Woodland Hills justifies No. 1 billing
The first meeting between Woodland Hills and Central Catholic was considered a classic that will go down as one of the greatest regular-season games in recent WPIAL history. The rematch will be remembered simply as the biggest blowout the Class AAAA championship game has ever seen.
As soon as Steve Breaston touched the ball, this was one was over.
Breaston ran for 219 yards on 15 carries, including an electrifying 87-yard first-quarter touchdown run, as Woodland Hills defeated Central Catholic, 41-6, on Saturday night at Heinz Field in what was the most lopsided WPIAL Class AAAA championship game since the classification was formed in 1980.
"Everything clicked tonight," Woodland Hills coach George Novak said. "The kids had a great feeling all week about tonight."
It was one of the most highly anticipated championship games, as reflected by the day's four-game attendance of 39,031, believed to be a WPIAL record. Woodland Hills and Central were ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in both the WPIAL and state when the Wolverines won a 31-28 triple-overtime thriller on Sept. 21. Instead, it was the worst blowout in the Quad-A final since Mt. Lebanon beat North Hills, 34-6, in 1981.
It was the third WPIAL championship for Woodland Hills, which won titles in 1996 and '99 and lost to Mt. Lebanon, 14-13, in the finals last year. The Wolverines (13-0) will play Altoona (12-1), a 29-28 winner over defending PIAA champion Erie Cathedral Prep, in the PIAA semifinals at a site and time to be determined. Central Catholic, which also lost in the 1988 final, finishes 11-2.
Breaston was simply too devastating for the Vikings. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound quarterback has now rushed for 1,553 yards and 19 touchdowns this season, the last coming on his second carry of the game.
The Wolverines were pinned at their own 4 on a Central punt. On third-and-1 at the 13, Breaston rolled right on a bootleg keeper. He followed the blocking of Kareem Dutrieuille, who leveled Central safety Kris Senko, and turned the corner. Vikings cornerback Chris Rossi cut him off, but it took one quick stutter-step juke for Breaston to break free down the sideline and ran untouched for a touchdown. Austin Novak added the extra point for a 7-0 lead with 7:47 remaining in the first quarter.
"That was big because it got us out of a hole," Novak said, "and gave us the lead early."
Breaston broke a 31-yard run on Woodland Hills' next possession to set up the first of three touchdown runs by Dutrieuille, who finished with 162 yards on 20 carries, for a 14-0 lead with 2:48 left in the first quarter. The combination of Breaston's breakaway speed and elusiveness with Dutrieuille's power and tackle-breaking ability proved to be more than the Vikings could handle.
"I've been saying all year that he's the best athlete in Pennsylvania," Central Catholic coach Art Walker Jr. said. "You hope you can hold him to just one or two big plays, but he got more than that tonight and there wasn't much our kids could do."
The Wolverines defense smothered Central sophomore running back Andrew Johnson and swarmed around quarterback Bob Tudi, forcing the Vikings to three-and-out on three consecutive possessions.
Dutrieuille ran 39 yards to the Central 13, then scored from 2 yards four plays later for a 20-0 lead with 8:18 left in the first half. Breaston connected with junior Ryan Mundy on a 23-yard pass play to the Central 1, and Dutrieuille scored on the next play for a 27-0 lead Woodland Hills took into halftime.
It only got worse.
Woodland Hills fullback Doug Connor scored on a 20-yard run just 57 seconds into the third quarter for a 34-0 lead. Central Catholic cut it to 34-6 on Andrew Johnson's 7-yard run with 4:56 left in the game. Ken Benzo added a 1-yard run with 4:15 left to make it 41-6.
"They're a great football team and it's tough to play catch-up against a team with that much talent," Walker said. "They beat us up front and we didn't execute the way we're capable of. They're a good team with a lot of speed. A lot of speed."
