The Williams Valley Vikings are an accomplished program over the last several years; there is no doubt about that.
One of the Schuylkill League’s premier programs, the Vikings have been nearly unbeatable and have won three straight District 11 championships. But on Friday night, the Vikings, led by a group of highly-accomplished seniors, will look to do something they haven’t been able to do since the 2017 season: beat a non-District 11 opponent in the playoffs. It would also serve as the program’s first trip to the PIAA semifinals in progam history.
The Vikings will face off against the District 12 champions, the Lansdale Catholic Crusaders, at 7 p.m. Friday at Lehighton’s Multi-Purpose Stadium. It’s a matchup that will pit the No. 3-ranked Vikings in Class 2A, according to PennLive’s weekly rankings, against the No. 8-ranked Crusaders.
The Crusaders enter this weekend’s matchup with an impressive 11-2 record and are coming off a demolition of District 2 champion Lakeland last weekend, 43-7. The Crusaders, playing in the highly competitive Philadelphia Catholic League, amassed a 5-1 conference record this fall, their lone loss along the way coming to Archbishop Ryan, 3-0. It will be by far the biggest test that the Vikings have faced this season, even more so than last week’s matchup against an undefeated Schuylkill Haven Hurricanes team that previously beat the Vikings in the regular season.
The Crusaders’ offense this season has been strong, averaging 30 points per game and 318 total yards per game.
Dual-threat quarterback Yeboa Cobbold, committed to Akron as a safety, leads the Crusaders’ offense. Despite operating in a run-heavy scheme that rarely attempts more than 13-15 passes per game — and with Cobbold limited to 12 or fewer attempts in each of the last four contests — the senior has still thrown for 1,192 yards and 17 touchdowns this season, while completing 58.5% of his passes. On the ground, he’s a dynamic athlete, totaling 1,264 yards and 16 touchdowns on 132 carries.
The Crusaders will also look towards senior Nick O’Brien, who has been just as impressive this season on the ground, with 149 carries for 879 yards and nine touchdowns. Yeboa Cobbold’s younger brother, John Cobbold, is the third Crusader with over 500 rushing yards this season, totaling 505 yards on 114 carries.
Lansdale Catholic’s top pass catchers include James Webb with 26 receptions for 397 yards and seven touchdowns, as well as Asher Thickening with 27 receptions for 293 yards and a pair of scores.
Defensively is where the Crusaders shine.
In 13 games, they’ve allowed just 136 points, an average of 10.4 points per game, and less than 150 yards per contest. They’re incredibly tough to run the ball against, allowing just 665 rushing yards this season, an average of 51.5 yards per game.
Top players defensively include cornerback Braeden Smith with 117 total tackles, 12 tackles for loss, and three interceptions, all returned for touchdowns. Mathias Lieber has 88 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss, and Russell Holmes has recorded 61 tackles, as well as 11 sacks and 24 tackles for loss.
The Crusaders’ run defense against the Vikings’ run offense will be the matchup to watch within Friday’s game.
The Vikings have been tremendous on the ground, rushing for 3,520 yards on 445 carries this season, an average of 7.9 yards per carry, and 270.8 rushing yards per game. They also have 50 rushing touchdowns in 13 games, an average of 3.8 touchdowns per game.
Sophomore running back Fletcher Thompson has been the bell cow back for the Vikings’ offense, totaling 1,733 yards on 173 carries, an average of 10 yards per carry. Last week against Schuylkill Haven, Thompson ran for 161 yards and one touchdown.
Senior quarterback Brady Shomper, like his counterpart in Cobbold, can do it all. Shomper this season is 92-for-142 through the air — a 64.8% completion percentage — for 1,996 yards and 30 touchdowns, and has thrown just five interceptions. Shomper is just as dangerous with his legs, totaling 957 yards and finding the endzone an additional 16 times.
With the Crusaders’ strong run defense, the Vikings will have to be able to throw the ball successfully on Friday night, which will put the spotlight on Williams Valley’s strong trio of receivers in seniors Evan Achenbach and Blazer Lords, and junior Colin Crisswell.
Williams Valley senior Evan Achenbach (11) sticks out an arm against Schuylkill Haven sophomore Logan Goad (28) as Schuylkill Haven and Williams Valley face off during the District XI class 2A football championship at Blue Mountain High School, Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. (MATTHEW PERSCHALL/MULTIMEDIA EDITOR)
Achenbach leads Williams Valley with 37 receptions for 678 yards and nine touchdowns. Criswell has totaled a quality 18 receptions for 394 yards and eight touchdowns, including the game-winning touchdown last Friday against Schuylkill Haven in the final minute. Lords has 19 receptions for 384 yards and six touchdowns as well.
Thompson is also a threat in the passing game. The sophomore tailback has totaled 16 receptions for 455 yards and an additional six touchdowns this fall.
Defensively, the Vikings’ defense will look to pick up where they left off in the second half of last week’s contest against Schuylkill Haven, when they kept the Hurricanes to just seven points over the final 24 minutes.
The Vikings were one of District 11’s best defenses this season, allowing just 15.3 points per game. The only teams to score more than 14 points against the Vikings were Minersville, which posted 40 and 35 points in a pair of matchups, and Schuylkill Haven which scored 43 points in the Vikings’ lone loss this season and 31 points in last week’s District 11 Class 2A Championship. They’ll be facing a Crusaders offense that is clicking at the right time, posting 34 points or more in each of their last four games.
Defensively, the Vikings will rely on their front seven to slow down the Crusaders’ rushing attack.
Junior linebacker Trevon Bair, who has 109 tackles including eight tackles for loss, will be a key part of the equation, as will Fletcher Thompson, who has 94 carries and seven tackles for loss. Defensive lineman Camron Green will be as well, with 89 tackles and 10 tackles for loss. Last weekend, the Vikings did a tremendous job of slowing Schuylkill Haven running back Colton Reber in the second half, holding him to less than 80 rushing yards in the final two quarters after he totaled 119 yards and two touchdowns in the first half.
Overall, as one would expect in the PIAA playoffs, Friday night’s contest should be a strong one between two teams with similar identities: strong, hard-nosed rushing attacks and fundamentally strong and sound defenses. It will be a game that is ultimately won in the trenches; whichever side’s offensive and defensive lines can assert their dominance and be the more physical side should have a strong chance of coming out on top.
However, if there is one key advantage that Williams Valley will have on Friday night, it is their passing attack.
While Yeboa Cobbold has been a quality passer all season, Brady Shomper has been one of the most efficient passers in Class 2A, and is coming off one of the best performances of his career, completing 13-of-19 passing attempts for 284 yards and three touchdowns.
If Shomper and the Vikings can pick up where they left off through the air last Friday against Schuylkill Haven — widely considered the best team at the Class 2A level before Williams Valley’s ferocious comeback — the Vikings will have a great opportunity to advance to their first state semifinals matchup in program history.