For The Dialog
It’s a mix of seasons as football ends on Saturday with the state championship games, while basketball tips off this afternoon.
Football
Saturday
Smyrna (11-1) vs. Salesianum (10-1), 1 p.m., University of Delaware. Salesianum is back in the Division I championship game, while the Eagles are playing for a championship for the first time since 1975. The Sals defeated Middletown in the semifinals behind a great goal-line stand, but they lost starting quarterback Garrett Cannon to a broken ankle. Their ground game, however, can beat anyone. Smyrna runs a wide-open offense, and the Sals will need to contain Will Knight. Salesianum and Smyrna met in week three and put on an epic performance, with the Sals taking a wild 76-56 win.
Basketball
Girls
Friday
St. Thomas More at Wilmington Friends, 4:15 p.m. The Ravens open the campaign with a trip north.
Newark Charter at Archmere, 6:15 p.m. The Auks, who made it to the state tournament, welcome a Diamond State Athletic Conference foe to Moglia Fieldhouse.
Boys
Friday
Tatnall vs. St. Elizabeth, 4:45 p.m., at A.I. DuPont. All-state guard Jordan Money returns for the Vikings, who enter the season with high expectations. This is the first game of the A.I. DuPont Tip-Off Classic.
Howard at Salesianum, 7:30 p.m. Salesianum, the two-time defending state champions, lost one of the best players in program history with the graduation of Donte DiVincenzo, but the Sals are a very talented, if young, team. Guard Kineph Turner leads a young Wildcats squad.
Saturday
St. Elizabeth vs. Christiana or A.I. DuPont, 3 or 6:30 p.m., at A.I. DuPont. If the Vikings win on Friday night, they will play the later game.
Sunday
St. Thomas More vs. Hodgson, 2:30 p.m., at St. Georges Tech. The Ravens begin their season in the Upstate/Downstate Challenge.
