Central Valley and Blackhawk left without Week 1 games after their opponents canceled
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Wednesday, September 1, 2021 | 15:55
In a dilemma reminiscent of last fall, Central Valley began looking for a new opponent for Friday night’s soccer game.
Central Valley had expected to host Beaver, but the Bobcats canceled their Week 1 game due to cases of covid-19. In an email Wednesday, Beaver athletic director Alan Alcalde said the out-of-conference competition had been canceled due to “multiple cases of covid-19 within the Beaver-area football team” .
It was one of two Beaver County games canceled on Wednesday.
A combination of injuries and covid issues led Hopewell to call off his Week 1 game with Blackhawk, Hopewell athletic director Don Short said Wednesday night. It’s unclear if Blackhawk will try to find another opponent on short notice.
Central Valley has already started looking.
Sporting director Sam Cercone has started contacting schools with open dates on the calendar. He contacted the WPIAL schools and some outside the district, but found no takers on Wednesday evening.
Of course, Central Valley is a defending WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A champion who beat week zero opponent Knoch, 62-0, last week. So not everyone would be eager to play the Warriors.
This may limit Cercone’s options, especially now that the teams are already midweek in training.
The Wilmington District 10 Power, reigning State finalist in Class 2A, has an open week on their schedule, but the Greyhounds weren’t interested in hosting a last-minute game, said Cercone.
Beaver joined Riverview and Butler as teams that canceled Week 1 games. Riverview was scheduled to visit Chartiers-Houston on Friday. Butler would have played Erie High.
Central Valley faced a similar dilemma last season in the final week of the regular season when Avonworth had to cancel. In this situation, Cercone and Central Valley were able to find a replacement for Burrell.
“Unfortunately, this is the life we are living right now,” Cercone said.
Central Valley vs. Blackhawk may seem like a perfect fit for Week 1. However, both teams are also expected to play in Week 3.
Chris Harlan is a staff writer for Tribune-Review. You can contact Chris by email at [email protected] or via Twitter .
Key words: Beaver, Central Valley