Bishop McDevitt edges Peters Township on walk-off field goal

**ALTOONA** — As the Peters Township football players exited the field with tears in their eyes, many of their family members gathered to offer a round of applause and cheers. The acknowledgment was well-deserved. For the second week in a row, the Indians staged a remarkable comeback from a double-digit deficit. This time, however, the game ended in heartbreak.

Aidan Grella kicked a 24-yard field goal as time expired, giving Bishop McDevitt a 31-28 victory over Peters Township on Saturday in the PIAA Class 5A semifinals at Mansion Park Stadium.

The Indians (13-1) erased an 11-point halftime deficit and briefly held the lead in the fourth quarter but couldn’t quite finish off the defending state champion Crusaders (12-2).

“We were right in there, and no matter how much we are down, there’s always a chance for us,” said Peters Township coach TJ Plack. “It was a good football game, and I think we were evenly matched. Both teams made good adjustments, and they were well-coached. They’re a really good team and have been for a while.”

Bishop McDevitt will defend its state title against Roman Catholic at 7 p.m. Friday at Cumberland Valley. The matchup is a rematch of last year’s final.

Anthony Maiello tied the game at 25-25 with a 24-yard field goal with 1:33 remaining. However, the Crusaders marched down the field in the final minute. The pivotal play was a 41-yard pass to Ishmael Palmer that set up the game-winning field goal.

Peters Township blitzed aggressively, but Crusaders quarterback Sebastian Williams stood firm in the pocket and delivered a precise strike.

“We had some built-in plays that will beat almost any zone,” said Crusaders coach Jeff Weachter. “What we were trying to do was get it inside the 40-yard line to kick a field goal, and (Williams) did a good job going to the built-in hot route. It was a double A-gap blitz, and we made the play.”

Peters Township trailed 21-10 at halftime but narrowed the gap in the third quarter when Nolan DiLucia connected with Lucas Rost for an 8-yard touchdown. DiLucia then hit Lehman on the two-point conversion, cutting the deficit to 21-18.

DiLucia, a Villanova recruit, threw a perfect 70-yard touchdown pass to PJ Luke at the 7:15 mark of the fourth quarter, giving the Indians a 25-21 lead.

“He was under a lot of pressure because we were skin and bones on the offensive line,” Plack said. “We had a couple guys I didn’t think were going to play at all this year, and they were out there in the state semifinals. We were trying to find ways to protect him. He took a couple hits but stood in the pocket and delivered. He’s a big-time player.”

Williams responded with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Jontay Quick three minutes later to put Bishop McDevitt back on top, 28-25.

Despite being penalized 18 times for 173 yards, Bishop McDevitt managed to find a way to win. There were two unusual instances in the first half when two personal fouls were assessed on one team on the same play—one live ball foul and one dead ball foul. This happened first to Peters Township and led to a touchdown on a 27-yard punt return by Palmer. The same sequence happened to Bishop McDevitt on the next Peters Township drive and resulted in a Maiello field goal.

Cole Neupaver had the lone touchdown for the Indians in the first half on a 6-yard run, following an interception he secured that set up the drive.

Williams opened the scoring with a 58-yard touchdown pass to Howard Holton Jr. He finished the game completing 16 of 23 passes for 260 yards. Bishop McDevitt also got a 42-yard touchdown run to the end zone by Eastern Michigan recruit Nazir Jones-Davis to secure the double-digit halftime lead.

Despite the deficit, both teams knew the game was far from over.

“We told them at halftime that this team wouldn’t go away,” Weachter said. “They’re very well-coached and have tough kids. We knew they wouldn’t give up, and they didn’t. It’s almost a shame that one team had to lose because these were two great teams.”

For Peters Township, this game marked the farewell to a senior class that won two WPIAL titles, played in a state championship, and reached a state semifinal.

“They are special,” Plack said. “We had a couple senior groups before them that took us to our first conference championship and then our first WPIAL championship, and these guys taking us this far is amazing. We have a great locker room because of them, and they’ve been mentors to the younger guys. They do the right thing at all times, and that’s why we are in these situations.”
https://www.observer-reporter.com/sports/high_school_sports/2025/nov/29/bishop-mcdevitt-edges-peters-township-on-walk-off-field-goal/