
VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH • SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2020 • 23
DEPTH, EXPERIENCE FUEL A-R
by MICHAEL LOVE
No matter where Apollo-Ridge coach John
Skiba turns on the practice field, he sees a
returning starter.
Experience abounds for the Vikings, who
hope to build on last year’s 7-4 overall record
and WPIAL Class 2A playoff appearance. The
team also hosted its first postseason game
since 2014.
“I and the other coaches are fortunate to
have a group that is very mature and has been
through a lot,” Skiba said.
“They now are natural leaders. Before we
started to work out officially, a lot of them were
working out on their own and putting together
group workouts. They knew what needed to be
done. We had great turnouts when we returned
to workouts. There is a lot of energy around
this team.”
The WPIAL, in response to the season-change
options from the PIAA, adopted a model for
football that involves both game movement and
elimination from the original schedules amidst
the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
For Apollo-Ridge, scrimmages with Valley
and Yough have been eliminated, and a Week 1
game against 2019 WPIAL Class 2A champion
and PIAA runner-up Avonworth will now serve
as the Vikings’ lone scrimmage.
The Oct. 30 game with WPIAL newcomer Ligonier
Valley, a new conference foe for Apollo-Ridge,
has been moved to the new opening date, Sept. 11,
and a nonconference game with Greensburg
Central Catholic has been eliminated.
Nonconference contests against Freeport
(Sept. 18) and Burrell (Sept. 25) remain.
Conference foe Summit Academy canceling
fall sports left a void in Apollo-Ridge’s schedule
the weekend of Oct. 3. Now, in addition to
Ligonier Valley, the Vikings will have conference
games against Steel Valley, Shady Side
Academy and Serra Catholic.
Ligonier Valley finished 12-1 in its final season
in District 6.
“It’s a pretty athletic conference with a lot
of good skill players,” Skiba said. “Ligonier
Valley brings in a lot of tradition to the conference.
We understand what kind of battle that
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL IS BACK!
D o n ’ t M i s s a Mi n u t e o f t h e A c t i o n
Friday Previews & Matchups • Saturday Scores • Stats • Standings & More
IN PRINT AND ONLINE TribHSSN.TribLIVE.com
is going to be. ”
Seniors Klay Fitzroy (wide receiver/quarterback),
Jake Fello (quarterback) and Logan
Harmon (running back) each led offensive
categories last year, and they will be joined in
the skill positions by seniors Keighton Reese
(wide receiver), Adam Troutman (tight end),
Dom Reiter (fullback) and sophomore Nick
Curci (running back).
“With this experienced group back, we are
just executing the necessary things on and off
the field to be ready for the season,” Fitzroy
said. “Last year was pretty exciting because
we were able to show everybody what we were
capable of doing. We’ve been working hard to
build on all of those good things.”
Up front, there is starting experience from
seniors Lucas Yard (guard), Jake Duriancik
(guard), Connor Wynn (center/guard) and Cole
Sells (center), as well as junior tackles Bradey
Schrock and Greg Klingensmith.
Harmon led the team in tackles last year (92)
from his inside linebacker spot, and Reese (outside
linebacker) and Reiter (inside linebacker)
each added 52 stops.
Fitzroy (defensive back) fronted the defense
with four interceptions.
Also back to form the core of the defense
are Fello (free safety), Yard (inside linebacker),
Wynn (defensive end), Schrock (defensive
tackle), Klingensmith (defensive end), Curci
(outside linebacker) and senior defensive back
Zach Hreha.
Skiba said junior Angelo Cicco (wide receiver)
and sophomore Landon Harmon (fullback/
defensive end) should have increased roles in
2020.
KLAY FITZROY
LOGAN HARMON
Coach: John Skiba
2019 record: 7-4, 4-2 in
Class 2A Allegheny
All-time record: 218-275-9
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 Ligonier Valley* 7
9.18 at Freeport 7
9.25 Burrell 7
10.2 at Summit Academy* PPD
10.9 Shady Side Academy* 7
10.16 at Serra Catholic* 7
10.23 at Steel Valley* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing: Jake Fello
73-120, 1,110 yards, 8 TDs
Receiving: Klay Fitzroy
33-621 yards, 6 TDs
Rushing: Logan Harmon
199-1,415 yards, 18 TDs
FAST FACTS
• Apollo-Ridge will match up
with Serra Catholic for the
first time since the quarterfinals
of the 2007 WPIAL Class
A playoffs.
• Led by Logan Harmon,
the Vikings’ running attack
averaged 191.3 yards a game
in 2019.
• The Apollo-Ridge defense
returns eight of its top nine
tacklers from a year ago.
No. Name Ht/Wt. Cl.
1 Jake Fello 6-0/182 Sr.
2 Dom Reiter 5-10/187 Sr.
3 Colin Saxion 5-5/135 So.
4 Evangeios Cicco 5-5/128 Jr.
5 Adam Troutman 6-2/185 Sr.
6 Gavin Cole 5-7/134 Jr.
7 Luke Fox 5-11/119 Fr.
8 Karter Schrock 5-10/163 Fr.
9 Colton Niel 6-0/178 Jr.
10 Klay Fitzroy 6-4/198 Sr.
12 Jacob Mull 5-10/137 So.
14 Darek Baustert 5-11/128 So.
17 Mike Fryer 6-0/160 Jr.
20 Keighton Reese 6-0/200 Sr.
21 Luke Hura 5-7/135 So.
27 Evan Remaley 5-10/152 Jr.
30 Logan Bianco 5-8/124 Fr.
31 Nick Curci 6-2/203 So.
32 Alex Wurmb 5-5/114 Fr.
33 Keyvahn McCray 6-0/170 Jr.
40 Matt Clark 5-7/163 Jr.
41 Landon Harmon 5-10/195 So.
44 Logan Harmon 5-9/219 Sr.
45 Levi Harmon 5-8/146 Fr.
51 Jake Duriancik 6-1/220 Sr.
52 Cooper Gourley 6-0/215 So.
53 Logan Cole 5-9/169 Fr.
54 Tyler Jaworsky 5-9/216 So.
55 Lucas Yard 5-10/208 Sr.
56 Cole Sells 5-10/350 Sr.
57 Bradey Schrock 6-0/283 Jr.
59 Greg Klingensmith 6-4/254 Jr.
62 Andrew Booth 5-10/235 Jr.
66 Michael Grant 5-5/171 So.
71 Nick Clark 5-9/208 Fr.
72 Connor Weigand 6-0/219 So.
86 Zach Hreha 5-10/163 Sr.
88 Mathias Bernat 5-9/130 Fr
ROSTER
APOLLO-RIDGE • ALLEGHENY