There is just something about playing at Mansion Park Stadium in Altoona that brings out an abundance of yellow flags.

In both of the western regional semifinals for Class 5A and Class 6A on Saturday, there seemed to be more penalties thrown than points scored.

In the Class 6A game that pitted Central Catholic and Harrisburg, the two teams combined for 26 penalties for 178 yards. The Class 5A semifinal between Peters Township and Bishop McDevitt wasn’t much better, as they were flagged 23 times for 241 yards. The Crusaders did most of the damage in that one with 18 penalties for 173 yards, including 12 for 99 in the second half alone.

“I ripped the team at halftime. I was in the press box, and I almost came down onto the field,” Bishop McDevitt coach Jeff Weachter said. “That’s ridiculo

See Full Page