KARNS CITY — Gremlins' football coach Joe Sherwin expected it to be a slog.

But not quite like it was during the first 24 minutes.

Karns City's offense was smothered in the first half by a feisty Moniteau football team that had just a handful of healthy reserves.

The Gremlins trailed 6-0 at halftime and they had managed a mere 21 yards. But they turned those 21 yards into three touchdowns in the second half for a 21-6 win.

“I have to give (Moniteau) a lot of credit,” Sherwin said. “I told the guys it wasn't going to be easy. It was going to be a grind.”

It certainly was. For both teams.

Moniteau (0-4) was banged up. So was Karns City (3-1). It was evident on the field as neither team could mount much of a threat in the first two quarters.

Karns City's first four drives resulted in a punt, fumble, punt interception for minus-8 yards.

Moniteau made its first — and only dent — early in the second quarter when JD Dessicino sliced into the end zone from the 4 to cap a nine-play, 55-yard drive.

With kicker Ethan McDeavitt one of the wounded on the Moniteau sideline, the extra point was blocked.

Warriors' coach Bob Rottman had an impromptu kicking tryout 75 minutes before the game.

McDeavitt was missed more at wide receiver and on defense, where his speed is an equalizer.

“He sprained his knee last week on defense,” Rottman said of McDeavitt. “He's probably out two or three weeks. He's the deep threat and return guy and the kicker. We just kind of threw people out there kicking extra points and kickoffs before the game to see who could do it.”

Still, Moniteau entered halftime on a high with a lead and a defense that was frustrating Karns City, which was also hit recently with a rash of injuries.

The Gremlins were missing three starting linemen and were also without fullback Mitchell Kelsea, who is out for the season with a torn ACL.

Karns City had a slew of players on its sideline on crutches.

“One of our assistant coaches joked that he was going to invest in an aluminum company,” Sherwin said. “I felt out of place on the sideline without crutches.”

Sherwin said halftime was spent making adjustments.

And some terse points.

“It wasn't a rah-rah speech or anything like that,” Sherwin said. “We just needed to execute. Our defense kept us in it in the first half. We were able to fix some things in the second half.”

Karns City went from gaining just 21 yards in the first two quarters to scoring 21 points in the final two.

It started with a 12-play, 76-yard drive which was capped by a 9-yard run by Hunter Rowe for a 7-6 lead.

Karns City scored again two possessions later on a 23-yard burst up the middle by Rowe for a 14-6 advantage.

And some breathing room.

Meanwhile, Karns City's defense was making life difficult on Moniteau's offense.

The Warriors gained just 41 yards in the second half — 36 coming on one play when Mason Mershimer caught a pass on a quick slant from quarterback David Stamm down to the Karns City 25.

That drive went backward and stalled, ending the last shot Moniteau had at getting back into the game.

Kaden Scherer put the finishing touches on the win with a 43-yard touchdown run on a jet sweep with a little more than two minutes remaining.

After gaining 21 yards and two first downs (one by penalty) in the first half, Karns City rolled up 195 yards and nine first downs in the final two quarters.

“I think it was just a matter of more execution in the second half,” Sherwin said.

Scherer, who also plays soccer, gained 51 yards on just three carries.

“We want to try to get him more involved in the offense, but with him playing soccer at the same time, he misses a little practice time, so it's tough getting him in there,” Sherwin said. “We know he's an explosive athlete.”

Rowe finished with 86 yards rushing on 16 carries and quarterback Anthony Kamenski 67 tough yards on 16 attempts.

He had minus-8 yards in the first half and was 0-of-4 passing.

“We ran him more in the second half,” Sherwin said. “He's not going to give up. He's not going to quit. That's why he's our team leader.”

Despite the loss, Rottman said his team can take a lot away from the defeat.

“Our defense played great football,” Rottman said. “On offense, we lost focus at times and got behind the chains. We can't do that.

“I had 17 guys out there who battled hard tonight,” Rottman added. “It's something we can build on. It built their confidence a little bit.”

Both teams are hoping to get some guys back in uniform next week.

Moniteau travels to Bradford and Karns City hosts Brookville in a key matchup.

“It's one of those years,” Rottman said. “If we get everyone back, I think we have a pretty good football team.”

Moniteau 0 6 0 0 — 6

Karns City 0 0 7 14 — 21

Second Quarter

M — JD Dessicino 4 run (kick blocked), 10:05

Third Quarter

KC — Hunter Rowe 9 run (Owen Collwell kick), 4:09

Fourth Quarter

KC — Rowe 23 run (Collwell kick), 8:18

KC — Kaden Scherer 43 run (Collwell kick), 2:31

Individual Statistics

Rushing:Moniteau, JD Dessicino 15-44, Mason Mershimer 6-23, Nick Martino 3-8, David Stamm 12-7, Chaz McGuire 1-(-2). Karns City, Hunter Rowe 16-86, Anthony Kamenski 16-67, Kaden Scherer 3-51, Luke Garing 6-15, Gage Cowoski 2-(-1), TEAM 2-(-2).

Passing:Moniteau, David Stamm 3-11-30-1, Nick Martino 0-1-0-0. Karns City, Anthony Kamenski 0-4-0-1.

Receiving:Moniteau, Mason Mershimer 1-36, Nick Martino 1-(-2), JD Dessicino 1-(-4). Karns City, none