CLARION - The first half gave the Moniteau Warriors hope.

The second half gave them fits.

Trailing 10-7 at halftime, the Warriors seemed mere spectators as Clarion scored 25 unanswered points in the final two quarters to take a crucial Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference game by a final score of 35-7 Friday at Clarion University's Memorial Stadium.

It was the fourth straight loss for Moniteau after it opened up the season with four consecutive wins.

"You just can't make mistakes against good football teams," said Moniteau coach Steve Wilson. "And (Clarion) proved they are a good team by capitalizing on our mistakes."

The Warriors had seven possessions in the second half with five ending in a turnover.

Three of the miscues were interceptions off the arm of junior quarterback Garth Kohlmeyer, who ended the night completing 3-of-11 passes for 37 yards.

"Garth was out there trying to make plays to help his team," said Wilson. "And I'm certainly not going to fault him for that."

The Bobcats, who led 17-7 after three quarters, built the lead to 29-7 within four minutes of the final quarter with a 46-yard scoring pass from Sean Wolf to Justin Arner and Chris McSwain's 10-yard scoring run following a Warrior fumble deep in their own end.

Clarion missed both conversion attempts, but clearly had taken control of the game.

The same cannot be said for either team in the first half, which was a virtual stalemate.

Wolf put Clarion ahead with a 9-yard touchdown run on a bootleg around left end with 3:03 left in the opening quarter.

Moniteau took the ensuing kickoff and drove 65 yards in 10 plays, with Matt Schandelmeier capping the march with a 20-yard touchdown run on the final play of the first quarter.

The teams appeared headed for a tie score at the break, but the Bobcats rallied for one more score.

Taking over at midfield with 1:04 left, McSwain ran for 13 yards before catching a 21-yard pass to put his team in range for a 33-yard field goal attempt, which Zack Seitz booted through the uprights with no time remaining.

"Zack's got a heck of a leg," said Clarion coach Larry Wiser. "He can boom them, and we're confident with him doing the kicking."

Clarion out-gained Moniteau in the first half by a modest 104-96 margin.

"I was pleased with our defense's play the entire game," said Wilson. "It's just that (Clarion) had very good starting field position on several drives tonight."

Indeed, of the Bobcats' six scoring drives, four began inside Warrior territory.

McSwain opened the second-half scoring with a two-yard burst with 7:03 left in the third period.

Schandelmeier rushed for 117 yards on 20 carries.

The only bright spot for Moniteau's offense in the final two quarters was a 47-yard scamper by the junior running back in the final quarter.

The play accounted for the Warriors' lone first down in the second half. Without it, Moniteau would have had minus-5 offensive yards in the final two quarters.

McSwain led the Bobcats with 154 rushing yards on 29 attempts and three scores.

"He's a tough kid," said Wiser. "It takes two or three kids to bring him down."

Even if the Warriors would have prevailed, their KSAC title hopes came to an end when Clarion-Limestone defeated Redbank Valley 42-41.

Moniteau's playoff-status is not definite at this point.

Some believe the Warriors (4-4, 3-3) must have five wins to qualify for the postseason.

"In my opinion, next week's game (against C-L) is a must-win so that we can have five victories," said Wilson. "But I haven't talked about that with anybody and the situation is unclear right now."

The win was a much-needed one for Clarion (6-2, 5-1) after consecutive losses to C-L and Clearfield. It guarantees the Bobcats a home playoff game in the District 9 Class A playoffs, which begin Nov. 5.

Clarion travels to A-C Valley next Friday.