KNOX — A crossroads game? Neither Moniteau nor Keystone denies it.

The two teams meet for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday with success in the Keystone-Shortway Athletic Conference at stake.

"No doubt, the winner of this game is headed for the upper tier of the league standings,"Keystone coach Jason Nellis said. "The loser is headed for somewhere in the middle."

Moniteau is 3-0 in league play while Keystone is 2-2. The host Panthers have lost to Karns City and Redbank Valley, two KSACcontenders the Warriors have yet to play.

"This is a huge game for us,"Moniteau coach Jeff Campbell admitted. "And our two teams are mirror images of each other. They run a spread offense and a 35 defense and so do we."

Keystone quarterback Ben Black and Moniteau signal-caller Tyler Armagost have both completed less than 50 percent of their passes, but for plenty of yardage.

Black has thrown for 451 yards and four touchdowns. Armagost has thrown for 753 yards and 12 scores. Mike Switzer has nine catches for 243 yards for Keystone, Josh Loos had nine catches for 215 yards for Moniteau.

"Potentially, this could become one of those high-scoring games because of the skill both teams have on the offensive side of the ball,"Nellis said. "Being that I'm our defensive coordinator, I'm hoping that doesn't happen."

Derek Swartfager leads the Panthers' ground game with 40 carries for 224 yards. James Shope, a sophomore, leads the Warriors with 33 carries for 401 yards and seven TDs.

"He was our third-string back at the start of the year,"Campbell said. "Ricky Best and Clayton Drnek went down with injuries and the rest is history."

Best is out for the year with a torn ACL.Drnek recently returned from a high ankle sprain. Other injuries have forced Campbell to revamp his team defensively.

Lineman David Glenn and noseguard Beau Eshenbaugh are other Warriors victimized by early-season injuries.

Knoch at Hampton

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Last Year's Game:Hampton 7, Knoch 0•

Current Record: Knoch (3-1, 1-0), Hampton (1-3, 0-1)•

Coaches:Knoch:Mike King, ninth year (35-55), Hampton:Greg Mihalik, 10th year•

Game Notes: The Knights have lost to Hampton four straight times and have been shut out by the Talbots the last two years. Knoch's last win over Hampton was 14-7 in 2002. ... Hampton has made the WPIALplayoffs six times in the past seven years. ... Talbots QBJeff Cully didn't practice all last week because of a hamstring injury, but played in Hampton's 35-7 loss to Franklin Regional. ... Hampton's lone win this season is a 39-7 triumph over Elizabeth Forward, where former Butler head coach Garry Cathell now coaches. ... Knoch RBTim McNerney has rushed for over 600 yards in three games since replacing injured teammate Alex Whisler. ... Knights QBZach Gross has five touchdown passes this year — three to Kyle Reiser — and has yet to throw an interception.Cornell at Mars•

Last Year's Game: Mars 49, Cornell 14•

Current Record: Cornell (0-4, 0-4); Mars (3-1, 3-0)•

Coaches: Cornell: Dan Knause, first season; Mars: Scott Heinauer, 16th season•

Game Notes: Mars was defeated at home last week by New Brighton, 37-8, while Cornell dropped a 34-7 decision at home to Shenango. ... Mars fullback Bill Bair rushed for 238 yards last week and became just the second player in program history to amass at least 3,000 career rushing yards. ... Bair is currently 293 rushing yards away from breaking Brad Mueller's school record of 3,460 career yards. ... The Planets have lived on the ground so far this season, with Bair as their leading receiver with five receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown. ... Cornell has been outscored 154-28. ... The Raiders have a co-operative agreement with Our Lady of Sacred Heart.Burrell at Freeport•

Last Year's Game: Burrell 16, Freeport 6•

Current Record: Burrell (4-0, 3-0); Freeport (1-3, 1-3)•

Coaches: Burrell: Dave Heavner, second season; Freeport: Bill Dillen, fourth season•

