday’s Hurricane-Spring Valley matchup in the quarterfinal round. The Cougars lost to Spring Valley in the regular season and defeated Hurricane.
Parkersburg South uses huge second quarter to advance
No. 4 Parkersburg South won their first postseason game since 2011, defeating No. 13 South Charleston 47-13.
The Patriots (10-1) scored 28 second quarter points to to take a 28-7 halftime lead. Brandon Penn had three rushing touchdowns in the second stanza and tossed a touchdown pass to Dylan Day. Devin Gaines rushed for 118 yards on 14 carries for the Patriots.
Parkersburg South will remain at home to host No. 5 Musselman (9-2) in the quarterfinals. South Charleston’s season ends at 4-7.
Applemen tested by Parkersburg
No. 5 Musselman received a stern challenge from No. 12 Parkersburg, but the Applemen secured safe passage to the second round with a 48-29 win over the Big Reds in Inwood.
Musselman junior Blake Hartman racked up 312 rushing yards and became the school’s single-season rushing leader. Parkersburg sophomore quarterback Bryson Singer toted the ball for 219 yards.
Musselman (9-2) will visit Parkersburg South (10-1) in the quarterfinals. Parkersburg (5-6) suffered their first losing season since 2016.
GW defeats Huntington for second time
No. 7 George Washington collected their second victory over No. 10 Huntington this season, defeating the Highlanders 17-10 in South Hills. The Patriots, who have won eight of their last nine games, also knocked off Huntington 31-30 in the third week of the regular season.
R.T. Alexander had a pair of touchdown passes for the Patriots (8-3). They await the winner of Saturday’s Riverside-Cabell Midland winner in the quarterfinal round. GW defeated Riverside this season but did not face Cabell Midland.
Huntington’s season ends at 5-6. Diallo Mitchell had the lone touchdown for the Highlanders.
Spring Mills makes school history
No. 9 Spring Mills has qualified for the playoffs in five of their seven seasons but for the first time, they can celebrate a postseason victory. The Cardinals (7-4) defeated Greenbrier East 28-27 to move on to round two.
Spring Mills quarterback Chase Henson accounted for 279 yards of total offense and a pair of touchdown passes. Marion Lawson led the Spartan offensive attack with 198 yards on 30 carries.
The Cardinals await the winner of Saturday’s Preston-Martinsburg matchup in the quarterfinals. Greenbrier East’s season ends at 7-4.
Fairmont Senior extends win streak to 25 games
Defending Class AA state champion Fairmont Senior (11-0) allowed a season-high point total but comfortably advanced to the quarterfinals with a 63-34 win over Winfield.
The No. 1 Polar Bears will meet No. 8 Frankfort (9-2) next weekend.
Kieshawn Cottingham scored three rushing touchdowns for the Polar Bears and racked up 185 yards on 20 carries.
Winfield (7-4) drew within eight points midway through the third quarter when Nick Vance hit Hunter Morris on an 83-yard scoring strike to make the score 42-34.
Indians onto Rd. 2 for 13th consecutive season
No. 2 Bridgeport rolled up 497 yards of total offense in a 56-15 opening-round win over Lewis County.
Brian Henderson and Carson Winkie each had a pair of touchdown runs and Devin Vandergrift added another. Cam Cole intercepted a pair of passes in the win.
The Indians (10-1) will host No. 10 Mingo Central (9-2) in the quarterfinals. Lewis County’s season ends at 7-4.
Fast start lifts Bluefield past Man
J.J. Davis accounted for four offensive touchdowns and an interception return for another score as Bluefield defeated Man 48-16 at Mitchell Stadium.
Carson Deeb completed 19 of 22 passes for 176 yards and a pair of touchdowns for Bluefield.
No. 4 Bluefield (10-1) will host No. 5 Keyser (10-1) in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive season. Man (7-4) was making their first playoff appearance since 2015.
Mineral County schools advance
Both Keyser and Frankfort advanced to the quarterfinals with victories at home. The No. 5 Golden Tornado blanked Liberty Harrison 53-0 while the No. 8 Falcons dispatched Nicholas County 58-12.
Both county squads will hit the road in round two. Keyser (10-1) visits Bluefield while Frankfort (9-2) travels to meet top-seeded Fairmont Senior.
Ritchie wins first playoff game in six years
For the second time this season, No. 2 Ritchie County (10-1) defeated South Harrison. The Rebels eliminated the No. 15 Hawks 40-6 in Ellenboro.
Tre Moss and Garrett Owens combined for 215 yards to pace the Rebel rushing attack.
Ritchie has reached the 10-win mark for the first time since 1995, when they posted a perfect regular season.
The Rebels will host the Wheeling Central Catholic-Tolsia winner in the second round. South Harrison (6-5) had a 5-win improvement this season under second-year head coach Chris Underwood.
Pendleton avenges Moorefield loss
No. 3 Pendleton County flipped the script on No. 14 Moorefield, defeating the Yellow Jackets 26-7 in Franklin.
The Wildcats (10-1) collected their first home playoff win in school history. The Yellow Jackets (6-5) defeated Pendleton 35-0 two weeks ago to secure a playoff berth.
Pendleton, who has reached the 10-win mark for the second time in four years, will host No. 6 St. Marys (9-2) in the second round.
Williamstown blanks Tug Valley
No. 5 Williamstown (9-2) dominated No. 12 Tug Valley 42-0 as Ty Moore rushed for 153 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Brayden Modesitt tossed a pair of touchdowns in the win for the Yellowjackets. Eric Brown intercepted a pair of passes and returned one of those for a score.
Williamstown awaits the winner of Saturday’s matchup between Greenbrier West and Tygarts Valley. Tug Valley’s season ends at 6-4.
Blue Devils erase early deficit to defeat Cameron
For the seventh time in the last eight seasons, St. Marys has posted a playoff victory. The No. 6 Blue Devils (9-2) defeated Cameron 51-28.
St. Marys trailed by two touchdowns at halftime but scored 37 second half points to advance.
The Blue Devils will travel across the state to meet No. 3 Pendleton County in the quarterfinals. Cameron’s season ends at 7-4.