Repeat engagement
ADAMS TWP — It's Act Two, and this time the loser will exit stage left.
The Mars football team (7-3) will face Hopewell (10-0) for the second time this season in a WPIAL Class AAA quarterfinal game at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Ambridge High School's Moe Rubenstein Stadium.
The teams first met at Hopewell Sept. 11, when the Vikings led 20-0 after one quarter and won 47-22.
Hopewell sophomore halfback Rushel Shell rushed for 171 yards and four touchdowns in the victory.
Shell, the WPIAL's leading rusher with 2,043 yards and 26 touchdowns, was suspended for the Vikings' 28-14 first-round win over Derry last week after breaking a school rule.
He will play Friday.
"He's had a great mind-set and has practiced very well this week," said Vikings coach Dave Vestal. "I look for him to pick up where he left off."
In Shell's absence last week, senior Malcolm Lay rushed for 144 yards and three scores, including a 60-yard jaunt to the end zone in the fourth quarter.
"Shell is a great talent, but he's also a very smart player," said Mars coach Scott Heinauer. "He'll fight for extra yards when his team needs them, but if he knows he's not going to gain any more, he'll go down and not risk a fumble.
"He makes people miss," added Heinauer. "We have to keep the ball out of his hands, which means we have to control the football."
Planets junior fullback Austin Miele will be a big part of that.
Miele left Mars' regular-season finale against Knoch Oct. 30 with a hamstring pull. He started last week's 17-0 win over Trinity but left early after aggravating the injury. He is expected to play Friday.
Mars senior D.J. Delucia has started at quarterback the last two games, completing 11 of 18 passes for 137 yards.
"We felt we needed a bit more out of the quarterback position," said Heinauer. "D.J. has done a great job. We've been able to make some plays throwing the football."
Despite the 25-point win in September, Vestal knows there's much to be learned.
"I watched the tape of the first game for four hours," added Vestal. "There's a few things that we have to shore up and we have to make sure we execute better."
Hopewell senior quarterback Matt Hundenski completed 5 of 6 passes for 78 yards against the Planets in September.
"It's no secret that we're going to try and run the football," said Vestal. "But Matt's a tough kid and he's made some great decisions with the ball this year."
The Vikings won the Parkway Conference for the first time since 2006, when they shared the crown with Blackhawk.
"We had to replace half the starters on both sides of the ball this year," said Vestal. "Our conference is very tough, but we're (undefeated) and fortunate to be where we are."
The Mars-Hopewell winner will face the survivor of the Hampton-Uniontown game next week in the semifinals.