Game Notes: The Bucs remained perfect in the Allegheny Conference with a 24-21 overtime victory over Deer Lakes last Friday with Phil Spagnolo's 24-yard field goal being the difference-maker. ... Seth Napierkowski completed 16-of-28 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown to Brett Fellers. Fellers and Shane Welsh each hauled in four passes for 71 and 77 yards, respectively. ... The Yellowjackets picked up their first win of the season, defeating Northgate 35-6. ... Kirk Naedele scored four touchdowns, three on the ground and one on a punt return. Naedele finished with his second consecutive 100-yard game, finishing with 109 yards. ... Cameron Betush accounted for Freeport's other score and had 92 yards rushing. ... The Yellowjackets outrushed the Flames, 234-29.Slippery Rock at Gen. McLane•

Last Year's Game: General McLane 62, Slippery Rock 17•

Current Record: Slippery Rock (2-2), General McLane (3-1)•

Coaches: Slippery Rock: Clyde Conti; General McLane: Jim Wells•

Game Notes: Slippery Rock is coming off a 23-12 road win over region rival Franklin; General McLane, the defending Class AAA champion, has outscored its last two opponents 116-0. ... The Rockets will be without fullback and middle linebacker Ryan Ferguson, who injured his hip against Franklin. ... Ayron Gallagher played wingback, fullback, quarterback and middle linebacker for the Rockets and rushed for 87 yards on 10 carries, made 11 tackles, forced a fumble and intercepted a pass. ... McLane is led by quarterback Kellen O'Neill, who is just as much of a threat with his feet as he is with his arm. O'Neill lead the team with 271 yards rushing. ... Tailback Blidi Wreh-Wilson has gained 262 yards on just 13 carries. ... Slippery Rock quarterback Jonathan Powell left the Franklin game with an injury, but returned to rush for 100 yards on 16 carries. ... This is the last of three straight road games for the Rockets.Hickory at Grove City•

Last Year's Game: Grove City 24, Hickory 12•

Current Record: Grove City (3-1, 1-1), Hickory (1-3, 1-1)•

Coaches: Grove City: Jeff Bell; Hickory: Frank Antuono•

Game Notes: After four-straight road games, Grove City finally gets to play on its brand new artificial grass surface for the first time. "It's like getting a bicycle for Christmas and being told you can't ride it until the snow melts in April," said Grove City coach Bell. ... The Eagles are coming off a hard-fought 12-6 win over Reynolds. The Eagles had several starters out because of injury. ... Hickory gave first-year coach Antuono his first career win with a 28-6 triumph over Northwestern. ... Chris Clark had a breakout game for the Eagles, rushing for 147 yards. He came into the game averaging less than four yards per carry. ... Hickory discarded its spread, shotgun offense for a wing-T attack this season. It is led by quarterback Ryan Voisey and wingback Justin Scott.Clarion at Union•

Last Year's Game: Clarion 55, Union 6•

Current Record: Clarion (1-3, 1-2), Union (0-4, 0-3)•

Coaches: Clarion: Larry Wiser; Union: Tom Kidder•

Game notes: Clarion, picked to contend for the KSAC championship this season, was routed by Redbank Valley 41-20 last week for their third-straight loss. ... Union fell to Moniteau 48-12. ... The Golden Knights have gotten big efforts from quarterback Matt Gagliano, who has 377 yards passing and running back Zach Traister, who has 150 yards on just 21 carries. ... Clarion is led by running back James Seidle, who has gained 486 yards on the ground and scored six TDs. ... Since a 40-0 win againstA-C Valley to open the season, Clarion has been outscored 85-34 in its three losses. ... Union has been outscored 183-33 this season.Laurel at Summit Academy•

Last Year's Game: Laurel 40, Summit Academy 8•

Current Record: Laurel (3-1, 3-1); SummitAcademy (3-1, 3-0)•

Coaches: Laurel: Jerry Holzhauser, fourth season; Summit Academy: Steve Sherer, seventh season•

Game Notes: The Spartans cruised past Neshannock 44-26 last Friday, rolling up 260 yards rushing. ... Andrew DeRosa carried 24 times for 120 yards and two scores and quarterback Tyler Forbes threw three touchdown passes to Dane Naughton — all in the second quarter — and added a rushing touchdown. Forbes completed 10 of 15 passes for 223 yards while Steve Waskin added 98 yards rushing on 14 carries. ... The Knights squeaked out a 26-22 victory over Mohawk to stay unbeaten in the Tri-County North Conference.