OIL CITY — Karns City traveled to The Oil Field on Friday night for a gridiron test against a potent District 10 Class AAA contender.

Oil City was the team struggling to find answers.

The Gremlins scored on their first six possessions of the game and put the Oilers away late for a 48-28 victory.

“From the get go, (Karns City) had more emotion. They had something they wanted to prove and they proved it,” said Oil City coach Matt LaVerde. “They smacked us right in the teeth. They were ready to play and we weren’t.”

Karns City (7-1) used seven different rushers and six different receivers en route to 521 yards of total offense.

“Our system worked well. A lot of different guys touched the ball tonight and they all did what they needed to do,” said Karns City coach Ed Conto. “We play a lot of kids. We expect that whatever is called, that guy has to execute and they did that.”

Zach Moore led the way with 111 rushing yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. The Gremlins racked up 229 rushing yards by halftime in building a 35-14 cushion over the Oilers (6-2).

Karns City’s advantage grew to 42-14 in the third quarter following a 48-yard touchdown sprint from Moore, but Oil City and its high-powered offense refused to go down quietly.

An 8-yard touchdown pass from Jackson McFall to Logan Way and a 35-yard aerial strike to Frank Serbati cut it to 42-28 with 10:38 to play.

McFall finished with 299 yards and three touchdowns. Way caught eight passes for 133 yards, while Serbati hauled in six for 119.

“I like that we didn’t give up,” said LaVerde. “We kept fighting. We kept going. We kept trying.”

Karns City responded with a nine-play, 62-yard drive to secure the win.

On a third-and-6, Tyler Kepple found Moore for a 16-yard gain to keep the drive alive. Six plays later, Kepple floated a well-placed touch pass just over an Oil City defender and into the hands of Wyatt Everetts for a 10-yard score, pushing the Gremlins’ advantage to 48-28 with 6:05 to go.

“After (Oil City) got some momentum going, we came back and took momentum back. That’s when you have to do that,” said Conto. “A lot of times you lose the momentum and you don’t get it back — and we did. I really thought that was a great drive there in the fourth quarter.”

Karns City wasted no time taking early momentum.

The Gremlins took the opening kickoff and marched 80 yards in nine plays. Tristan Rhoades keyed the drive with a 34-yard scamper. He broke a couple of tackles before Christian Turner sprung him loose on the sideline with a massive block. Adam Whited capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown plunge.

Moore scored the second touchdown, plowing through defenders up the middle and running 29 yards into the end zone for a 14-0 cushion with 1:56 to play in the first.

“We were actually in position to make tackles and their guys just wanted it more and ran through us,” said LaVerde.

The Oilers struck back before the first-quarter horn, though.

Rhoades deflected a pass into the air, but Way swooped under it for a 22-yard score.

But the Gremlins quickly silenced the crowd.

Just two plays later, Everetts broke loose on the sideline for a 64-yard touchdown and Karns City seized complete control on the benefit of special teams.

Moore blew through the line to block a punt and set the Gremlins up on the Oil City 29-yard line.

“We worked on that all week,” said Conto. “I said, ‘We’ve got to win the special teams. We’re going to go after punts.’”

Kepple — who completed 15-of-19 passes for 134 yards — moved the chains on a fourth-and-2 from the 6 and eventually punched it into the end zone on a 1-yard quarterback sneak.

The Oilers inched closer when Kevin Daly rumbled into the end zone from 7 yards out to cut it to 28-14 with 2:43 remaining in the first half.

Daly ran for 174 yards on 26 carries, breaking the school’s career record for rushing yards and touchdowns.

“He’s a good player,” said LaVerde. “He works hard and he’s a good team leader.”

Karns City answered with a nine-play, 55-yard touchdown drive. Dakota Mohney — who caught seven passes for 62 yards — scooted into the end zone from 3 yards out with 24 seconds to go.

The downside to the victory for Karns City was a rash of injuries. Rhoades was on the sideline using crutches during the second half.

It was the first time the Gremlins engaged in a game without the running mercy clock.

“That’s our first four-quarter game in a long time,” said Conto. “At the end of the game, we had about six different guys out. I don’t think it’s anything major, but they’re all like light sprains and they were gimping around out there.”

Karns City hosts Brookville next week, while Oil City will travel to Slippery Rock.

“We have to get better defensively because we didn’t stop anybody,” said LaVerde. “We have to learn and get better.”