MINERSVILLE – Minersville used a bit of Houdini, some brute force and timely speed to knock out Panther Valley Friday night in Veterans Memorial Stadium, 41-21.

The Panthers struggled early in the game, trailing 14-0.

Minersville is battling for a District 11, Class A playoff berth and at 4-1 are on a mission to achieve that goal. Panther Valley dropped to 2-3.

“We got off to slow start,” said Mark Lavine, the first-year Panther Valley coach. “Then we got back (on our feet) and I thought we played very good football after that bad start.”

It was an early slug fest in the scoring department.

The Miners were afforded a short field when Panther Valley gambled on a fourth down play and came up short on its own 35.

After two penalties and four plays, speedy junior tailback Luke Stevenosky zoomed 19 yards off an inside trap for the score.

The Panthers were mounting an answer behind their stellar athlete Mike Pascoe (27 rushes, 155 yards), reaching the Minersville 15. The Miners intercepted a pass and set about putting the game away.

Freshman quarterback sensation Dante Carr (6-3, 195) looked trapped and sacked, but like Houdini he escaped, heaving a pass to sophomore Logan Hutsko who burned the Panthers’ secondary for a 84-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead

“He just finds way to beat you for a freshman,” Minersville coach Justin Frantz said.

The Miners head coach knows he has someone special in the making.

“For a freshman he plays like a veteran.”

Carr finished 197 yards passing and three touchdowns.

Panther Valley rallied for a score of its own when Mergim Bushati intercepted a Carr pass. Pascoe then capped off the four-play drive with a 1-yard plunge into the end zone.

Minersville answered with a backbreaker of a touchdown with one-second to go in the half.

Carr flipped 22 yards to Hutsko.

The Miners then scored back-to-back touchdowns to open the second half.

Hutsko and Carr teamed for a 9-yard strike, and Stevenosky ran four yards to expand the lead to 34-6. Panther Valley cut into the lead when Pascoe tossed a 7-yard touchdown to Brody Breiner.

Minersville then scored again when Stevenosky finished his team’s scoring with a 12-yard run.

Panther Valley scored again when Pascoe bullied his way into the end zone on a 1-yard run, and Jah Bushati kicked the PAT to set the final numbers.

AT THE THROTTLE … Carr is headed to the next level. For a ninth grader, he has a strong arm, great field presence and has the legs to hoof it.

TOUGH IN THE POCKET … Minersville kept bringing the house with blitz after blitz at Pascoe, who kept his poise, never flinched after taking hit after hit.