Berlin Brothersvalley bids for 1st District 5 football championship since 2015
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The Berlin Brothersvalley football program has done plenty of winning since capturing its last district title in 2015. The Mountaineers are 79-22 since then.
However, after moving to Class 2A, there’s been one team that has been a major challenge for Berlin. It is Chestnut Ridge, the squad Berlin meets in the District 5-2A championship Friday, Nov. 7, at Conemaugh Township High School.
The Mountaineers have lost to the Lions five times dating back to 2016. Mixing District 8 into the playoff fold has also stopped Berlin from capturing a pair of titles, falling to Westinghouse in the 2022 and ’23 title games.
This is Berlin’s fourth straight title game appearance. First-year coach Dante Paul, who was a player on Berlin’s last D5 championship team, is excited his squad has an opportunity to compete in another title tilt, especially after the Mountaineers dropped three straight, prior to its current 3-game winning streak.
“At the end of the day, any team that is playing football in November, the goal is to make it to that district championship game,” said Paul. “Just to have a seat at the table, have a shot at it after facing some of the adversity we did this year, our goals are still ahead of us. We just have to stay on track. Watching my guys, especially some of the younger guys who stayed the course and showed up every day and put in the work, that’s probably the best part of being a coach. These guys didn’t give up and they are hungry.”
Second-seeded Berlin (7-4) bested No. 3 seed Everett 34-7 in the semifinals, while fourth-seeded Chestnut Ridge (5-6) upset top seed Tussey Mountain 22-10.
Sophomore Carter Durst racked up 253 yards and three touchdowns against the Warriors. He leads the Mountaineers with 832 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Senior Seth Kimmel has added 527 yards and four rushing scores. Berlin has racked up 1,803 rushing yards as a team. Junior first-year starting quarterback Brady Janidlo has 584 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Brother Carson Janidlo is his top target with 17 catches for 249 yards and six touchdowns.
Berlin will have to maintain some form of balance on offense against Chestnut Ridge.
“Our identities are both similar. We both want to run the football and play great defense,” Paul said. “Whoever can mix in some of the passes and make the plays at opportune times is going to have an advantage.
“Anywhere you go in the area, you hear the name Max Shoemaker. He got inducted into the Hall of Fame last year. He is going to have his guys ready to play. They are probably the most well-coached team we’ve faced this year.”
The Lions enter the title game with only one victory over an opponent with a winning record, which came against the Titans in the semis. Chestnut Ridge’s four regular season wins were against teams with a combined 10-31 record.
Junior running back Jayden Imler has rushed for 1,036 yards and 14 touchdowns for the Lions. The team has tallied 1,892 yards and 25 touchdowns on the ground. Meanwhile, quarterback Landyn Pincin has thrown for 919 yards, six touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Cade Emerick leads the team with 22 catches for 276 yards and a TD.
Berlin’s defense has allowed a combined 24 points the last three games. The defense has created 17 takeaways on the season.
Despite their record, Coach Paul knows the Lions will present challenges in the championship.
“They bring a different type of challenge with their size and the type of physicality they play with,” Paul said. “We don’t see that every week, but our guys are looking forward to the challenge.”
Adam Ripple is the Daily American sports editor. He can be reached at 814-444-5926. Follow him on X @ARipple_DAsport. Follow Daily American Sports on Facebook and @dailyamericanmedia on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Berlin Brothersvalley meets Chestnut Ridge for D5-2A football title
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