JACKSON TWP — Mt. Lebanon head coach Mike Melnyk knew his team matched up almost evenly with Seneca Valley.

For a half of football Friday, that played out as expected with the teams heading to the locker room tied at 7-7.

Melnyk also knew the team that made one or two more plays would be victorious. Melnyk and the Blue Devils found themselves on the losing end of that outcome Friday.

Seneca Valley forced a fumble on the first play of the second half, and scored on the following play en route to a 17-14 victory over visiting Mt. Lebanon. It was a game Raiders head coach Ron Butschle could only describe as tough.

“That's the definition of grinding out a win,” he said.

The Raiders (3-1) were challenged in the first half by a stingy Blue Devils defense, save for a 1-yard touchdown run by quarterback Gabe Lawson late in the first quarter. Mt. Lebanon (2-2) answered two drives later when Seth Morgan connected on a 47 yard pass to Carter Davidson to round out scoring in the first half.

Buschle and his team were looking for a spark coming out of the locker room, and it came in the form of a fumble recovery by senior Jake Stebbins.

A play later, Lawson found Luke Smith from 37 yards out to make it 14-7.

“That turnover was huge,” Butschle said. “Getting points off it on a vertical passing play was something we like do.”

Seneca Valley tacked on a 20-yard field goal from senior Seth Winters on the following drive to extend the lead to 10.

Butschle had high praise for Winters, who routinely put his kickoffs into the end zone and forced Mt. Lebanon to start at their own 20.

“To have that is such a weapon, to know that you can get points inside the 20 is something as a coach you can't understate,” Butschle said.

For Melnyk, the start to the second half was less than ideal.

“We tried to get momentum coming out of the half, and instead we gave it to them,” Melnyk said.

Melnyk recognized his Blue Devils needed a spark of their own.

Lucas Decaro took a double reverse and threw a 53-yard strike to Tim Walters, who broke a tackle on his way to the end zone to make it 17-14.

“It was a good down and distance situation,” he said of the play call. “Our kids executed it well and got it in the end zone.”

Mt. Lebanon seized that momentum, eventually getting a chance at a tying field goal. That 41-yard attempt from Casey Sorsdal fell short, and the Blue Devils failed to get their offense going on their final two drives of the game.

“We knew all week it was going to be a tough close game and that it was going to come down to a couple mistakes,” Melnyk said. “They made one more play than we did tonight.”

Seneca Valley ran out the clock via Matt Stanger, who finished with 64 yards on the ground, and Lawson, who at one point limped off the field and required a timeout to be called.

However, he didn't miss a snap.

“He's proven his toughness since day one here,” Butschle said, adding he was proud of his team's performance. “This may not be a pretty game stat wise, but it's something as a team we'll look back on and say these are the kind of games you have to win to be successful.”

Prior to the game, the SV Sports Hall of Fame's Class of 2018 was recognized on the field. The honorees included Mike Adamczyk (Class of 1969), Rich Dobrzanski (1977), Adam Boylan (1996), Eric Marton (1996) and Dom Duggan (2003).

Mt. Lebanon 0 7 7 0 — 14

Seneca Valley 7 0 10 0 — 17

First Quarter

SV — Gabe Lawson 1 run (Seth Winters kick), 4:20

Second Quarter

ML — Carter Davidson 37 pass from Seth Morgan (Casey Sorsdal kick), 11:50

Third Quarter

SV — Luke Smith 37 pass from Lawson (Winters kick), 11:46

SV — Winters 20 field goal, 7:50

Fourth Quarter

ML — Tim Walters 53 pass from Lucas Decaro (Sorsdal kick), 2:06

Individual Statistics

Rushing:Mt. Lebanon, Drew Vaughn 7-33, Everett Lefever 6-24, Sam LeSota 1-19, Michael Palmer 5-14. Seneca Valley, Matt Stanger 19-64, Josh McLean 1-30, Jake Mineweaser 5-5, Gabe Lawson 13-0

Passing:Mt. Lebanon, Seth Morgan 7-27-91-1, Lucas Decaro 1-1-53-0. Seneca Valley, Gabe Lawson 6-18-83-0

Receiving:Mt. Lebanon, Carter Davidson 1-47, Lucas Decaro 3-11, Tim Walters 2-57, Drew Vaughn 1-14. Seneca Valley, Connor Lyczek 1-45, Luke Smith 3-48, Josh McLean 1-36