Holl

WEXFORD — It could turn out to be the most frustrating 4 minutes and 33 seconds Don Holl ever will spend on a football field.

It was in that span, from late in the first quarter until early in the second, that Seneca Valley's football coach watched North Allegheny put 23 points on the board.

The host Tigers then cruised to a 37-0 win over the Raiders Friday night.

Both offenses struggled in the first quarter, but the Tigers' special teams came up with a huge play to break the ice.

NA's Matt Steinbeck fielded Pete Vicente's punt at his own 33-yard line, cut to the left sideline and raced untouched behind a wall of blockers for a 67-yard touchdown with 58 seconds left in the first quarter.

Jackson Cox's point after gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead.

"The punt was pretty deep and Matt picked up a block right away," said NA coach Art Walker Jr. "Once he got to the edge, I looked upfield and figured he had a shot to go."

SV's defense had held its own on the Tigers' first two drives earlier in the first quarter, but the punt return was the beginning of the end for the Raiders in their conference opener.

"Our offense struggled tonight, but our defense played pretty well early on," said Holl. "The punt return was huge. Things then snowballed on us pretty fast."

SV was unable to get a first down on the ensuing drive and Vicente never got a chance to punt this time, as the snap sailed over his head and through the end zone for a safety and a 9-0 edge for NA (4-1, 1-0).

The Tigers received the free kick and, on the second play of their drive, Grant Huckestein rumbled for 57 yards to SV's 8, breaking several tackles along the way.

Three plays later, quarterback Justin Brozick connected with Huckestein on a 6-yard scoring play to give the Tigers a 16-0 lead.

Huckestein later scored on runs of 14 and 40 yards, the first of which coming after SV muffed a kickoff later in the second quarter.

Huckestein ended the game with 136 yards rushing and added four receptions for 51 yards.

"He's the complete running back," said Walker. "He can run and catch. He's got the speed to get to the edge. He's faster than people give him credit for."

Brozick added another scoring pass, one from 10 yards out to Dave Slivka, just before halftime for a 30-0 lead.

It gets no easier for the Raiders (2-3, 0-1), who host North Hills next week.

"I think there was a point when the kids looked around and figured it wasn't our night," said Holl. "All we can do is get back to work."