SCHUYLKILL HAVEN — For a half, Friday night’s matchup between Marian Catholic and Schuylkill Haven was a defensive chess match.

But as they have done over the last few weeks, the battle-tested Hurricanes found a way to pull away in the second half.

Schuylkill Haven capitalized on a defensive touchdown in the third quarter to capture a 24-7 victory over Marian in a Schuylkill League Division II contest at Rotary Field.

The Hurricanes’ fourth straight win and sixth in their last seven games, coupled with a loss by Northern Lehigh to Lehighton, gives Schuylkill Haven (6-4) the top seed for the upcoming District 11 Class 2A playoffs.

Marian finishes the regular season 4-6 but will compete as the No. 3 seed in the District 11 Class 1A playoffs and play at Tri-Valley next Friday.

Knotted at 7-7 at the intermission, both teams knew a major adjustment — or a single explosive play — would be the difference.

Schuylkill Haven’s Colton Reber accounted for the bulk of the early offense, racking up over 100 rushing yards by halftime, bolstered by a 73-yard touchdown sprint.

Marian countered methodically.

Capitalizing on short chunks of yardage and Hurricane penalties, the Colts engineered a grinding drive that culminated in a 2-yard touchdown run by Tyler Price.

The momentum shifted definitively with 3:55 remaining in the third quarter. Pinned deep in their own territory, the Colts suffered a bad snap that forced Price to fumble in the end zone. Schuylkill Haven’s Triston Davis pounced on the loose ball for a touchdown, breaking the tie and giving the Hurricanes a 14-7 advantage.

“We didn’t quit,” Schuylkill Haven head coach Mike Farr said. “We made good adjustments at halftime. Offensively, it’s just a struggle.”

Capitalizing on excellent field position while their offense continued to search for a rhythm, the Hurricanes drove deep enough to set up kicker Grayson Fessler. The senior connected on a 30-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter, extending the lead to a two-score game.

As time ticked away, Marian orchestrated a drive deep into Hurricane territory, but a missed field goal dashed its hopes of cutting the deficit.

Reber then put the game on ice.

The Schuylkill League’s and District 11’s leading rusher capped a brilliant 273-yard performance with his second touchdown of the evening, slicing through the Colts defense for a 66-yard score.

The Hurricanes defense made all the difference. The unit allowed just 115 total yards on the night that featured three huge sacks to prevent Marian from making any offensive advances.

The Colts rushed for just 62 yards while quarterback Gregory Tirpak was 10-of-17 for just 53 yards.

For Schuylkill Haven, junior quarterback Bradyn Diehl returned to action this week after being injured in an early-season loss to Blue Mountain, though Farr noted that his signal-caller “needed to knock the rust off. He still has a lot of work to do.”

To compensate, Farr relied on simplifying the scheme to get the Hurricane offense where it needed to be.

“We tried to get a hat on a hat, tried to find something that’s going to work,” Farr said. “Logan Goad bailed us out. Yoder did well sealing that edge. Brody Brand did well sealing that edge. We were getting just enough of that defensive end, and Logan was able to just sneak through. Both runs really helped us when we needed it.”

Despite the loss, it was another hard-fought 48 minutes for Marian, continuing a trend of staying competitive in games only to fall just short. A team loaded with talent, the Colts will now look to make some noise in the playoffs if they can piece together a complete game.

Schuylkill Haven, meanwhile, will be the No. 1 seed in the District 11 Class AA Tournament and host No. 4 seed Catasauqua next Friday. When asked what his top-seeded squad needs to improve upon heading into Week 11, Farr was blunt.

“Everything,” Farr said. “We’ve got to get better.”

Sch. Haven 24, Marian 7

Marian 0 7 0 0 - 7

Sch. Haven 7 0 7 10 - 24

SH- Reber 73 run (Fessler kick)

M - Price 2 run (Miranda kick)

SH - Davis fumble recovery (Fessler kick)

SH - Fessler 30 FG

SH - Reber 66 run (Fessler kick)