Week 5 winners and losers

The tide is slowing starting to shift in Lower Allen Twp.

It was seven years since Cedar Cliff had won three straight football games. Friday night, the Colts did what they hadn't done since consecutive wins over Chambersburg, Harrisburg and Lower Dauphin in 2001 when they won their third straight via a 24-3 rout of Carlisle.

Cedar Cliff and coach Jim Cantafio (right) polished off Chambersburg in overtime Sept. 19 and downed Carlisle without the services of quarterback Jake Troutman, who tore an ACL in the second half against Chambersburg. Sophomore Tim Kelly, who led both wins, will be under center the rest of the season. The Colts (3-2) travel to Mid-Penn Commonwealth leader State College (5-0) on Friday.

Biggest winners (including Cedar Cliff):

Mechanicsburg -- After a couple of close calls in recent weeks, the 45-6 pounding of visiting Waynesboro was exactly what Mechanicsburg (5-0) needed. Thanks the Lebanon's loss to Garden Spot, the Wildcats took the top spot in the District 3 Class AAA power rankings.

Red Land -- It wasn't easy but Ethan Noss scored twice in the second half to help the Patriots (4-1) down Hershey, 24-8. Dan Yenger, who rushed for 99 yards on 20 carries, will need another big game as Red Land hosts Greencastle-Antrim (5-0) on Friday. Win that and we'll see the Patriots back here next week.

Shippensburg -- The forward pass made an appearance Saturday in Bangor as the Greyhounds (2-3) eclipsed 200 yards through the air in a nice 43-28 win over Pius X. Shippensburg needs that momentum to carry over this Friday when Mechanicsburg comes to town.

Biggest losers:

Carlisle -- For much of the game, Carlisle (1-4) looked like the better team against Cedar Cliff. Unfortunately, the Thundering Herd simply couldn't finish its long drives and fell victim to the big play in a surprising 24-3 loss.

Boiling Springs -- The offense was better as it accumulated 288 yards but the result was the same for the fourth week in a row. This time it was a 21-15 setback to East Pennsboro on homecoming. The good news is that this team (1-4) isn't getting run out of the stadium. Its last two losses were by a combined 13 points. Hope for the future?