Northern High School running back Dylan Allafi played a key role in the Patriots 35-0 victory against Douglass last weekend in the 2A State quarterfinals and will look to be equally effective this weekend at Glenelg in a 2A State semifinal contest and a potential meeting with rival Huntingtown in the state championship game at Navy the following weekend.
Northern High School running back Dylan Allafi played a key role in the Patriots 35-0 victory against Douglass last weekend in the 2A State quarterfinals and will look to be equally effective this weekend at Glenelg in a 2A State semifinal contest and a potential meeting with rival Huntingtown in the state championship game at Navy the following weekend.
Among the five Southern Maryland Athletic Conference football teams that competed in last week’s Maryland State quarterfinals, a quartet of them advanced to this weekend’s Maryland state semifinals with the chance to keep their respective state title hopes alive.
In each of the previous two seasons, SMAC sent five teams to the state semifinals and three of them to the state title game. Last year both North Point (4A/3A) and Patuxent (2A/1A) prevailed while Huntingtown succumbed to Stephen Decatur for the second straight season.
There is a chance all four remaining SMAC teams could advance to the state finals and two of them could face one another in an epic clash among longtime conference and county rivals.
Last weekend Huntingtown, Lackey, Northern and Patuxent all punched their tickets to this week’s state semifinals, while defending 4A/3A state champion North Point suffered a 19-7 setback at Sherwood.
Huntingtown will host Wicomico, Patuxent will welcome Boonsboro, Northern will travel to Glenelg and Lackey will visit Liberty, which edged Hereford 39-38 in overtime last Saturday.
All four SMAC teams are considered favorites this weekend and that sets up the strong possibility that Huntingtown and Northern could meet in the 2A state title game at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Huntingtown won the regular season meeting 35-14 at Northern, but that hardly guarantees the Hurricanes of equal success in the rematch. Calvert defeated Lackey 42-0 in week three only to see its season ended by the Chargers 20-14 in a region final two weeks ago.
Patuxent is also looking at the prospect of facing perennial 1A power Fort Hill for that title this fall. Both teams have been dominant in the postseason and that showdown would be of great interest. Lackey has been the SMAC Cinderella story of the postseason to date when it heads to Liberty, which has enjoyed a magical run of its own.
Two weeks ago Liberty thought its season had been ended in a 42-7 setback against Middletown, but that Frederick County school was forced to forfeit that contest for using an ineligible player. Liberty then ventured to Hereford last Saturday evening and edged the Bulls 39-38 to keep its title hopes alive. Of course, the winner of that contest is likely to face Dunbar in the state final.
Last Saturday afternoon, Northern dispatched Douglass 35-0 at Eleanor Roosevelt behind a balanced attack that featured running back Dylan Allafri, quarterback Blake Pasik and wide receiver Tony Holson. The Patriots’ defense allowed several long Douglass drives, but the Eagles eventually failed to score on any of them.
