ALTOONA – At 5-foot-7 and a sturdy 160 pounds, Chrys Black proved to the tallest and most influential performer Saturday at Mansion Park Stadium.
All season long Pittsburgh Central Catholic’s rushing attack carried the agenda since August. But this was Harrisburg lining up opposite the Vikings, a defense with serious teeth at all three levels.
Black wasn’t supposed to run through the Cougars’ front like a hot knife through butter. But he did, leading to PCC’s dominant 32-14 victory.
It was Harrisburg’s second straight defeat to the WPIAL champions at this stage, a semifinal that could have shipped the District 3 crew to their third PIAA Championship round appearance since 2018.
Instead, Black collected a whopping 211 rushing yards on 37 determined carries. In the end, three touchdown runs by the budding sophomore sealed Harrisburg’s fate.
“Chrys has been out with a tweaked injury off and on, but when that kid is healthy, he’s one of the best in the state, if not the best,” said fellow RB and LB Roman Thompson.
“It’s special watching that kid run the ball. He runs with a lot of grit and he can make moves on any defender.”
PCC’s extreme pace certainly hindered the Cougars, as did the Vikings’ massive blocking wall that includes 265-pounder Jake Murphy, 290-pounder Matt Bowers, 260-pounder James Halter, 295-pounder Jon Sassic and 285-pounder Jimmy Kalis.
Add in Thompson’s first strike through the hole and Black was able to pile up the yards in 6-yard chunks.
“I was always a strong kid when I was younger, so I always had it in me,” Black said.
“We knew the game was going to be fast and physical. Those boys up front played great, they helped me out a lot. If it wasn’t for them, there would not be any touchdowns.”
About those touchdowns. Black escaped a handful of tacklers on his 34-yard scoring run that lifted PCC to a 14-0 lead with 9:04 left in the half.
His 8-yard run came with 2:11 remaining in the half, setting the Cougars back 22-6 at the break.
Black’s final score, a dynamic 26-yarder with 8:18 to play signaled the end of Harrisburg’s season.
Up next is QB Gavin Sidwar and La Salle College HS, which took out North Penn 49-14 in the other semifinal.
It’s safe to assume that Black, whose last-second interception sealed PCC’s 2024 semifinal win over the Cougars, will again be the focal point.
The sophomore already boasts offers from Florida, Syracuse and more.
“Our program, we pride ourselves pretty much on the ability to run the ball. We bust our tails off February through August lifting big weights,” Thompson said.
“We showed we can run the ball against one of the best teams in the state.”
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