ADAMS TWP — Not allowing the big play is very difficult against a team with the ability of Penn Hills.

It was a task that proved too tall for the Mars football team Friday night.

The Indians' two touchdowns in the second quarter came from 70 and 86 yards and Penn Hills never trailed in a 36-15 victory at the Mars Athletic Complex.

It is the first loss of the season for Mars (3-1, 0-1).

“Penn Hills is a good football team and they have players who can score at the drop of a hat,” said Mars coach Scott Heinauer. “It's not as easy as it sounds, but you have to keep them from making big plays. You can't miss tackles. We had guys in position tonight to make stops and it didn't happen.”

As impressive as the Indians were on offense — they totaled 436 yards in the game — arguably the biggest play of the game came from their defense.

Mars' Blake Edwards had booted a 26-yard field goal at the end of the first half to cut Penn Hills' lead to 22-9 and the Planets received the kickoff to begin the second half.

Their drive, however, lasted just three plays.

On third down, Tyler Kowalkowski's pass slipped through the hands of Teddy Ruffner and into the arms of Daequan Hardy, who returned the interception 39 yards for a touchdown.

Hardy had already displayed his ability on an 86-yard scoring run in the second quarter.

“He is so explosive. When the ball is in his hands, he puts on a show,” said Penn Hills coach Jon LeDonne. “We have several players like that and have come to expect splash plays from them.”

The Planets, though, didn't quit. On a fourth down play late in the third quarter, Kowalkowski connected with Ruffner on a 27-yard touchdown that cut the Indians' lead to 30-15.

That was the score when the Planets turned the ball over on downs just inside Penn Hills territory with 5:18 remaining in the game,

Turnovers hampered both teams for much of the night.

Mars turned the ball over three times, including a pick by Hardy of a Kowalkowski pass in the end zone early in the second quarter.

“If we score another touchdown early in the game tonight, things could have been different,” said Heinauer. “When you have opportunities, you have to cash in.”

Penn Hills (4-0, 2-0) fumbled away its first possession of the game before quarterback Hollis Mathis was intercepted on back-to-back drives by Garrett Reinke and Chuck Green late in the first quarter.

The Indians did manage to take the lead when Mathis hit Dante Cephas with a 20-yard touchdown strike on the team's second possession.

Ruffner kept hope alive for Mars when he recovered a Mathis fumble in the end zone early in the fourth quarter with the score 30-15.

“Turnovers and missed tackles, we had both tonight,” said LeDonne. “We work in practice on those things and just need to improve every week.”

Mars fell behind 16-0 after Cephas' second touchdown, a 70-yard reception in the second quarter.

Reinke, who had gained just 10 yards on his first 10 carries, put Mars on the board with his 51-yard scoring run late in the second quarter. He finished the game with 144 yards on 25 carries.

Penn Hills running back Tank Smith rushed 20 times for 142 yards and scored the game's final touchdown, a 10-yard run late in the fourth quarter.

Prior to the game, the Mars Athletic Hall of Fame's Class of 2018 was recognized on the field. The honorees includedBill Bair (football), Richard “Dicky” Bell (contributor), Valerie Danner (basketball), Blair Gerlach (soccer coach), Dana Petruska (basketball coach) and Chuck Young (baseball).

Penn Hills 8 14 8 6 — 36

Mars 0 9 6 0 — 15

First Quarter

PH — Dante Cephas 20 pass from Hollis Mathis (Anthony Grimes pass from Mathis), 5:35

Second Quarter

PH — Cephas 70 pass from Mathis (Mathis run), 4:24

M — Garrett Reinke 51 run (run failed), 1:23

PH — Daequan Hardy 86 run (pass failed), :43

M — Blake Edwards 26 field goal, :00

Third Quarter

PH — Hardy 39 interception return (Cephas pass from Mathis), 10:17

M — Teddy Ruffner 27 pass from Tyler Kowalkowski (kick blocked), 1:15

Fourth Quarter

PH — Tank Smith 10 run (pass failed), 2:33

Individual Statistics

Rushing:Penn Hills, Tank Smith 20-142, Daequan Hardy 2-110, Anthony Grimes 1-0, Hollis Mathis 9-32, Andy Plowden 1-2; Mars, Garrett Reinke 25-144, Tyler Kowalkowski 8-(-31), Drew Schlegel 1-9, Chuck Green 4-24, Teddy Ruffner 8-54, Nicholas Ferro 1-17, Ben Chizmar 1-7.

Passing:Penn Hills, Hollis Mathis 6-12-150-2; Mars, Tyler Kowalkowski 2-16-65-2.

Receiving:Penn Hills, Dante Cephas 3-99, Daequan Hardy 2-40, Anthony Grimes 1-11; Mars, Andrew Recchia 1-38, Teddy Ruffner 1-27.