Where Central Catholic has a reputation for its spread offense and affinity for the pass, Penn Hills is known for its methodical power running game.
The Vikings turned the tables on the Indians, showcasing a new dynamic to their offense by running the ball 46 times for 439 yards in a 28-13 victory Friday night in a Quad East Conference game at Andrew Yuhas Stadium.
No. 5 Central (7-1, 4-1) got a game-high 171 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 15 carries from junior quarterback Shane Murray and 134 yards each from tailback Eugene Jarvis, who also scored twice, and fullback Jesse McLean.
Central passed the ball only eight times.
"A little uncharacteristic of us, huh?" Central coach Art Walker Jr. said. "I guess we went against the tendencies."
No. 4 Penn Hills (6-2, 3-2) rushed for 244 yards, as Kenny Lewis led the Indians with 133 yards on 20 carries. Anthony Morelli, who entered the game as the Quad A's leading passer with 1,218 yards, was 5 of 11 for 36 yards and was sacked three times for minus-22 yards.
"The run was working, so we stuck with it," said Morelli, who needs 151 yards to break the 5,000-yard mark for his career. "I'm just trying to do whatever I can to help the team win."
Penn Hills opened the game by driving 75 yards on 11 running plays, highlighted by 18-yard runs by Ed Collington, Morelli and Lewis. Collington scored on a 1-yarder with 6:41 left in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead.
Central Catholic responded 21 seconds later with a 73-yard scoring run by Murray. He ran the option left, faked an inside handoff to McLean, then cut back across field and scored to tie it at 7-7.
"I didn't expect it," Murray said. "A little gain, maybe, but the hole was open and I had great blocking."
Penn Hills extended its lead to 13-7 when Lewis broke free for a 61-yard run, thanks to a devastating block thrown by Joe Prokopik on Central's Graham Rihn. But Prokopik's point-after attempt was blocked by Central's Derek Ciocca.
That extra point would prove pivotal after McLean's 52-yard run set up a 3-yard touchdown by Jarvis. Adam Sciulli's point-after kick gave the Vikings a 14-13 lead with 8:19 left in the first half.
"That definitely changed the momentum of the game," Morelli said, "but we've got to move on when mistakes happen."
Penn Hills, sparked by David Harvey's 61-yard kickoff return, moved to the Central 13. After an official timeout to correct the game clock, Prokopik attempted - and appeared to convert - a 31-yard field goal.
One problem: There were no officials under the goalposts.
An official who was clearly out of position to make the call then came running from the right corner of the end zone and declared it wide right.
Penn Hills coach Neil Gordon was livid with the call.
"Absolutely, (the kick) was good," Gordon said. "Forty people told me it was good. The ball boy who caught it said it was good. It was good."
Central continued to run the ball in the second half, as it drove 69 yards on seven plays and took a 21-13 lead on Murray's 1-yard run with 9:02 left in the third. Jarvis added a 1-yarder with 8:31 remaining to make it 28-13.
"They legitimately beat us pretty good in the second half," Gordon said. "Our philosophy was we were going to try to run it. Theirs was the same. The word we got out of Central was that our front was soft. Obviously, they were right. The bottom line was they beat us up and controlled the ball."
