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PIAA Class AA football playoffs

When:?1 p.m., Saturday

Who:?Loyalsock (10-3) vs. Lancaster Catholic (12-1)

Where:?Kemp Memorial Stadium at Shamokin H.S.

At stake: The winner advances to the PIAA?Class AA semifinals vs. the North Schuylkill vs. Philadelphia West Catholic winner on Dec. 11.

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Lewisburg came after Stephen Stopper on Loyalsock's opening possession last Saturday, but the senior quarterback calmly alluded the contact, sprinting to the outside and gaining 6 yards. Looking back, the play was a small one in how the District 4 Class AA championship unfolded but it foreshadowed things to come.

No matter what Lewisburg tried, Stopper always had an answer. While district championships can naturally rattle some players, Stopper was in his element.

The senior completed a personal triple crown after helping lead Loyalsock to a 41-6 thrashing of the Green Dragons on their home field Saturday. Stopper now has won three district championships in three different sports - baseball, basketball and football.

"Winning a state baseball championship was awesome, winning a basketball district championship was awesome, but this is right up there, too," Stopper said. "Right now, this might be the top one."

Stopper hopes adding another big win to his resume Saturday at Shamokin when Loyalsock meets District 3 champion Lancaster Catholic in the state quarterfinals. The Crusaders (12-1) have been ranked among the state's top five Class AA teams all year and feature the state's most prolific passer ever so an upset Saturday could give Stopper and his teammates the most memorable win of their scholastic careers.

This is the third straight scholastic season in which Stopper has won at least one district title. As a sophomore, Stopper was the starting right fielder for a district and state championship baseball team. Last year, he was a starter for basketball and baseball district championship teams that combined for eight postseason wins.

A year ago, Stopper was not a district champion in football, but was an Eastern Conference champion, topping 100 yards in consecutive wins as the Lancers won a second straight postseason crown.

Going back to his sophomore year, Stopper has been a vital part of three teams that have combined for 21 playoff wins. It's no coincidence either, because throughout his scholastic career a common theme has been Stopper delivering when the games matter most.

Saturday was no different.

Considering what was at stake, Stopper might have played his best high school football game, running for 110 yards and three touchdowns while throwing for 105 yards and two scores. It was a dazzling performance coming against a team that had won eight straight games and whose defense had shut out five opponents and allowed just 24 points in two playoff wins.

"We knew he could make plays," senior safety Alec Eggerton said. "We knew if he showed up we had a chance to win and our defense played well and our offensive line blocked really well so everything worked out."

Eggerton set up Stopper for the game's first score when he returned an interception to the 4-yard line late in the first quarter. That set off a scoring flurry as Stopper led the Lancers on four straight scoring drives that produced a 27-6 halftime lead.

Stopper repeatedly broke off big plays to the outside and turned an inside first-down run into a game-changing 46-yard touchdown that put Loyalsock ahead 14-6. Stopper gained only 9 more yards after that but he soon found another way to shred Lewisburg on the next two drives, hitting Don Kinney and Frankie Pagana with touchdown passes that turned the game into a rout.

Despite playing in windy conditions that made throwing the ball difficult, Stopper threw for 88 second-quarter yards while making clutch plays under pressure. His best pass came on a third-and-9 midway through the second quarter when he whizzed a 17-yard completion to Jackson Person despite having two Lewisburg defenders barreling into him. Three plays later, Loyalsock faced another third down and Stopper made a perfect throw on a slant pattern as Kinney hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass.

"I felt comfortable because they came out to stop the run and when they went to stop the run we knew we could pass the ball," Stopper said. "I knew when I was rolling out that if they didn't pressure me I could hit the out routes or the backside route was open too and the offensive line was doing a great job so I had a nice pocket to throw in."

That Stopper is playing so well at quarterback is impressive considering he spent his first seven weeks as Loyalsock's starting running back, gaining more than 1,100 yards. With the offense struggling, however, coach Alex Jackson and offensive coordinator Frank Girardi Jr. moved Stopper to quarterback and the offense has taken off in recent weeks.

Stopper has led Loyalsock to a 5-1 record since moving under center and has helped provide a passing element it lacked for much of the year. In his six starts, the senior has thrown for 808 yards and six touchdowns while being intercepted just twice. Saturday was the fourth time Stopper topped 100 yards passing and the second time he has done so in the playoffs.

Loyalsock entered districts as the No. 6 seed in an eight-team field, but Stopper threw for 210 yards and two touchdowns in a 35-3 quarterfinal route of Danville that set the postseason tone. Loyalsock outscored three higher-seeded teams, 93-15 during districts and snapped winning streaks of six games or more each time.

Helping Stopper make a smooth transition was the fact he had played quarterback for much of his life until moving to running back last year and running for 886 yards. That is a big reason Stopper felt comfortable before his first start against cross-creek rival and undefeated Montoursville in a huge Week 8 showdown. It also is a big reason Stopper has gone Peyton Manning, minus the numerous playoff losses, on his team and done a nice job audibling at the line of scrimmage.

"He's old enough and mature enough to understand his responsibilities and sometimes he will audible without us even knowing," Jackson said. "He will audible out of a bad play which has just changed our whole complexion on offense."

Loyalsock had to reel in Stopper a bit in that first game against Montoursville because he was audibling out of nearly every play, but he quickly understood what was expected of him and the results speak for themselves, starting with that come-from-behind 21-8 win.

"We watered down the playbook for him and said this is what we're looking for offensively," Jackson said. "We told him if you see this you can do it, if not stick with the play-call and he's really responded well."

Especially in big games.