BESSEMER — For 48 minutes, the Mars football team battled the rain, the mud and the Mohawk Warriors.

When it was all over, the Planets came out of the quagmire at Mohawk Stadium as co-champions of the Tri-County North.

Bill Bair ran for three touchdowns, the last coming from 57 yards out with 5:30 left in the game to give the Planets a 21-8 lead.

The Mars defense then forced a turnover on downs before Bair and Co. ran out the clock.

The Planets will share the conference title with Laurel, which crushed Shenango, 39-0. But the outcome of that game also assures Mars of getting the best seed out of the Tri-County North in the WPIAL Class AA playoffs.

It's the first time Mars has had a share of a conference title since splitting the Allegheny Conference crown with Apollo-Ridge in 2001.

"This is big for our football team," said Mars coach Scott Heinauer. "We know that we're getting a home playoff game."

Bair ended the game with 194 yards on 16 carries. He's had bigger games before, but this night was a bit more special.

"This is awesome," he said of playing well to help his team to the conference title. "It's one of the best times I've ever had."

The Warriors frustrated Mars on the latter's first two drives of the game, but when the Planets took over for the third time with 7:21 left in the first half, Bair was ready to roar.

On a first-down play from his own 16-yard line, the junior fullback took the handoff and sprinted down the left sideline for a 50-yard gain.

He added a 23-yard run before scoring from two yards out with 5:50 left in the first half. Josh Keil ran in the two-point conversion and Mars had an 8-0 edge.

The Warriors managed a drive late in the half that ended with Chase Frederick being intercepted by Mars' Carroll Smith in the Planets' end zone.

It was one of Warriors' many frustrating endings to long drives. Mohawk, which had 17 first downs to Mars' seven, managed three drives of at least 12 plays, but scored on only one of them.

Two other drives that ended with no points lasted nine and eight plays, respectively.

Mohawk turned the ball over on downs at the Mars 16 in the first half and at the Planets' 23-yard line in the second half.

D.J. Cannon and Smith both stopped drives with interceptions, while the Planets also recovered two Warriors fumbles.

"It was just missed opportunities," said Mohawk coach Jason Long. "We kind of shot ourselves in the foot."

But late in the third quarter, it was the Planets who had trouble hanging on to the ball.

With Cannon, the team's quarterback, on the sidelines with an injury, backup Ryan Schroth entered the game and was unable to handle three straight snaps.

Fortunately for the Planets, they recovered all three fumbles. Sophomore signal caller Blaise Taggart entered the game and handed off to Bair on a 16-yard touchdown run on the second play of the fourth quarter, which was followed by Schroth's extra point for a 15-0 edge.

Despite the poor field conditions, Bair seemed to thrive on the sloppy surface.

"It was a little tough keeping my footing out there," he said. "But some of the holes were so big, all I had to do was run straight."

"Billy runs with his feet close to the ground," said Heinauer. "He doesn't have those big, long strides. In weather like this, that's big."

Frederick capped a 13-play, 68-yard drive with a 1-yard scoring run to get Mohawk on the board. Travis Schubert added a run for the two-point conversion and the Warriors were within 15-8 with 6:26 left.

But Bair's longest run of the night (57 yards) came on the Planets' second play after receiving the ensuing kickoff.

Schubert was the workhorse behind much of Mohawk's ball control offense, gaining 114 yards on 22 carries.

"(Mohawk) controlled the ball tonight and gave us all we could handle," said Heinauer. "They always play us tough, but our kids came up with the big plays when they had to."

Mars now awaits their pairing at the WPIAL playoff meeting Monday night.