Hazardous duty
KARNS CITY — It's been a tough stretch, but Karns City survived.
As a reward for their efforts the Gremlins get to battle Moniteau — the lone team to defeat them — in the District 9 Class AA championship at 7 p.m. Friday at Clarion University.
In Week 8, when both teams entered the game with 7-0 records, the Warriors came back to edge the Gremlins 35-34.
Karns City didn't play the following week, as it had a forfeit win against A-C Valley, but it rebounded with a 22-21 triumph over third-ranked Wilmington, then followed up with last Friday's 41-14 victory over Kane.
The combined record of those three opponents was 24-2. If you add Redbank Valley (5-0) and Clarion (4-2), Karns City's foes in the two games preceding the Moniteau tilt, the last five opponents the Gremlins played had a combined record 33-4.
Reflecting on the Moniteau loss, Gremlins coach Ed Conto sees one aspect in which his team must improve to be successful this time around.
"We have to play better defensively," said Conto. "That game was not one of our better defensive outings.
"We have to play solid defense, and each and every kid needs to be responsible for their assignments," Conto added.
Moniteau rushed for an eye- popping 302 yards out of 383 total yards and had 19 first downs. Since that game, the Gremlins limited Wilmington and Kane to 237 and 201 total yards, respectively.
"Hopefully, (the Kane game) was a step in the right direction," said Conto. "There were 16 teams in the (AML), so they had to be a pretty decent team. They were physical, they had height and they had good athletes.
"Our kids did well in making adjustments in the second half," Conto added.
The Gremlins and Wolves were tied at 7-all at halftime. Karns City held a 14-7 lead going into the fourth quarter and a 21-14 advantage with 8:30 remaining before closing out the game with three touchdowns to clinch the semifinal win.
Quarterback Anthony Stimac rushed for three touchdowns and passed for another. He leads the team with 667 yards and 12 touchdowns on 84 carries.
Josh Stimac added 132 yards on 11 carries and a touchdown last Friday, while Cody Williams added an 80-yard kickoff return and Josh Callender caught a 30-yard touchdown pass to account for the Gremlins' other scores.
Josh Stimac tweaked his ankle, the same one on which he suffered a high ankle sprain earlier in the season. He was taken out late in the game as a precaution.
Anthony Stimac has completed 49 of 110 passes for 767 yards, 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Callender is the team's top receiver in receptions (12), yards (148) and touchdowns (four).
Also, Markus LaVan has carried 77 times for 529 yards and four scores while Callender (29-355-4), Josh Stimac (37-350-3) and Jake Wagner (30-291-2) have made key contributions to the running game.
The Gremlins are hopeful their recent run of strong opponents will help them in the upcoming championship game.
"It makes you feel good that they're capable of doing this," said Conto. "We just have to make sure the kids come out relaxed and ready to play football."
