Brookville has won only three games and lost at Moniteau by 32 points in the season opener.

Neither fact means anything to Warrior coach Steve Wilson as he prepares for the rematch.

The visiting Raiders (3-6) take on Moniteau (5-4) at 7 p.m. Friday in a first-round District 9 Class AA football playoff game.

"They are a completely different team now from when we played them," Wilson said. "They were missing some kids with suspensions and injuries.

"As the year's gone on, they've gotten better. And they played the toughest schedule in District 9 with a Quad-A school and a couple of Triple-A's mixed in there."

Brookville's six losses are to Moniteau (52-20), Clearfield (28-7), DuBois (39-8), Redbank Valley (34-7), Bradford (37-19) and Grove City (28-0).

Wins have come over St. Marys (14-12), Wellsboro (38-13) and Punxsutawney (22-16). The Raiders have won two of their last three.

"We weren't completely healthy until the sixth week of the season," Brookville coach Chris Dworek said. "We've played much better football lately and we had seven players suspended when we played Moniteau the first time.

"We have to prevent the big play. That concerned me going into the first game with Moniteau and it still concerns me."

Moniteau quarterback Garth Kohlmeyer completed 11 of 18 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns in the Warriors' opening-game win. Eric Hilliard returned a kickoff 87 yards for a score.

Fullback Matt Schandelmeier carried 16 times for 120 yards and two touchdowns. He has 1,023 yards and 14 TDs on the year.

"That kid is the best fullback we've seen all year," Dworek said. "He's a moose, he's a force … He's just tough."

The Warriors are going into the playoffs on the heels of a 21-7 victory over previously unbeaten Clarion-Limestone.

"You talk about a well-timed win," Wilson said. "The morale of this team has been different this week. The kids are excited. They're fired up to be in the playoffs.

"They feel like they belong now. A 4-5 record is a lot different than 5-4. They feel much better about themselves."

The Warriors' starting lineup offensively features Kohlmeyer (49 of 116 for 769 yards passing) at quarterback, Adam Cousins (68 carries-383 yards) at tailback with Schandelmeier at fullback, Hilliard (21 catches-378 yards) and Greg Kepple (11-108) at wide receiver, Ryan Protzman (9-154) at tight end.

The offensive line features Clay Campbell at center, Dave Homison and Jim Cottrill at guard, Justin Sadler and Aaron Anderson at tackle. Anderson is the biggest lineman at 238 pounds.

"Garth made some good decisions with the football last week," Wilson said. "He threw the ball away when there was nothing there. A quarterback has to do that sometimes."

Defensively for Moniteau, Chris Cooper and Ryan Flick are at tackle, Brandon Keene and Schandelmeier at end. Campbell and Protzman are inside linebackers with Brent Spahn on the outside.

Kepple and Matt Pry are the cornerbacks, Cousins is at free safety and Josh Warburton is at strong safety.

While Brookville has improved offensively and defensively, the Raiders are still struggling on special teams.

"We go for two points quite a bit because we've been inconsistent kicking from placement," Dworek said.

They've been consistent running the ball. Quarterback Nick Heschke and running backs Matt Berfield, Max Kutz, Silas Wonderling and Travis Diener have all led the team in rushing in at least one game this year.

Berfield leads the ground attack overall with 350 yards.

"All of those guys are good enough to start, so I rotate them all in," Dworek said. "They all play defense, too, which keeps them fresh."

Heschke rushed for 105 yards against Moniteau in their Week 1 meeting.

"That quarterback is dangerous because he can make plays running or throwing," Wilson said.

Heschke has completed 45 of 108 passes for 719 yards, three touchdowns and seven interceptions. Allen Bowen has 20 catches for 337 yards, Matt Mohney 17 for 268.

Senior captain and end Wes Bashline and senior linebacker Kris Smith lead the Raiders defensively.

Both teams enter the game healthy.

"Knock on wood, we've been healthy all year and that's a key, especially now," Wilson said. "The teams that stay healthy are sometimes the teams that make the longest run in the playoffs."

Notes:

Brookville leads the all-time series between the teams, 17-5. … Dworek is 46-45 in nine years at Brookville. … Wilson is 15-14 in three years at Moniteau.