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<p>No matter what transpires in Hershey today, the Wyoming Area Warriors put together arguably the most memorable football season in school history.</p><p>It comes to a climax starting at noon at Hersheypark Stadium as District 2 champion Wyoming Area (13-1) plays District 7 champion Central Valley (13-1) for the PIAA Class 3A championship.</p><p>Here are some points to consider:</p><p>&#8226; It will be the first time a Wyoming Area team in any sport plays for a state title. The field hockey team lost in the Class A semifinals this year and the softball lost in the Class 3A semifinals in 1981. Wyoming Area was formed for the 1966-67 school year.</p><p>&#8226; Coach Randy Spencer underwent heart surgery before the season, relegating him to the press box for the opening games of the season.</p><p>&#8226; The Warriors lost running back/linebacker Corey Mruk, a 1,000-yard rusher and the team&#8217;s second-leading tackler in 2018, to a season-ending knee injury in the third game of the season. Backup Darren Rodney took over, and the running game didn&#8217;t miss a beat. Rodney, though, missed the state quarterfinal game with Montoursville with an injury. He returned for the semifinal game against Tamaqua.</p><p>&#8226; While Mruk&#8217;s injury was season-ending, there were others that sidelined players thoughout the season, including junior defensive back Jake Williams and senior defensive lineman Dante Bovani. Bovani didn&#8217;t get on the field until midway through the regular season.</p><p>&#8226; The team had to deal with the on-off-on situation with the Southern Columbia game. Some Heartland Conference officials didn&#8217;t like the perennial state power Tigers switching a conference game for a third time to play better competition and made a last-ditch effort to prevent it. Their attempt failed.</p><p>&#8226; The season featured three teams Wyoming Area never played before &#8212; Southern Columbia, Montoursville and Tamaqua. And now another in Central Valley.</p><p>&#8226; The team set the school record for victories in a season, eclipsing the 1980 team, which finished 12-0 but didn&#8217;t have the benefit of a state playoff system.</p><p>Now comes the biggest game in program history.</p><p>&#8220;I really don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s difficult,&#8221; Spencer said. &#8220;It seems to be that natural progression and you have to have that mindset of going 1-0 and focusing that week. We&#8217;ve been able to do a great job of doing that. Now that it&#8217;s in Hershey it&#8217;s the state championship game, but it&#8217;s also the last opportunity to play together.</p><p>&#8220;The kids have really rallied around that and responded to it.&#8221;</p><p>A group of seniors led by the pitch-catch duo of quarterback Dominic DeLuca and receiver Brian Williams has been the core to success. They, along with Rodney and Mruk, have been contributing since their freshman seasons.</p><p>Two-way lineman Sam Solomon started as a freshman and sophomore at Wyoming Valley West before hopping aboard. Defensive end/tight end Derek Ambrosino and linebacker FJ Braccini have done the same since their sophomore seasons. A pair of juniors &#8212; Bryce Hinkle at center and Williams at defensive back &#8212; joined the varsity as freshmen. Sophomore lineman Nick Elko was a super-sized fullback last season.</p><p>&#8220;Once that group came together and started to play, we were able to project that we have a chance to be pretty successful,&#8221; Spencer said. &#8220;I don&#8217;t know you would have expectations to be at this point even though that&#8217;s always the goal. They&#8217;ve not just been able to play at a high level athletically, but they&#8217;ve come together as an amazing team and got us to the point we are on Saturday.&#8221;</p><p>Like Wyoming Area, Central Valley had a key injury early when linebacker Montel Sims tore his ACL. But big-play linebacker Reed Fitzsimmons has made it difficult for opponents to run between the tackles. He is among five Central Valley players with over 100 tackles.</p><p>The defensive unit has 119 tackles for loss and 42 sacks, with outside linebacker Amarian Saunders collecting 10 of them. Opponents have scored 25 total points in four postseason games.</p><p>Central Valley quarterback Ameer Dudley has been beating opponents with his arm and legs in his two seasons as a starter. Receivers Jawon Hall, Mike Barbuto and Myles Walker are also playmakers on the other side of the ball.</p><p>Central Valley also has a 1,200-yard rusher in Jaylen Guy, who looks like the fastest running back Wyoming Area has faced other than the Garcia brothers from Southern Columbia.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Wyoming Area&#8217;s Jake Williams (17), Dominic DeLuca (9) and Derek Ambrosino (11) play key roles on the Warriors&#8217; defense. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_WA-Mid-Valley-HS-ftbl-TL-3.jpg</photo0><caption0>Wyoming Area&#8217;s Jake Williams (17), Dominic DeLuca (9) and Derek Ambrosino (11) play key roles on the Warriors&#8217; defense. </caption0><photoCredit0>Tony Callaio file photo | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_TTL111619HSFB-WA-Prep_2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wyoming Area wide receiver Brian Williams (6) has scored on 11 of his 33 receptions this season. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_TTL111619HSFB-WA-Prep_2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Wyoming Area wide receiver Brian Williams (6) has scored on 11 of his 33 receptions this season. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis file photo | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_TTL112419WyoArea-MontoursvilleFB_3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wyoming Area quarterback Dominic DeLuca had his best game of the season against Montoursville in the Class 3A quarterfinals, throwing for 310 yards. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_TTL112419WyoArea-MontoursvilleFB_3.jpg</photo2><caption2>Wyoming Area quarterback Dominic DeLuca had his best game of the season against Montoursville in the Class 3A quarterfinals, throwing for 310 yards. </caption2><photoCredit2>Bill Tarutis file photo | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Warriors play Central Valley for PIAA Class 3A championship</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By John Erzar</p><p>jerzar@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>PIAA CLASS 3A CHAMPIONSHIP</strong></p><p><strong>Wyoming Area (13-1) vs. Central Valley (13-1)</strong></p><p><strong>noon Saturday, Hersheypark Stadium</strong></p><p><strong>TV:</strong> PCN</p><p><strong>Admission:</strong> $8</p><p><strong>Last Meeting:</strong> never played</p><p><strong>Quick Fact: </strong>This is the first time a Wyoming Area team in any sport will play for a state championship.</p></factboxMeta></div>

H.S. Football: Wyoming Area seeks one more memory in magical season