Nazareth looks to continue growth in LVC football showdown with Parkland

FROM THE MORNING CALL

Rob Melosky reached PIAA football's pinnacle while at Parkland, guiding the Trojans to the 2002 Class 4A state title.

Three years into his tenure at Nazareth, he is enjoying watching the Blue Eagles build their own accomplishments, even if they don't come with championship trophies yet.

Last year Nazareth broke through with its first winning season since 2001 and a berth in the District 2-4-11 Class 4A subregional playoffs. The 2010 Blue Eagles stand one victory shy of another winning season and are on target for a return trip to districts as they prepare for Friday's Lehigh Valley Conference football game with Parkland.

Nazareth (5-2 overall, 4-2 LVC) will take the field in the unfamiliar role of favorite against the Trojans (3-4, 3-3). Parkland has won the last six meetings between the teams, with Nazareth's last win a 19-7 decision in 1994.


Led by LVC rushing leader Chuck Dibilio, Nazareth has enjoyed success most weeks this season. The development of several Blue Eagles around Dibilio has Melosky most pleased with the progress of the program, especially with the losses Nazareth suffered through graduation.

Kris Kent and Sean Sauerzopf have emerged as two of the league's most productive receivers for first-year quarterback Dan Harding. Bryce Higgs has also contributed in the passing game, while center Joe Walsh, offensive lineman/linebacker Noah Nealon and offensive lineman/defensive end Nick Tuerk drew praise from Melosky as being among Nazareth's unsung heroes.

"These are guys that no one kind of felt they would have as much of an impact in terms of where we're at in the season," Melosky said. "I think our position coaches and me in particular knew they could make an impact. These are kids that came up through the program and were put through a sense of competition every day. If you make it competitive and the kids are hungry to get on the field, it's going to bring out the best of them as players.

"I think you've got be happy with [the progress]," he added. "It's an exciting thing to go through as a program when you graduate 20 seniors and get another 20 that come in and guys have to fill in the spots. I think that's what we're trying to get to here at Nazareth, and that's trying to be competitive every year and be in the playoff hunt every year."

This week's game against Parkland kicks off a challenging closing stretch for Nazareth as it tries to nab a high seed for districts. The Blue Eagles also play at Whitehall next week and face Northampton on Nov. 5 to close out their regular season.

Parkland also has games left against Northampton and Whitehall after Friday. The Trojans must beat Nazareth to make those games meaningful as they try to run the table for a chance at returning to districts.

"If we want to be in this football game, we cannot turn the ball over and we cannot have stupid penalties," Parkland coach Jim Morgans said. "We don't want to dig a hole, and we cannot given them any gifts."

Melosky and the Blue Eagles aren't hunting for gifts. They want to take the next step on a path they hope ends with consistent winning.

"We've got our work cut out for us," he said. "They're a big, physical team, a typical Parkland team that's going to try to pound it at us.

"This time of year, all the games matter," he added. "It's a tough league that you've got to be ready for a war every week. If you aren't, you're going to get beat."

AROUND THE LVC

• Central Catholic wide receiver Kevin Gulyas needs 13 more catches for 100 in his career. His three touchdowns last week gave him 104 career points, making him the 22nd player in Vikings history to score 100 career points.

• Easton quarterback Justin Pacchioli needs 234 passing yards to break Matt Loebsack's school career record of 3,193 yards.

Emmaus (4-3 overall, 3-3 LVC) at Allen (0-7, 0-6)

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

In the spotlight: Emmaus' early play. The Green Hornets are coming off back-to-back losses to Liberty and Easton. Has it damaged their confidence? They could use a good start against an Allen team they should handle.

By the numbers: Emmaus has a plus-16 turnover margin despite not having an interception in the last two weeks.

Parkland (3-4, 3-3) at Nazareth (5-2, 4-2)

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

In the spotlight: Parkland's first-half performance. The Trojans had several chances to forge ahead of Central Catholic last week but could not. They need to play from ahead this week to contend with Nazareth, whose offense can put up points as fast as anyone in the area.


By the numbers: Nazareth needs one more win to equal last year's victory total, when it finished 6-5.

Whitehall (6-1, 5-1) at Northampton (4-3, 3-3)

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

In the spotlight: Northampton's passing attack. The Konkrete Kids had several opportunities to hit for big plays last week against Bethlehem Catholic but never connected, going the entire game without completing a pass in the windy weather. They cannot afford to be one-dimensional against a Whitehall defense that has been among the LVC's best.

By the numbers: Northampton's John Lambert is averaging a team-best 7.1 yards per carry.

Freedom (3-4, 2-4) at Easton (6-1, 5-1)

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

In the spotlight: Easton's rushing attack. The Red Rovers have not had a consistent ground game this season but collected over 200 rushing yards in last week's win over Emmaus. Look for them to run at the Patriots, who were gouged for 293 yards in last week's loss to Nazareth.

By the numbers: Freedom has averaged 9.5 points in its four LVC losses.

