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Sizing up the opposition for Delone, West York


Let the buildup begin.

Two YAIAA teams will try to extend their seasons Friday at 7 p.m. Delone Catholic (above) will go for its second District 3, Class AA title in two years. West York will play for a second straight trip to Hershey in the Class AAA District semifinal.

Both teams will face rather touted opponents. Let's take a look at them.

Class AA final: No. 2 Delone Catholic (11-1) vs. No. 1 Lancaster Catholic (11-1)

About the Crusaders

Last week: Beat No. 5 Middletown, 48-14

Previous week: Beat No. 8 York Suburban 48-21

The lodown: It's no secret who the star of the show is for Lancaster Catholic. Last week, senior quarterback Kyle Smith became the second quarterback in Pennsylvania history to crack 8,000 passing yards for his career. With 159 more yards Friday night, he'll pass former Penn Stater Pat Devlin for the state record. So far this season, the 6-foot-4 southpaw has 42 touchdown passes compared to four interceptions.

Impressive, but then so is this Lancaster Catholic team. The Crusaders have scored at least 48 points in each of their last seven games. Their only loss this year came to undefeated Manheim Central, the District's No. 1 seed in AAA. Besides Smith, Lancaster Catholic boasts 6-foot-1 junior tailback Jordan Stewart (1,279 rushing yards this year). Defensively, the Crusaders are allowing 13 points per game.

Class AAANo. 3 West York (11-1) at No. 2 Susquehanna Township (11-1)

About the Indians

Last week:

Beat No. 7 Cocalico, 50-32

Previous week: Beat New Oxford, 42-7

The lodown: Another team, another outstanding quarterback, although Township's Ben Dupree represents a far different threat than Smith. Dupree may be small for a quarterback (5-foot-9, 185 pounds), but he's a tremendous dual-threat. Last week against Cocalico, Dupree rolled up 505 yards of total offense (341 of those rushing) and five touchdowns. The senior had three rushing touchdowns of 60 yards or more.

Let's take a second to soak those numbers in. OK.

Thanks mostly to Dupree, Township has reeled off six straight wins since a home loss to Chambersburg. The Indians have scored at least 30 points in nine games this season. They're hardly invincible, however. Besides the loss to Chambersburg, Township has been pushed by Hershey and Greencastle-Antrim, both good Class AAA teams that have since been ousted from the District 3 tournament. Defensively, the Indians are allowing 14.9 points per game.