WEXFORD, Pa. — In the last game of the 2023 regular season for both WPIAL schools, North Allegheny (9-1, 3-1 6A) took care of business against Seneca Valley (3-7, 0-4 6A), 49-14. North Allegheny had several big plays in the first half to jump out to a 28-0 lead at halftime. In the first half alone, the Tigers combined for 210 rushing yards, including runs of 80 and 43 yards from quarterback Logan Kushner and star running back Tyree Alualu. Kushner also added touchdown passes of 44 and 61 yards in the half to solidify the theme of long scoring plays on the day.
North Allegheny started with the ball and ran it well out of the gate. A 43-yard run by Alualu set North Allegheny up in the red zone right out of the gate. However, they couldn’t convert on the game’s opening drive and were stopped on fourth down. A three-and-out from Seneca Valley, followed by a long punt return from North Allegheny, set Alualu up for an easy six-yard touchdown run on their second offensive drive to give the Tigers a 6-0 lead after the extra point attempt was blocked.
North Allegheny got the ball back after another three-and-out midway through the first quarter. This time, a 44-yard pass from Kushner to Evan Lyon put North Allegheny again in the red zone. They’d get their second touchdown of the game on a 3rd-and-19 run by Kushner from the 20-yard line. The Tigers’ two-point conversion made the score 14-0 with a little over four minutes left in the first quarter.
As stated, big plays defined the first half for North Allegheny as midway through the second quarter, Kushner found Khiryn Boyd for a 61-yard touchdown pass to extend their lead. The pass itself, which came on a 3rd-and-9 play from North Allegheny’s 39-yard line, was the perfect placement for Boyd who was double-covered on the play.
A three-and-out gave North Allegheny the ball back almost immediately, and Kushner would again break for a big play. This time an 80-yard touchdown run that extended the North Allegheny lead to 28-0 with 5:31 left in the first half. Neither team scored in the remaining five minutes, keeping the score at 28-0 at halftime.
A pick-six by Boyd just 17 seconds into the second half enacted the mercy rule in the game as North Allegheny extended their lead to 35-0. Seneca Valley got their first touchdown with less than 30 seconds left in the third quarter on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Sean O’Shea to Cayden Parker but a touchdown run from North Allegheny’s Nelson Branch reinstated the mercy rule at 42-7 with 8:17 left.
An interception from Conner Frank on the first play of the ensuing possession gave North Allegheny the ball back immediately, which led to a touchdown off a run from backup quarterback Jackson Failla. Seneca Valley scored a late touchdown off a pass from O’Shea to Dejaun Webb to end the game.
The final score was 49-14 in favor of the Tigers. North Allegheny now heads to the playoffs as the two-seed behind Central Catholic, who
defeated the Tigers 50-22 earlier in the year. North Allegheny will host the winner of tonight’s Canon-McMillan and Mt. Lebanon match-up in the 6A semifinals next weekend. As for Seneca Valley, their season ends with a fifth-place finish in 6A.
