Freeport coach Bill Dillen knows his team is still in the hunt for the third Allegheny Conference playoff berth.

He wants his team to take care of its own business first, that being Friday's 7:30 road game against Deer Lakes.

"In all honesty, we can't worry about anything," said Dillen. "There are so many scenarios, I don't want us wasting energy thinking about it.

"We'll play Friday night and we'll worry about it Saturday," Dillen added.

A win by the Yellowjackets (3-3, 5-3 overall), along with a Burrell win over Valley (4-2) and a Ford City win over Kittanning (4-2) would leave the three teams tied for third place behind Burrell (6-0 and Ford City (5-1).

The always-confusing Gardner points system would go into play to decide who will advance.

The Lancers (4-4, 2-4), who are coming off a 14-0 loss to Kittanning last week to end their playoff chances, are led by quarterback Bill Holtz, who has completed 35-of-95 passes for 545 yards and five touchdowns.

"We'll have to contain him," said Dillen. "He's not a bad throwing quarterback."

Running backs Travis Ankeny, Mike Latronica and Emery Persinger have combined for more than 1,100 yards and 14 touchdowns.

The Lancers forte will be defense, which according to Dillen, is something Freeport will have to be prepared for.

"They blitz and blitz and blitz," said Dillen. "They'll bring heat the whole night. We'll have to try and stop that."

That's where Freeport's two-quarterback set of Kiel Conjack and Bryan Zimmerman come in. The two have split time and have been a key reason for Freeport's three-game winning streak.

Zimmerman threw for a pair of touchdowns and rushed for another in helping the Yellowjackets (5-3, 3-3) knock off Valley 18-13 last Friday.

Conjack was one the receiving end of one of those scores.

"Bryan's a good athlete. He has a lot of poise and so does Kiel. The two of them complement each other and we try to utilize both of their strengths."

Grove City (5-2, 5-1) at Sharon (1-6, 1-5), 7:30 p.m., Friday

- The name of the game in Grove City these days has been defense.

The Eagles have recorded four shutouts in their last five games and just 14 points since losing a 21-14 decision to Greenville in Week 2.

Grove City still has a chance to capture the Region 3 title with a win over a struggling Sharon program and a Greenville loss to Reynolds.

The Eagles, though, are in prime position to claim one of the at-large bids into the District 10 tournament and may get matched up with Harbor Creek, the team that defeated them in the season opener.

A-C Valley (3-4, 1-4) at Keystone (1-6, 1-4), 7 p.m. Friday -

After last week's loss to Karns City, the Falcons must win their last two games to qualify for the District 9 Class AA playoffs. They host Clarion next Friday.

The Panthers' main offensive weapons are running back Sam Swartzfager (502 yards rushing, three touchdowns) and wide receiver Kyle McMunn (378 yards receiving, three touchdowns).

The Panthers' lone win was a 26-0 blanking of Union.

A-C Valley has lost four straight to Keystone, last winning in 1999 (38-14).

Union (0-7) at Kennedy Catholic (2-7), 12:30 p.m., Saturday

- Sophomore Ross Gargano, who ripped through the Union defense a season ago to the tune of nearly 300 yards, missed last week's game against Linesville and may not play against The Golden Knights Saturday.

Union is coming off a 57-12 loss to Clarion-Limestone and has been outscored 321-30 this season.

Riverside (3-5, 2-4) at Summit Academy (0-8, 0-6), 12:30 p.m. Saturday -

The Knights will be trying to slow down the passing of senior Joe DeSanzo, a Division I recruit.

Even in a 26-20 Tri-County North loss to Mars last week, DeSanzo still threw for 162 yards and rushed for 51 yards and a touchdown.

John Adams and Jake Wickline key a balanced running attack and Shane Jackson leads the receiving corps.

The Knights fell to laurel 34-6 last week as Colleal Cottom scored Summit's lone touchdown, finishing with 84 yards.