THE STATE'S GREATS
Southern Columbia’s Gaige Garcia was voted the Class 2A Player of the Year by the Pa. Football Writers on Tuesday.
It marks the fourth consecutive year a Tiger has won the honor, with current Ohio State wide receiver Julian Fleming winning the previous three.
Garcia’s teammates Derek Berlitz, Wade Kerstetter and Jake Davis were also selected to the 2A squad. Danville had three players — K.J. Riley, Carson Persing and Mason Raup — named to the Class 3A team.
Garcia, a junior in his first year as the team’s primary back, rushed for 1,921 yards and 30 touchdowns, averaging 17.1 yards per carry. He also recorded eight catches for 168 yards and two touchdowns.
He not only lived up to the expectations but surpassed them.
“Gavin had outstanding seasons as a freshman and sophomore, and if we were going to have the season we wanted, he was going to have to pick up the workload from the offensive weapons we lost between the quarterback, wide receiver and running back positions,” Southern coach Jim Roth said. “With Gavin being the only returning starter, his role was going to be magnified. He provided the increase in production we needed and was the driving force for us offensively.
“... Even more impressive than the stats is that he was able to do all of that even though other teams knew he was getting the carries and they were scheming to stop him.”
The Tigers’ defense stood out this season with junior lineman Berlitz, senior linebacker Kerstetter and senior defensive back Davis earning all-state nods.
Berlitz recorded 60 tackles, a team-high seven sacks and team-best 13 hurries. He also had a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Kerstetter finished with 75 tackles, four hurries and 3 1/2 sacks. He also had a forced fumble and team-best three fumble recoveries. Davis, meanwhile, led the Tigers with five interceptions, and nine pass breakups. He finished with 21 tackles.
“The defense lost of people, but we felt this group could be pretty good again,” Roth said. “... Derek was very disruptive on the line, making a lot of big plays.... Wade was the leader of the defense... Jake had a really nice career and was always up to the challenge.”
The four led the Tigers to a state-record 11th Class 2A title.
Iron success
Riley, a senior, had the best year of any local quarterback, posting 2,408 yards and 32 touchdowns passing — averaging just over 10 yards per completion. He also added 329 rushing yards and eight touchdowns.
Riley’s No. 1 target, sophomore receiver Persing, averaged just under 20 yards per reception, recording 1,219 yards and 14 touchdowns on 61 receptions.
“KJ has been around and had a lot of experience coming into the season,” Danville coach Mike Brennan said. “He has the ability to run the ball and throw the ball.... He’s a special one and he’s the only senior on the list. We’ll miss him dearly.
“What he and Persing had was truly special. Carson was complementary for KJ and vice versa.”
Raup, meanwhile, anchored the defense his sophomore year. The linebacker came up with 123 tackles — 79 of those solo — and 26 tackles for loss. He also had three sacks.
“Mason’s an outstanding defensive football player. He’s instinctive and plays all over the field,” Brennan said. “He’s the heart and soul of our defense. He’s created a really high standard for the next two years and I expect nothing but great things from Mason.”
The trio led the Ironmen to the Class 3A semifinals — the furthest the team has gone in program history.
Link to story: https://www.pressenterpriseonl...
