WEST VIEW — Butler was in the neighborhood all night. It just couldn't find the right address.

That address was the North Hills end zone.

The Golden Tornado possessed the football on the Indians' side of the 50-yard line eight times in 10 possessions Friday night — five times inside the North Hills 25 — but came up empty in a 14-0 loss at Martorelli Stadium.

“We moved the ball, but you gotta finish,” Butler coach Clyde Conti said.

It didn't take long for the Tornado to meet frustration on this night.

Butler (2-2, 2-2) took the opening kickoff and marched 79 yards in just six plays. Quarterback Jordan Cratty got loose for a 44-yard run and hit Canan Roskovski for a 19-yard completion to highlight the drive.

But on first and goal at the 1-yard line, running back Kolby Kriess got spun around at the goal line and the ball popped loose. It bounced through the end zone for a touchback.

“I couldn't tell if he broke the plane there or not ... The iofficial said he was sideways when the ball came out,” Conti said.

“That was a huge play in this game,” North Hills coach Jack McCurry said. “If they score there, who knows how this game goes?

“We were having trouble with their quarterback mid-line run all night.”

Cratty rushed for 66 yards and would have been pushing 100 if not for a pair of critical quarterack sacks.

Gaining possession on its own 20 following the fumble, North Hills (3-1, 2-1) put together the game's lone offensive touchdown drive. The Indians marched 80 yards in seven plays, quarterback Brian Johnson breaking containment and scrambling 20 yards for the score.

Later in the half, Cratty was sacked for a 17-yard loss on third-and-7 from the North Hills 21. He was sacked for a 14-yard loss on first down from the Indians' 19. Both of those possessions ended in punts.

Senior linebacker Anthony Danko was in on both plays for the Indians.

“ He's a three-year starter for us and he came up big tonight,” McCurry said. “Our defense made plays when it had to.”

Kriess recovered a fumble at the North Hills 35-yard line on the first snap of the second half. The Tornado generated a first down before Devin Fitz went wide left on a 35-yard field goal attempt.

Butler's first six possessions ended in North Hills territory. Its seventh possession ended when Cratty was intercepted by Josh Hulbert, who returned the theft 31 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown with 10:58 to play.

Stephen Shoemaker had a pair of quarterback sacks for the Tornado. Bob Vernick had a sack of Johnson as well.

Lucas Dubyak and Jake Lenhart also had key tackles defensively for Butler.

“North Hills is North Hills,” Conti said. “We knew those two injured backs (Tyler Reddick and Jordan Blackmon) were gonna play. They were at full throttle tonight and they're tough.

“I'm proud of the effort of our kids. We came down here to win a football game, not keep it close. We'll figure out our mistakes and try to correct them. That's all we can do.”

The Tornado ventured deep into North Hills territory one more time late in the fourth quarter. But on fourth-and-2 from the 17, Cratty was stopped for no gain by Corey Bopp and Kevin Koch.

Reddick rushed for 92 yards while Hulbert added 80 on the ground for the Indians. North Hills threw for only 17 yards.

“That is a much improved Butler team,” McCurry said. “Clyde and his staff have done a remarkable job there. We knew we'd have our hands full tonight.

“They play hard and they're well-disciplined. They were much more disciplined than we were tonight.”

North Hills was penalized 12 times for 99 yards. The Indians were whistled for pre-snap penalties three times in a row before quick-kicking on third down late in the game.