It doesn’t even seem like the same season to Neshannock football coach Fred Mozzocio.

His Lancers dealt Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic a 36-0 defeat in a Midwestern Conference meeting in Week 1.

Mozzocio is now preparing his team to face the Trojans a second time — in a WPIAL Class AA quarterfinal playoff game Friday at Butler High School’s Art Bernardi Stadium.

“The first game seems so long ago, like it was played last year,” he said. “North Catholic knocked us out of the district semifinals in 2013, so there’s some history. That has helped keep things spirited with us.”

Neshannock (10-1) suffered its lone defeat in Week 2, a 25-20 loss to Quaker Valley. The Lancers thumped Serra Catholic in the first round last week, 60-21.

The Lancers have a balanced offensive attack, using the spread.

Quarterback Frank Antuono has thrown for 1,670 yards and 17 touchdowns this season. The ground game is averaging 236 yards per game, led by Sean Doran’s 912 yards and 11 scores.

“We mix it up with the run and the pass,” said Mozzocio. “We don’t go into any game saying we’re going to do this or that so many times. We take what the defense gives us.”

CWNC coach Jason Gildon was quick to answer what led to his team’s shut-out loss to Neshannock.

“Turnovers,” he said of the Trojans’ two interceptions and one fumble. “It was going to be a tough game to begin with, but then we compound things by turning the ball over. One of the turnovers was returned for a touchdown.

“We never gave ourselves a chance to compete.”

Gildon went with two quarterbacks in last week’s 14-7 victory at Burgettstown. Ryan Maziarz and Will Gipson both threw a touchdown pass and combined for 107 yards through the air.

Both played and threw an interception in the first game against Neshannock.

Gipson, a sophomore who also plays cornerback on defense, intercepted a pass to aid last week’s playoff win.

“He’s a tremendous athlete who gives us versatility on both offense and defense,” said Gildon. “You just have to be careful. You don’t want to overwhelm a sophomore. You want him to be in a comfort zone.”

Mozzocio knows that the Trojan offense revolves around the efforts of senior running back Mario Latronica, who has 1,116 yards and 13 scores.

“We’ve been exceptional at defending the run this year,” he said. “We’ll have to do it again Friday. North Catholic (6-4) is very good at running the ball.”