Bethlehem Catholic (2-5, 2-4) at Liberty (4-3, 3-3)

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

In the spotlight: Liberty's mental preparation. The Hurricanes have more talent than Bethlehem Catholic, but so did a couple of their recent teams that lost to the Golden Hawks. Liberty cannot afford to look ahead to next week's meeting with Easton with the District 2-4-11 Class 4A subregional playoff race as tight as it is.

By the numbers: Liberty needs 9 rushing yards to reach 2,000 for the season.

Dieruff (0-7, 0-6) at Central Catholic (7-0, 6-0)

When: 2 p.m. Saturday.

In the spotlight: Central Catholic's chance for a breather. Look for the LVC-best Vikings to try to end this game early and get younger players experience against the overmatched Huskies.

By the numbers: G.B. Harkins leads Central Catholic with three fumble recoveries.

stephen.miller@mcall.com

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LVC STANDINGS


School, Overall, League, PF, PA

Central Catholic, 7-0, 6-0, 236, 92

Whitehall, 6-1, 5-1, 190, 96

Easton, 6-1, 5-1, 202, 77

Nazareth, 5-2, 4-2, 278, 148

Liberty, 4-3, 3-3, 214, 136

Emmaus, 4-3, 3-3, 156, 125

Northampton, 4-3, 3-3, 131, 127

Parkland, 3-4, 3-3, 180, 141

Freedom, 3-4, 2-4, 183, 159

Beth. Catholic, 2-5, 2-4, 130, 209

Allen, 0-7, 0-6, 78, 282

Dieruff, 0-7, 0-6, 14, 323

Last week's results

Central Catholic 34, Parkland 7

Easton 23, Emmaus 13

Nazareth 37, Freedom 3

Liberty 48, Dieruff 8

Whitehall 38, Allen 14

Northampton 20, Bethlehem Catholic 10 


Rushing leaders

Player, school, C, Yds, Avg, TD

Chuck Dibilio, Nazareth, 132, 1018, 7.7, 15

Colin McDermott, Central, 111, 721, 6.5, 5

Eric Fiore, Whitehall, 115, 693, 6.0, 9

Brendan Nosovitch, Central, 118, 663, 5.6, 10

Eddie Elliott, Freedom, 107, 626, 5.9, 9

Rob Dvoracek, Parkland, 87, 608, 7.0, 8

Jim McCarthy, Liberty, 78, 536, 6.8, 9

Joe Williams, Emmaus, 81, 501, 6.2, 3

Michael Harris, Liberty, 36, 484, 13.4, 5

Chad Fenon, Northampton, 116, 415, 3.6, 5

Passing leaders

Player, school, C, A, Int, Yds, TD

Brendan Nosovitch, Central, 95, 163, 8, 1391, 16

Daniel Harding, Nazareth, 86, 147, 4, 1158, 14

Justin Pacchioli, Easton, 64, 103, 3, 845, 7

Chris Polony, Whitehall, 58, 125, 11, 830, 9

Lukas Giovarelli, Freedom, 47,115, 10, 745, 6

Luke Petro, Beth. Catholic, 48, 107, 6, 641, 6

Kyle Stinner, Parkland, 37, 83, 3, 637, 5

Tajmire Flood, Allen, 42, 128, 10, 623, 6

Patrick Cook, Northampton, 37, 78, 5, 476, 4

Nate Fick, Emmaus, 45, 104, 4, 461, 3

Receiving leaders

Player, school, Rec, Yds, Avg, TD

Kevin Gulyas, Central, 40, 598, 15.0, 8

Jonathan Bisci, Easton, 33, 460, 13.9, 3

Tyler Artim, Whitehall, 31, 380, 12.3, 6

Kris Kent, Nazareth, 23, 206, 8.9, 1

Sean Sauerzopf, Nazareth, 20, 319, 15.9, 2

Ron Armstead, Beth. Catholic, 17, 162, 9.5, 1

Tony DiClemente, Northampton, 16, 239, 14.9, 1

Austin Vasko, Beth. Catholic, 16, 238, 14.9, 4

Alex Cruz, Allen, 15, 270, 18.0, 4

Jack Sandherr, Central, 15, 181, 12.1, 1

Scoring leaders

Player, school, TD, 2P, PAT, FG, TP

Chuck Dibilio, Nazareth, 16, 1, 0, 0, 98

Eric Fiore, Whitehall, 12, 0, 0, 0, 72



Eddie Elliott, Freedom, 10, 0, 0, 0, 60

Zack Bambary, Easton, 10, 0, 0, 0, 60

Brendan Nosovitch, Central, 10, 0, 0, 0, 60

Rob Dvoracek, Parkland, 9, 0, 0, 0, 54

Devon Jones, Liberty, 9, 0, 0, 0, 54

Jim McCarthy, Liberty, 9, 0, 0, 0, 54

Kevin Gulyas, Central, 8, 1, 0, 0, 50

Brian Velasco, Emmaus, 8, 0, 0, 0, 48

Standings and stats compiled by Stephen Miller, based on results reported to The Morning Call.

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