Schools
Seneca Valley Defeats Shaler 28-21 in Hard-Fought Homecoming Battle
It's a good night to come home to Seneca Valley.
The crowning of a new homecoming king and queen in the pregame festivities gave a royal flavor to the Friday night football game that pitted theagainst the Shaler Area Titans.
The Raiders won the day by a score of 28-21, but the game was a real defensive battle throughout.
The Titans opened up with a seven-minute drive that was interupted by an interception from junior Raider defenseman Carson Kessler near the 30-yard line.
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The celebration was short-lived as Shaler regained possession of the ball when Seneca Valley quarterback Jordan Brown was intercepted on the next play. Neither team made it to the end zone before the end of the first quarter.
Shaler's John Holtz was a driving force for the Titans, but a pass from quarterback Ryan Mincher to Bill Reinheimer put Shaler on the board first, with 4:50 left in the half.
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Another Titans interception 28 seconds later had them in field goal range, but the kick fell short by 10 yards. As the clock ticked down, SV's Brown connected with running back Forrest Barnes on several plays before running the ball in the end zone himself with less than two minutes to go. After Michael Denny's extra point, the score at halftime was 7-7.
After recovering a fumble, the Titans were in control at the beginning of the third quarter. They scored again after a 37-yard run by Niko Thorpe led to a touchdown by Holtz. The third quarter ended with Shaler in the lead 14-7.
The fourth quarter was a seesaw of action. It took only 35 seconds for Seneca Valley to tie it up on a run by Barnes, but Shaler would retaliate with another Holtz touchdown, making the score 21-14.
A 30-yard pass from Brown to Barnes led to Barnes making a 5-yard run into the end zone. A, failed attempt on the extra point left the Raiders down 21-20, with 4:45 left in the contest.
Holtz almost had his third touchdown of the game, but a holding penalty against the Titans stopped his momentum. Then came a beautifully orchestrated series that began with a return by Troy Witt, two carries by Barnes for a first down and a Brown pass to Ryan Conn for another first down. The play culminated in a touchdown run by senior running back Oliver Philogene.
The Raiders went for two and were successful on Brown's pass to Ryan McCauley, putting the Men in Black up 28-21.
Final score: 28-21
Additional images may be viewed at JimmeB Photography.
