MCMURRAY, Pa. — Entering tonight, Penn-Trafford and Peters Township had only faced off against one another in the playoffs twice. The Indians had defeated the Warriors in both appearances (2018 & 2019). The old saying goes, “the third time’s the charm.” For Penn-Trafford, that is the mindset they needed in order to try and beat Peters Township for the first time in the postseason.
Penn-Trafford, one of the hottest teams, had won seven straight games entering tonight. But if there was any team that could slow down the Warriors’ momentum, Peters Township would be a good candidate.
At the end of the night, Peters Township was too much for Penn-Trafford. Behind, a good balance of offense and defense, No. 3 Peters Township defeated No. 6 Penn-Trafford 42-13 in the WPIAL 5A Football Quarterfinals.
Penn-Trafford steadily moved the ball down the field on their opening drive for over five minutes. The Warriors gained four first downs on the drive and went all the way down to the Indians’ 23-yard line. However, on fourth-and-10, Warriors quarterback Jonny Lovre looked to connect to Nick Ponko. But PJ Luke provided good defense and almost intercepted Lovre’s pass forcing a turnover on downs.
After the missed opportunity for the Warriors, it didn’t take that long for Peters Township to open up the scoring. On the second play of offense for Peters Township, star quarterback Nolan DiLucia connected with one of his favorite wide receivers Nick McCullough for a 73-yard touchdown.
The Indians extended its lead to 14-0 after Nolan DiLucia rushed for a 4-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter.
DiLucia not only made his presence on offense but did so on defense as well. He was one of three Peters Township players to record an interception in the second quarter.
Later in the second quarter, Penn-Trafford drove down the field and entered the Indians’ territory. However, a low snap went past Lovre and he had to run backward over 10 yards to recover the ball at midfield.
It only got worse after that for the Warriors. On the next play, Lovre attempted a quick screen pass, but Stanford commit Mickey Vaccarello read the play perfectly and intercepted the pass taking it all the way into the endzone, a 48-yard return, to extend the lead to 21-0.
Penn-Trafford scored its only touchdown in the first half when Lovre threw a pass deep down the field and was caught by Ponko for a 34-yard touchdown.
Right after the Warriors scored, Peters Township responded. DiLucia connected with McCullough once again, this time for a 24-yard score.
On the final play of the first half, Lovre heaved the ball into the endzone looking for points, but Lucas Rost recorded the third Indians interception of the half.
Peters Township started with possession to begin the second half but could not generate anything on offense. After an Indians punt, Penn-Trafford completed short passes to get inside Indians’ territory. Lovre heaved the deep ball once again, looking to connect with Colton Tyburski for a touchdown. But McCullough was a step ahead and intercepted the pass. Lovre ended the night throwing four interceptions.
In the fourth quarter, Lovre turned the ball over once again. As he was scrambling out of the pocket looking to pass, the football just left Lovre’s hands. Indians linebacker James Spratt recovered the fumble.
Peters Township scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. DiLucia threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Eli Prado to extend the lead to 35-7. DiLucia ended the night contributing to four of the six Peters Township touchdowns. Then with less than four minutes left, Peters Township forced a running clock after Nick Courie rushed for a 4-yard touchdown.
Penn-Trafford scored on the final play of the game as Derek Carr threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Jack Weishaar.
With the win, Peters Township won its fifth straight consecutive game and has now won five straight games against Penn-Trafford. The Indians will play in the WPIAL 5A Semifinals next weekend against No. 2 Upper St. Clair. Both teams met earlier in the regular season in Week 5 with Upper St. Clair coming away with a 21-7 win.
