NEW CASTLE — A clutch kick won the football game for Knoch.

Knoch (3-6, 3-4) won 24-21 against New Castle (3-5, 1-3) on Friday night at Taggart Stadium in a WPIAL 4A Northwest Nine conference matchup.

Knoch kicker Josh Goldscheitter kicked a 32-yard field goal to seal the Knights' victory.

Despite cold conditions, Goldscheitter, a first-year player, said he had warm thoughts that calmed him.

“I didn't feel any pressure at all,” Goldscheitter said. “When I kicked it, it felt like just another field goal kick at home just practicing in the summer heat.”

Goldscheitter was perfect on his three field goals and two extra points.

“My teammates' reactions were perfect,” he said. “This is my favorite high school memory of all-time.”

To get Goldscheitter in position, a tandem of Knoch running backs and quarterback Chase Mullen produced 323 total rushing yards.

“It was a roller coaster-type game, but we felt confident because we were really moving the football well against them,” Knoch coach Frank Whalen said.

Running back Matt Goodlin carried the ball 27 times for 211 yards before a hard block on a third-quarter special teams play sidelined him for the rest of the game.

“Before Matty got hurt, Matty had to have had over 200 yards running,” Whalen said. “Just a tremendous job.”

Goodlin's injury was still unknown, according to Whalen.

“Matt's going to want to come in. He's a savage, but the doc put the brakes on it,” Whalen said. “I haven't talked to the doc yet. We'll see exactly what the injury is and hopefully, we'll get Matt back for our last two weeks.”

Whalen said the offensive line also played a good game and showed their skill within the Knights' blocking schemes.

“Our offensive line, our A-backs, our receivers, they've just been blocking their rear-ends off all year long,” Whalen said. “I'm just so happy that the ball bounced our way tonight.”

While Knoch possessed the ball for much of the game, New Castle quarterback Demetris McKnight made big plays that kept the Red Hurricane competitive through the fourth quarter.

At the end of the first half, with no time left on the clock, McKnight intercepted a trick pass thrown by Goodlin and returned it 95 yards as New Castle took a 14-13 lead heading into halftime.

He scored again in the third quarter on a 58-yard run to tie the game at 21, which stood until Goldscheitter's game-winner late in the fourth quarter.

Despite a close game, Whalen credited his defense for forcing McKnight into uncomfortable situations and containing the rest of the Red Hurricane offense.

“That number 2 (McKnight) is a Division 1 player,” Whalen said. “I thought, for the most part, we held him as much as you can hold a guy of that caliber in check. Hat's off to him. He's a great player.”

Without McKnight's yardage, New Castle ran for 104 yards.

“Our defense has been playing well. Last week against South Fayette, it was a case of some really freaky athletes that they had,” Whalen said. “It's the same thing with New Castle.”

Whalen said in addition to the winning field goal, the defense influenced the game late in the fourth quarter when it forced a fumble within 10 yards of their own goal.

The play happened on the far side of the field from the Knights, so it was unclear who forced the fumble and recovered it.

“That fumble that we caused at the end was huge,” he said. “I don't know who it was that made that hit, but that was the play of the game right there.”

Whalen said the Knights want to ride the momentum of this game in trying to land one of the last playoff spots available.

“We hope to get that final playoff spot. We did what we had to do tonight, and now we just need help from some other people,” Whalen said. “Our last two games are in Saxonburg, and we're going to come out and play those games like we would any other game.”

Knoch 3 10 7 3 — 24

New Castle 7 7 7 0 — 21

First Quarter

NC — Josh Thomason 1 run (Brayden Cartwright kick), 10:41

K — Josh Goldscheitter 23 field goal, 3:32

Second Quarter

K — Matt Goodlin 19 run (Goldscheitter kick), 1:15

K — Goldscheitter 31 field goal, 3:52

NC — Demetris McKnight 95 interception return (Cartwright kick),:00

Third Quarter

NC — McKnight 58 run (Cartwright kick), 1:48

K — Chase Mullen 9 run (Goodlin run), 3:30

Fourth Quarter

K — Goldscheitter 32 field goal, 1:37

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Knoch, Matt Goosdlin 27-211, Chase Mullen 13-63, Jim Johnston 4-27, EJ Simms 4-22. New Castle, Demetris McKnight 13-73, Josh Thomason 8-71, Payne Powell 5-29, Donovan Crockett 1-4.

Passing: Knoch, Chase Mullen 3-6-32-90. Matt Goodlin 0-1-0-1. New Castle, Demetris McKnight 4-12-38-0.

Receiving:Knoch, Jared Schrecengost 15, Scott Fraser 2-17. New Castle, Donovan Crockett 2-35, Josh Thomason 2-3.