BUTLER TWP — Butler made it a game, but Jesse Della Valle made it game over.

The Golden Tornado scored two touchdowns in less than three minutes Friday night to pull within 22-14 with 7:21 left in the game.

After a failed onside kick, Della Valle got behind the Butler defense for a 45-yard touchdown catch two plays later. The play lifted Shaler to a 29-14 football victory in a Northern Six opener at Art Bernardi Stadium.

Della Valle, who also caught a 69-yard touchdown pass in the first half, recorded seven catches for 158 yards.

"He got behind us twice. Those two plays were the difference in this game, I thought," Butler coach Jeff McAnallen said.

The Tornado (0-5, 0-1) fell behind 22-0 when Shaler scored on its first possession of the third quarter. Matt Ramey's 26-yard run capped a nine-play, 56-yard drive.

Ramey had 26 carries for 201 yards and two TDs for the Titans (5-0, 1-0).

"He's a high-quality back who's been running well for us," Shaler coach Neil Gordon said. "He had a bruised shoulder that slowed him for a couple of weeks, but he's been coming on."

Butler came on in the fourth quarter to make things interesting. Shaler appeared ready to ice the game, but Cole Baxter recovered a Titans fumble at the Tornado 38-yard line on the first play of the final period.

Butler quarterback Cole Harvey completed passes of 15 yards to Jarrod Oesterling and 41 yards to Eli Christy, setting up an 8-yard Jake Thompson run with 9:59 left in the game.

Oesterling recovered Marc Hunka's onside kick and the Tornado took possession at Shaler's 45. A lateral to Jordan Lumley resulted in the latter tossing a 27-yard pass to Christy. Thompson scored on a 1-yard run three plays later to cut the deficit to eight points.

"One thing we haven't accomplished at Shaler yet is when we get a team down, to keep them down," Gordon said. "We knew that onside kick was coming and didn't go get the ball.

"The only way they were kicking deep to us was if they were conceding. And they weren't about to concede."

Butler tried another onside kick after its second touchdown, but the ball didn't travel 10 yards. Shaler put the game away with Della Valle's second touchdown catch.

"Jesse is the type of player ... it seems like he's had a quiet night, but you check the stat sheet after the game and he's all over the place," Gordon said.

Harvey completed nine of 12 passes for 124 yards, including four completions of 15 yards or more. Butler rushed for only 55 yards.

"Shaler used a 52 defensive front and we couldn't physically block everybody," McAnallen said. "That's why we started throwing the ball.

"Cole made a lot of those plays with his ability to run around back there. It was like backyard football."

Shaler took an 8-0 lead on the game's first possession, driving 65 yards in 12 plays. Ramey scored on a 1-yard run and the Titans faked the PAT kick. Holder Ryan Mincher took off with the football and scored two points around right end.

Butler's Brian Jendesky intercepted a pass by Shaler's Tyler Bills late in the first quarter, giving the Tornado possession at the Shaler 36. But on third-and-1 and fourth-and-2 from near the 15-yard line, Christy was stopped short of the sticks on two running plays.

Before Della Valle caught his 69-yard scoring pass for a 15-0 lead, the Titans had a first down at the Tornado 12 after a 60-yard Ramey run. Consecutive holding penalties moved the Titans back and Steven Hamilton was well short on a 44-yard field goal attempt.

The only Butler turnover occurred when Harvey was intercepted late in the game.

"We made fewer mistakes tonight. We played better in that respect," McAnallen said. "We still have to put four solid quarters together, though."