CHERRY TWP - Just when Moniteau was pushing for the lead, Brookville pushed back.

With the score tied at 13 Friday, the host Warriors faced fourth-and-3 at the Brookville 15-yard line on the first possession of the second half.

Raiders linebacker Silas Wonderling stopped Moniteau tailback Adam Cousins for no gain.

Two plays later, Brookville quarterback Nick Heschke scampered 82 yards for a touchdown around left end on a bootleg. The score stood up for a 20-13 District 9 Class AA football playoff victory.

The Warriors (5-5) drove inside the Raiders 10-yard on their next series. On fourth-and-3 from the 6-yard line, Garth Kohlmeyer's pass eluded the grasp of tight end Ryan Protzman in the end zone.

Moniteau didn't threaten to score again.

"When you get inside the red zone, you have to find a way to jam it in, and we didn't do that," Moniteau coach Steve Wilson said.

"They were stacking nine defenders in the box to stop (Matt) Schandelmeier. We tried running outside and throwing the ball to counter that. It just didn't work."

Schandelmeier was held to 73 yards on 18 carries. The Warriors managed only 150 yards of offense and eight first downs.

By contrast, the Raiders (4-6) garnered 260 yards rushing on 50 carries to control the clock.

Heschke had nine carries for 121 yards while Wonderling added 100 yards on 24 carries.

"We have some size up front and we've pushed those kids hard all year," Brookville coach Chris Dworek said. "We took them to lineman camps in the summer, drilled them in the weight room.

"We do that for games like this, to have some fun and advance in the playoffs," he added.

"They're big and strong and they showed it," Wilson said. "We have to get bigger, faster and stronger. That's what we talked about after the game.

"Our kids are ready to get back to work tomorrow."

Moniteau never scored on offense. After Brookville took advantage of a short punt to march 32 yards on three plays for the game's first score, the Warriors' Eric Hilliard bobbled the kickoff, scooped it up and rambled 87 yards for the game-tying touchdown.

The Warriors took the lead in the second quarter when Schandelmeier pressured Heschke into throwing an errant screen pass. Josh Warburton intercepted it and rambled 35 yards for the go-ahead score.

Adam Cousins' PAT was blocked to keep the count at 13-7.

The Raiders scored late in the first half after Kris Smith recovered a fumble at the Warriors 43-yard line with 3:40 left in the half.

Mike Mohney caught a 24-yard pass on fourth-and-4 from the 37 to extend the possession. Travis Diener scored his second touchdown on a 1-yard plunge with 32 seconds left in the half.

The PAT was blocked and the score remain tied until Heschke's long touchdown run in the third quarter.

"Our line controlled the game on both sides of the ball and most of our linemen go both ways," Dworek said. "That was a tremendous effort by that group."

Moniteau completed 11 of 18 passes for 250 yards in a 52-20 win over Brookville to begin the season. The Warriors completed just 1-of-9 for 35 yards and two interceptions Friday.

The game was played on a muddy field, and Wilson said that played a factor in the passing numbers.

"We thought we could be successful running hook routes, but our receivers couldn't keep their feet on those patterns," Wilson said. "And when we had the ball in the middle of the field, Garth was having trouble planting his foot on pass plays."

Moniteau's passing game faded badly in the latter portion of the season. The Warriors completed just 20 of 71 passes for 224 yards, no touchdowns and 11 interceptions in their final six games - five of them losses.

Brookville won its first playoff game in four years Friday. Moniteau bowed out in the first round for the third consecutive season.

"We felt like we had a good chance to win that first playoff game tonight," Wilson said. "We just didn't get it done."

Notes:

Cousins had an interception for Moniteau. … Along with Hilliard's kick return for a touchdown, Matt Pry had a 36-yard kick return and Cousins had a 22-yard punt return for the Warriors. … Moniteau began its first two possessions from its own 4- and 1-yard lines, respectively. … After beginning the season 1-5, Brookville has won three of its last four. The Raiders play at Brockway (8-1) in the District 9 semifinals next Friday.