Persistence pays off.

Mark Myers, son of Slippery Rock High School graduates Richard Myers and his ex-wife, Marla, has lived that theory.

The 24-year-old kicker was flown from his home state of Florida to Hamilton, Ontario, July 12 to try out for the Hamilton TigerCats of the Canadian Football League.

He was signed the following day and was the team's kicker the day after that, booting a 44-yard field goal on the game's final play to give Hamilton a 20-17 upset victory over CFLpower Calgary.

"Everything happened so quickly,"Myers' father said. "This is what Mark's dreamed of, kicking for a professional football team.

"His ultimate goal is to kick in the NFL. He may get there yet."

Richard Myers graduated from Slippery Rock in 1967 and relocated to Florida shortly after graduating from college. He is the principal of Rockledge (Fla.) Middle School.

His son grew up a soccer player but became Rockledge High School's kicker in his sophomore year.

Myers wound up attending Florida Atlantic University a year before that school began a football program. He joined the squad and became its kicker, playing in Florida Atlantic's first-ever game against Slippery Rock University.

By the time Myers graduated from college, he was among the top five kickers in the nation in terms of field goal accuracy.

But there were no takers from the professional ranks.

"He worked out for a year and a half, had tryouts with Miami and Buffalo of the NFL but was never offered a contract,"his father said.

He's had tryouts with three Arena Football League teams and two CFL teams since, but no contract offer came from any of them.

"Mark was always one of the last two guys considered. ... The other guy always got it,"his father said.

Earlier this season, Myers was signed to the Huntsville (Ala.) practice squad in the Arena IILeague. When Huntsville changed coaches, the new coach didn't want to carry two kickers and Myers was released.

Finally, previously winless Hamilton — one of the CFLteams Myers had tried out for earlier — gave him a shot.

"Mark's (latest) tryout up there was in the rain,"said Sue Hagerty, a Saxonburg resident and one of his aunts. "He did well that day."

Hagerty was among a handful of Butler County relatives who made the trip to Hamilton to witness Myers' sudden heroics before a crowd of 26,944.

"It was weird. That place had the atmosphere of a championship game," she said.

Myers' uncle, Frank Ballina, was an umpire in professional baseball for 17 years, including a brief stint in the major leagues.

Ballina has schooled Myers on how to conduct himself in the pro ranks.

"I just want to make sure he understands that a lot of people will have their eyes on him now,"Ballina said. "He was signing autographs wearing a T-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes.

"My wife took him shopping and bought him more appropriate clothes to wear after games," Ballina added.

Myers' grandparents, Ernie and Dorothy Myers, live in Portersville. His aunt, Mindy Daugherty, lives there as well.

Besides the game-winning 44-yard field goal, Myers booted a 9-yard field goal and two PATs in Hamilton's first win of the season.

"He's been persistent, focused and determined,"Richard Myers said of his son. "I knew he had the skill to make it happen. All he needed was the break."