This week in the Scioto Valley Conference, teams at the top of the standings are trying to keep within striking distance of undefeated Paint Valley. The Frontier Athletic Conference features a match of 0-5 teams in Chillicothe and Washington Court House. Meanwhile, Waverly welcomes in Oak Hill for their homecoming game.
Unioto at Piketon
After a close loss at Zane Trace last week, the Redstreaks (3-2, 1-1) welcome in the Shermans (4-1, 2-0 SVC).
Piketon is 3-0 at home this season.
Last year Unioto took this contest 45-22. Dating back to the 2004 season, Piketon has defeated Unioto eight times with the most recent one coming in 2021.
For Unioto, Blake Hoops needs only one more reception to break the school record.
Unioto sits in fifth place in Division IV, Region 15 computer rankings, while Piketon sits at 15th in Division V, Region 19.
Huntington at Zane Trace
The Pioneers (2-3, 2-0) are the team on the rise having won the last two after starting the season 0-3. They celebrate their homecoming this week and face a Huntington team on a four-game winless streak.
Huntington hasn't beaten Zane Trace since the 2007 season.
The Huntsmen can expect the Pioneers to feed them a healthy dose of Silas Stewart and Brice Johnson.
Zane Trace is 16th in Division V, Region 19.
Adena at Paint Valley
It is a tall task facing the Warriors this week on the road as they face the undefeated Bearcats.
Adena is coming off a 40-6 win over Southeastern, and it will need every bit of that kind of offensive performance to keep pace with Paint Valley. The question may be can Adena's defense handle Paint Valley's offense?
So far no team has been able to slow them down. In the first two weeks of the season, opponents were within 14 points of Paint Valley, but since then every game has been a blowout.
Paint Valley is second in Division VI, Region 24, trailing only Coldwater. Adena is 11th in Division VI, Region 24.
Westfall at Southeastern
Both programs sit at 1-4 on the season and haven't won a game since their opener.
So what does each team need to do in order to come out with the victory?
Simply, both need to spark their offense. This season Westfall has scored a total of 77 points through five games, while Southeastern has 82 points. But in the Panthers' case, 46 of those 82 came in their opening win. For the Mustangs, 57 of the points came from the 29 in the opener and the 28 they scored last week against Paint Valley.
And all those points didn't come on offense. Last week, Southeastern's Lane Williams returned the opening kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown. For Westfall, Jaden Towler had a pick-6 for one of their scores.
Maybe this game won't come down to offense and it will be a defensive struggle instead. Either way, one team will show it stepped up.
Southeastern is 20th in Division VI, Region 24.
Washington Court House at Chillicothe
Someone is coming out of this one a winner of their first game of the season.
In a battle of winless teams, Chillicothe welcomes in Washington.
Last year, the Cavaliers were shut out 13-0 by the Blue Lions. Chillicothe last won this matchup in 2021.
Chillicothe is being outscored 174-43 on the season. Washington is being outscored 245-57.
But hey someone will win.
Oak Hill at Waverly
It is homecoming in Waverly and the Tigers and their fans would like nothing more than to come out victorious.
They face an Oak Hill team that sits at 1-4 on the season. The Oaks haven't won since a week 2 victory over Fairfield Christian Academy.
Last year, Waverly won this contest 56-7.
Let's throw about a couple of players to watch in this one — and no, it isn't Mason Kelly, Cody Swords or Mason Pollard who highlight the offense.
Keep an eye on Lane Bear and Sebastian Billas. Last week, Bear had 22 total tackles and Billas had 16. The offense will do its part on Friday night, but don't sleep on the defense.
Waverly is seventh in Division IV, Region 15.
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: Week 6 preview: Keeping pace with Paint Valley makes Unioto vs Piketon a big game
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