Undefeated Blue Devils win a thriller
Late field goal settles Class 2A showdown
In the waning minutes of a tie game Friday night between Class 2A No. 2ranked Burgettstown and Brentwood, a nervous hush fell over the chilled crowd at Hill Memorial Stadium.
After the Blue Devils rolled into Spartans Stadium a year ago and shut out Brentwood to claim their first conference title since 1977, the Burgettstown faithful seemed to be in a bit of a shock as the Spartans threatened to return the favor on the Blue Devils home field.
Then senior Seth Phillis took the field to attempt a go-ahead 30-yard field goal with 2:29 remaining, and the entire Burgettstown community seemingly breathed a collective sigh of relief.
After all, Phillis entered the Three Rivers Conference showdown leading the WPIAL with six made field goals, and he already was 2 for 2 in this game. The Blue Devils conference championship hopes rested on Phillis’ right foot, and they wouldn’t have had it any other way.
The Spartans nearly blocked the kick, but Phillis got it off just in time and drilled it through the uprights to put Burgettstown up for good. The Blue Devils defense followed that with two late interceptions to seal the 16-13 victory.
“My coaching staff, and on top of that, the senior leadership has been incredible in all my years, and this is just another reflection of that,” Burgettstown coach Mark Druga said. “The boys have been incredible.”
Phillis also made the first of four interceptions on the night for the Blue Devils defense, picking off a pass by Brentwood quarterback John Milcic in the end zone on the Spartans’ opening possession.
Jake Lounder intercepted Milcic after Phillis’ go-ahead field goal late in the fourth quarter, then Shane Kemper put the finishing touches on the win with an interception of his own.
“We were fortunate that we took advantage of their mistakes, hands down, because that team is a very good team, an incredible team,” Druga said.
“I can’t say enough about them.” Senior running back Cyle Conley of Burgettstown (8-0, 6-0) was the most impressive offensive performer in a game dominated by defense, rushing for 133 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
He had a 6-yard touchdown run to open the scoring on the first drive of the game and also added an interception on defense, but his most important contribution came on a 53-yard run that set up Phillis’ game-winning kick.
“Our seniors, we’ve never known [anything] but playoffs,” Conley said.
“We’ve always been in the playoffs. Three years ago, we won our first playoff game, conference championship last year, now back-to-back — it’s amazing. “Everything is for this community.” After Phillis intercepted Milcic in the first quarter, Milcic didn’t wait long to atone for his mistake. He intercepted a pass by Lounder and returned it 43 yards for a tying touchdown, and at that point, the Blue Devils knew they were in for a battle.
Still, Phillis showed why having a trustworthy kicker can make all the difference in high school football, as he nailed field goals from 30 and 36 yards in the second quarter to give Burgettstown a 13-7 lead going into halftime.
“I’ve known Seth his whole life,” Druga said. “I’ve seen him grow up, and the nerves on the kid, kicking these field goals left and right … I would definitely put him up there with any kicker in Class 1A through 6A, hands down.”
A 5-yard touchdown pass from Milcic to Eddie Gomez capped off a nearly 10minute drive by Brentwood (7-2, 6-1) to start the third quarter, but Gomez missed the extra point to keep the score tied at 13-13.
That set the stage for Phillis’ late heroics, and the all-purpose specialist didn’t disappoint the packed crowd on senior night.
“I’m pretty confident now. I’ve been doing it for a while,” Phillis said. “You’ve just got to block everything out and practice how you play.”