CLARION — On offense and defense, Noah Peterson burned Karns City Friday night.

Brookville’s senior quarterback had just thrown his second touchdown pass of the game to Hayden Freeman to put the Raiders up 14-7 with just 38 seconds left in the first half of a District 9 Class 2A semifinal playoff.

The Gremlins attempted to score before the break, but Peterson intercepted Eric Booher’s pass and returned it 38 yards for another score, Brookville’s third touchdown in less than five minutes.

The spree was too much for the Gremlins, who saw their season end with a 31-7 loss at Clarion University’s Memorial Stadium.

“On the interception, there was some miscommunication between Eric and the receiver,” said KC coach Joe Sherwin. “It was a bad time for it.”

Peterson completed 12 of 15 passes for 200 yards, but it wasn’t until well into the second quarter that Brookville’s offense got going.

On a 2nd-and-16 play from his own 16, Peterson hit Freeman 10 yards downfield, but the receiver turned it into an 84-yard scoring play.

After KC went three and out, the Raiders (6-5) drove 56 yards in seven plays, with Freeman snagging an 11-yard scoring toss that gave his team the lead for good.

Due to an injury, Peterson was thrust into the quarterback spot earlier this season.

“I’m a believer that athletes want the ball and are going to make plays,” Brookville coach Scott Park said. “Noah is a great athlete. He’s getting better and gaining more confidence each week.”

The Gremlins (6-5) found it difficult to consistently gain yards with their potent ground attack. They were held to 133 yards on 36 carries. Levi Hawk paced the effort with 55 yards on 14 attempts.

“Brookville outweighed us on the line,” said Sherwin. “We have some linemen out for the year and were rotating in some freshmen.”

KC’s one touchdown came midway through the first quarter when Booher hit Nate Garing on a 22-yard pass. It came after the Gremlins had moved the ball to Brookville’s 15-yard line on the game’s opening drive. On third down, Booher’s pass was picked off by Peterson at the goal line. He returned it to near midfield before fumbling. The Gremlins recovered and their offense remained on the field, scoring six plays later.

It gave KC early momentum, which was taken away by the Raiders’ trio of scores before halftime.

“To go into halftime with a 21-7 lead was huge for us,” said Park.

KC managed to contain Brookville running back Jackson Zimmerman, who had just 43 yards on 14 carries before breaking a 14-yard run with less than four minutes left in the game.

But by that time, the Raiders were up by three scores, 24-7, thanks to Brayden Kunselman’s 22-yard field goal with 6:01 remaining.

Tony Ceriani capped the scoring with a nine-yard run with under two minutes on the clock.

Brookville will face Central Clarion next week for the district championship.

“Things didn’t go our way tonight,” said Sherwin, “but we have a great group of seniors and I enjoyed working with them.”

Karns City 7 0 0 0 — 7

Brookville 0 21 0 10 — 31

First Quarter

KC — Nate Garing 22 pass from Eric Booher (Colson Ritzert kick), 5:22

Second Quarter

B — Hayden Freeman 84 pass from Noah Peterson (Brayden Kunselman kick), 5:00

B — Freeman 11 pass from Peterson (Kunselman kick), :38

B — Peterson 38 interception return (Kunselman kick), :22

Fourth Quarter

B — Kunselman 22 field goal, 6:01

B — Tony Ceriani 9 run (Kunselman kick), 1:50

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Karns City, Levi Hawk 14-55, Cooper Coyle 1-(-2), Braden Slater 2-12, Mason Martin 5-13, Nathan Hess 5-24, Eric Booher 4-17, Nate Garing 1-4, Mason Bell 1-0, Hunter Scherer 1-8, Layla Colsey 1-12, Owen Heginbotham 1-(-10). Brookville, Noah Peterson 8-30, Jackson Zimmerman 15-57, Brayden Kunselman 1-4, Carson Weaver 10-38, Tony Ceriani 3-20, TEAM 1-(-7).

Passing: Karns City, Eric Booher 3-12-35-2, Mason Martin 0-1-0-0. Brookville, Noah Peterson 12-15-200-0.

Receiving: Karns City, Micah Rupp 1-9, Nate Garing 2-26. Brookville, Jackson Zimmerman 1-4, Brayden Kunselman 5-51, Hayden Freeman 2-95, Truman Sharp 2-43, Carson Weaver 1-2, Sam Krug 1-5.