In a game that saw 10 turnovers, it seemed appropriate that one of them would decide the outcome.

With under two minutes left in the game, Chris Ward tipped and intercepted a pass to give Pleasant Valley a thrilling 27-26 win over Pocono Mountain West.

Both teams combined for seven fumbles and three interceptions, but it was Ward’s pick that mattered at the end, with no timeouts left for West and a satisfying victory formation for the Bears.

Pleasant Valley coach Blaec Saeger was animated in his postgame speech to his team.

“A win is a win,” he told them. “You never put your heads down and you battled all night and you made some unbelievable plays.”

It was a Bears fumble on an onside kick with 3:06 left in the fourth quarter that could have cost the home team the victory. West had just scored on a 24-yard pass from Dom Dicicco to Nico McNeil to bring the Panthers within a point at 27-26, but the Bears stuffed a 2-point conversion run to hold onto the slim lead before Ward’s interception sealed the deal.

The Panthers came out firing on all cylinders on the opening possession of the game following a 38-yard kickoff return by James Bush, finishing a nine-play, five-minute, 50-yard drive with an 8-yard run off left guard by Christian Stiehler.

Twice the Bears got inside the Panthers’ 10-yard line in the first, but both times they came away with no points, failing to convert fourth downs, the first from the 1-yard line, with the second from the 9.

Managing only 84 first-half yards on offense, it was a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown by Sean Cobb at the seven-minute mark of the second quarter that tied the score at 6-6. But the Panthers hit a big play on a 47-yard catch-and-run from Dicicco to Teddy Stiehler to take a 12-6 lead into halftime.

Saeger said some changes were made before the game resumed.

“They were defending us very well, so we moved to some different play calls that made a difference,” he said.

That difference was three touchdowns in the second half, but not until after another Bears fumble and a fourth-down defensive stop. On a second-and-7 from the Panthers’ 17, Ward, lined up in the wildcat formation, threw a touchdown pass to William Breuer. Ethan Duran’s extra point gave the Bears a 13-12 lead.

Pleasant Valley (5-4) dodged a bullet when West intercepted a pass but fumbled it back to the Bears on the same play. Starting from their own 46 and aided by two Panther penalties and strong runs by Jacob George and Cobb, the Bears faced a fourth-and-16 from the West 28. Ward hit Breuer in stride for a first-and-goal at the 2, where Ward bulldozed in for the score and a 20-12 advantage late in the third quarter.

The Panthers (4-5) drove 54 yards early in the fourth quarter, with Christian Stiehler scoring from 4 yards out. McNeil’s 2-point conversion then tied the game at 20-20.

The Bears answered on their next possession when Ward’s pass from midfield found Gavin Dorshimer for a touchdown and a 27-20 lead.

Pocono Mountain West was not discouraged when down by a touchdown and an extra point. Dicicco struck gold on a 24-yard pass to McNeil, who broke tackles to make the score 27-26. That’s when the Bears stuffed a 2-point try to preserve their lead.

“I made some mistakes tonight,” said Saeger, “but these guys bailed me out. It’s a great win for our seniors, their last game on this field. As sophomores they were 0-10, and now they have left their legacy with Pleasant Valley football.”

HIGH-FIVES FOR NUMBER NINES … Each team featured tall receivers. Pocono Mountain West’s Teddy Stiehler, at 6-foot-7, caught five passes for 77 yards and a touchdown. Pleasant Valley’s William Breuer is 6-foot-5. The senior caught three passes for 49 yards and a touchdown.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS … At halftime, T-Mobile presented a check for $25,000 to Pleasant Valley for being named a top-40 national finalist selected from 2,500 schools in its Friday Night Lights contest. It was PV’s second straight year winning the award. The school now has a chance to win the grand prize of $1 million, which would be used to replace old stadium lights with newer and brighter LEDs.

TITLE TASK … A Bears victory next week at Stroudsburg would, at the very least, give Pleasant Valley a share of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference North Division title.

Pleasant Valley 27, PM West 26

Pocono Mountain West 6 6 0 14 - 26

Pleasant Valley 0 6 14 7 - 27

PMW - C. Stiehler 8 run (run failed)

PV -Cobb 35 int return (kick blocked)

PMW - T. Stiehler 47 pass from Dicicco

PV - Breuer 17 pass from Ward (Duran kick)

PV - Ward 2 run (Duran kick)

PMW - C. Stiehler 4 run (McNeil run)

PV - Dorshimer 50 pass from Ward (Duran kick)

PMW - McNeil 24 pass from Dicicco (run failed)