BUTLER TWP — Butler dug itself a hole. And Shaler was determined to bury its past.

The Titans succeeded Friday night at Art Bernardi Stadium, securing a 30-20 victory over the Golden Tornado. The win snapped Shaler's 34-game high school football losing streak that dated back to 2011.

Shaler's band and student section stormed the field in celebration seconds after the game ended.

“I finally got that monkey off my back,” Shaler coach Jon LeDonne said of celebrating his first win. “But I'm happier for our kids.

“As coaches, we didn't know what was going to happen because the kids have never been in this position before. But they responded and got the win.”

LeDonne was referring to snuffing out a Golden Tornado comeback that saw the hosts trim a 23-6 deficit to 23-20 with 4:32 left in the third quarter.

Shaler (1-3, 1-2) took advantage of Butler mistakes to build that early advantage. A shanked punt set up a 20-yard Titan touchdown pass in the game's first two minutes. A fumble recovery by the Titans' Parker Kilgore set up a 49-yard field goal by Anthony Friel.

Killian Bozzo, who caught the TD pass earlier, scooped up a Tornado fumble and ran nine yards to paydirt for a 23-6 lead with 1:42 left in the first half.

“Turnovers have crushed us this year,” Butler coach Rob Densmore said.

Still, the Tornado (0-4, 0-2) bounced back.

Sophomore Luke Michalek — who saw time at quarterback with Shad Stepp in making his varsity football debut — capped a 69-yard drive with an 18-yard scoring run with 27 seconds left in the half. Stepp had tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to Kelley Kuharic earlier.

Butler's first two conversion kicks failed — one blocked, the other sailing wide left — but a Damien Pickett 1-yard run capped a 57-yard TD march in the third period. Dom Noel caught a two-point pass and the Tornado were within 23-20.

“We were a little nervous at that point,” LeDonne admitted. “But as I told the kids after the game, we're not here to win just this one game. We're here to build a program.

“Hopefully, that got started tonight.”

Jeremy Barnhart got loose for a 58-yard touchdown run midway through the final quarter to give Shaler breathing room. The Tornado never threatened again.

“Even though it doesn't show on the scoreboard, I do believe we turned the corner this week,” Densmore said. “The kids did everything we asked them to do. You can see by the tears, the pain in their faces ... We have their hearts. These kids care deeply about their school and their community. And when you have their hearts, you can change a culture.”

Pickett had 141 all-purpose yards for the Tornado, but Butler turned the ball over four times, had no takeaways and took 100 yards in penalties.

“We made mistakes, but Shaler earned this,” Densmore said. “I have to congratulate Coach LeDonne and their staff. They waited a long time for this.

“I didn't want us to be the headline. But someone was gonna be the headline.”

Shaler rushed for 142 yards, threw for 129 and survived 90 yards of its own penalty yardage.

“I love every one of these kids. I told them that afterward,” Densmore said. “How they respond to this loss will go a long way in their lives, not just in football.

“This is the lowest of the low tonight. But you have to fight back from adversity. That's part of life. I won't let this deter me in what I want to accomplish here. Not at all.”