KARNS CITY — Forget ghouls, ghosts and goblins.

The fourth quarter has been what has kept the Karns City football team up at night this season.

And out of the playoffs.

For the third time this season, the Gremlins squandered a fourth-quarter lead, this time coughing up 21 points in a little less than three minutes in a 34-21 loss to Bradford Friday night at Diehl Stadium.

Karns City (3-6) needed to win to enter the eight-team District 9 Class AA playoffs. Instead, the Gremlins will play at Titusville next week to close out a disappointing season.

It's the first time Karns City has missed the playoffs since 2010.

“I told the guys we're going to play with class. We're going to finish this thing out strong,” said Karns City coach Joe Sherwin. “If you're keeping score, you want to win the game. We want to finish strong and get ready for next year.”

It looked for most of the game like the Gremlins wouldn't have to worry about next year quite so soon.

Karns City took a 21-13 lead midway through the third quarter when Hunter Jones swept right and found his way into the end zone from the 3.

The Gremlins' defense had also stiffened after giving up a pair of long, time-consuming touchdown drives on Bradford's first two possessions of the game.

Erik Pfeifer came up with what looked at the time to be a virtual game-clinching interception off a pass that was tipped twice.

Pfeifer raced from his own 20 to the Bradford 35 with a little more than eight minutes remaining in the game.

But the Gremlins lost yardage on three consecutive plays and punted the ball back to the Owls.

“When you get a turnover like that, that's the time you have to put your foot down and put it in the end zone,” Sherwin said. “That would have finished the game in my opinion. A score on that drive would have finished the game and we would have won the game.”

Instead Bradford quickly responded.

Donny Pattison, who was held in check for the most part after he carried the load on Bradford's first two scoring drives, broke free for a 67-yard touchdown run and then ran in the 2-point conversion to tie the score with 6:40 remaining.

Karns City again lost yardage on three consecutive plays to give the ball back to the Owls.

And Bradford struck quickly again, this time on a 67-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Nuzzo to Jaron Ambrose for a 28-21 lead.

It was the second TD pass from Nuzzo to Ambrose in the game.

Karns City lost games to Brockway and Brookville when it led in the fourth quarter and also fell to Clarion and Moniteau in a games that were tied in the fourth.

“It's very frustrating,” Sherwin said. “It's been a microcosm of our season. We have had opportunities, we just have not seized the opportunities. We couldn't have asked for more opportunities than we've had. Because we haven't seized them is why we're not going to the playoffs.”

Pattison rushed for 102 yards in the first half on 14 carries — 13 coming on the first two Bradford drives that resulted in scores. He finished with 220 yards on 24 carries.

Jones rushed three times for 73 yards on Karns City's first possession, including a 53-yard TD run, that put the Gremlins up 7-6.

The senior finished with 105 yards on 15 attempts.

Josh Wimer put Karns City ahead 14-13 with 51 seconds remaining before the half, breaking several tackles on the way to a 13-yard run.

But the trio of Pattison, Ambrose and Nuzzo proved to be a little too much.

Ambrose had 48 yards rushing and 134 yards receiving.

Karns City had all three bottled up for much of the game.

“Consistency,” Sherwin said. “We've lacked consistency throughout the game and throughout the season. We show spurts of doing well, but it just hasn't been consistent enough to win against quality opponents.”Notes: Before the game, Karns City honored Sam Swick for his 50 years of service as a public address announcer for Gremlin sporting events.Swick was given a gameball and a statement was read on the field:“Every school that comes to Karns City has the greatest of compliments for our announcer and wish that theirs would come to hear you. You make sure both teams are represented and complimented for their play on the field. It is for that reason that you are the 'Voice of the Gremlins.'”Bradford 6 7 0 21 — 34Karns City 7 7 7 0 — 21First QuarterB — Jaron Ambrose 17 pass from Caleb Nuzzo (kick failed), 7:24KC — Hunter Jones 53 run (Steve O'Donnell kick), 6:16Second QuarterB — Donny Pattison 23 run (Nuzzo kick), 10:48KC — Josh Wimer 13 run (O'Donnell kick), :51Third QuarterKC — Hunter Jones 3 run (O'Donnell kick), 7:53Fourth QuarterB — Pattison 67 run (Pattison run), 6:40B — Ambrose 67 pass from Nuzzo (Nuzzo kick), 5:02B — Ambrose 7 run (attempt failed), 4:24Individual StatisticsRushing:Bradford, Donny Pattison 24-220, Jaron Ambrose 8-48, Derek Sonafrank 4-13, Nik Erikson 2-5. Karns City, Anthony Kamenski 16-33, Trey Albert 1-25, Josh Wimer 2-11, Mitchell Kelsea 3-7, Devin Ryan 2-(-3), TEAM 5-(-29).Passing:Bradford, Caleb Nuzzo 7-15-150-1. Karns City, Anthony Kamenski 7-17-103-1.Receiving:Bradford, Jaron Ambrose 5-134, Zach Woodel 1-15, Donny Pattison 1-1. Karns City, Josh Wimer 2-29, Hunter Jones 1-33, Madden McMillen 1-20, Hunter Rowe 1-9, Erik Pfeifer 1-6