Gritty Gremlins
SLIPPERY ROCK — Once Karns City got out of its own way, Hickory couldn't find its way.
The mistake-plagued Gremlins trailed 17-14 at halftime of their PIAA Class 3A football playoff game Saturday at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium. They put together a near-flawless second half in defeating Hickory, 35-17.
Karns City (10-2) will face District 6 champion Central (11-1) at 7 p.m. Friday in a PIAA Western semifinal at DuBois' E.J. Mansell Stadium.
“We're having fun,” Karns City coach Ed Conto said. “At this point, we just want to keep playing football as long as we can.”
The Gremlins got inside Hickory's 10-yard line on three different possessions in the first half without scoring a point. On first-and-goal from the 2-yard line late in the first quarter and the score tied at 14, the Gremlins fumbled and Hickory's Chuck Carr recovered.
Cullen Williams apparently scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 15-yard run midway through the second period. KC was penalized for an illegal block on the play and the possession ended when Kaiden Powers' 42-yard field goal attempt against the wind fell just short.
Jacob Scarton put Hickory (12-1) ahead with a 25-yard field goal with 3:56 left in the half. But Karns City drove downfield yet again.
Quarterback Jake King was shaken up after completing a 35-yard pass to Jimmy Thompson and briefly left the game. Williams shifted to quarterback and was intercepted by Carr on third-and-6 from the Hornets' 9-yard line.
“If we stopped making mistakes, I thought we'd be OK ... But I didn't know if we were gonna stop making mistakes,” Conto said. “This was a rough week for us.
“Kaiden Powers was in the hospital with strep throat the night before this game. A couple of kids sprained ankles in practice, another player had to have surgery. We didn't know who we were going to have available to play.”
The first score of the game was set up when KC punter Chandler Turner couldn't handle a high snap and had to kick the ball out of bounds at the Gremlins' 13. Carr scored on a 4-yard run two plays later.
Karns City scored on a pair of big plays — a King 55-yard TD pass to Thompson and a 55-yard run by Turner — before Hickory's Will Gruber evened the game with a 98-yard kickoff return.“It was getting frustrating,” Turner said. “We felt like we were controlling play, controlling the line of scrimmage, and we were trailing at halftime.“We still had plenty of confidence we could turn the game around, though.”Momentum turned suddenly on the final play of the first half. Carr, who entered the game with 2,182 yards rushing this season, was injured while being tackled. He laid on the turf for several minutes before being helped to his feet.Carr walked slowly into the locker room showing pain in the neck and collarbone area. He watched the second half from the sidelines in street clothes.Carr carried 17 times for 104 yards in the first two quarters.“Football is a team game. It's not about individuals,” Hickory coach Bill Brest said. “We're talking about the leading rusher in District 10 history.“We were able to make some adjustments and get a couple of first downs to begin the second half, but we couldn't sustain anything.”Karns City did.The Gremlins put together touchdown drives of 79, 35 and 70 yards on their first three possessions of the second half. Runs of 41 yards by Eric Dodd and 22 yards by Powers set up a 4-yard Turner scoring run for the go-ahead points.A shanked punt by Hickory gave the Gremlins possession at the Hornets' 35. Powers got loose for a 32-yard gallop and Williams scored on a 4-yard run.A 30-yard run by Powers set up another 4-yard Williams scoring run with 4:30 to play and the issue was decided.“I'm so proud of this team the way they never gave up the fight,” Conto said.Karns City rolled up 512 yards of offense. Turner rushed for 98, Powers for 93, Dodd for 81 and Williams for 80. King threw for 170 yards in the first half befiore getting hurt. He played the second half, attempting only one pass.“Karns City is the real deal,” Brest said. “That is one tough, physical football team — clearly the best team we've played all year.“I wouldn't be surprised at all if they made the Western Final.”Karns City 35, Hickory 17Karns City 14 0 14 7 — 35Hickory 14 3 0 0 — 17KC H19 First Downs 1547-342 Rushes-Yards 39-166170 Passing Yards 705-10-1 Comp.-Att.-Int 7-14-0512 Total Yards 2362-1 Fumbles-Lost 2-06-65 Penalty Yards 3-25First QuarterH — Chuck Carr 4 run (Jacob Scarton kick), 9:50KC — Jimmy Thompson 55 pass from Jake King (Kaiden Powers kick), 8:18KC — Chandler Turner 55 run (Powers kick), 4:36H — Will Gruber 98 kick return (Scarton kick), 4:21Second QuarterH — Scarton 25 field goal, 3:56Third QuarterKC — Turner 4 run (Powers kick), 3:45KC — Cullen Williams 4 run (Powers kick), :29Fourth QuarterKC — Williams 4 run (Powers kick), 4:30Individual StatisticsRushing: Karns City, Jake King 1-2, Cullen Williams 14-80, Kaiden Powers 6-93, Chandler Turner 9-98, Eric Dodd 15-81, TEAM 2-(-12). Hicjory, Chuck Carr 17-104, Nate Marchand 3-11, Hayden Gallagher 6-(-11), Caleb Gagliardi 8-51, Will Gruber 4-154, TEAM 1-(-3).Passing: Karns City, Jake King 5-9-170-0, Cullen Williams 0-1-0-1. Hickory, Hayden Gallagher 7-14-70-0.Receiving: Karns City, Jimmy Thompson 4-107, Eric Dodd 1-57, Kaiden Powers 1-6. Hicjory, Will Gruber 1-10, Cameron Pica 3-44, Nate Marchand 2-6, Caleb Gagliardi 1-10.
