Class AA No. 12 PikeView played a Monday night football game in cold, muddy conditions — neither of which the Panthers have seen much this fall.

But an occurrence that has become more regular for the Panthers in 2009 — a victory — was the end result of PikeView’s meeting with winless Oak Hill in a game postponed from its original Friday slot due to illness.

Playing the Red Devils before a sparse crowd at John P. Duda Stadium, the Panthers followed a stout defensive showing to a 35-7 win that allowed them to stay on course for their first playoff berth since a first-round loss at East Bank in 1996.

Jumping to a 20-0 halftime lead, PikeView limited Oak Hill to 47 offensive yards in the opening half and 92 yards total — all on the ground.

“Our defense played great,” said Panthers coach Jeff Damewood. “I thought we gang-tackled well.

“We stopped (Oak Hill receiver Jack) Flournoy from catching a pass. We had great effort.”

“Their defensive aggressiveness hurt us,” Oak Hill coach Casey Crane admitted. “We turned it over four times playing young guys.

“I knew we would have trouble (scoring against them). Our effort was good, but they are aggressive on defense.”

The Panther defense paved the way for a majority of the scoring. The first touchdown — a 6-yard run by quarterback Ben Nester — was preceded by a Joel Calfee interception on the PikeView 10 on Oak Hill’s first drive. After Calfee snared a 22-yard TD pass from Nester with 5:11 left in the second, and Aaron Nash’s PAT kick made it 13-0, the Panthers forced Oak Hill into a fourth-and-20. The resulting short punt gave the Panthers some life late in the first half.

With the pigskin in PikeView’s possession on the Oak Hill 38 with 44 seconds remaining, the Panthers got a 3-yard gain, then Nester connected with Tanner Ratcliff on a 26-yard aerial to produce a first-and-goal at the 9 with 15 seconds to go. On the next play, Nester found receiver Corey Clark on a pass in the back left corner of the end zone, and Nash’s PAT made it 20-0 at the intermission.

The Panthers got a team safety late in the third. After that, David Keen’s 9-yard scoring run and Nash’s kick pushed the advantage to 29-0 with 29 seconds left in the third frame.

The PikeView defense once again stepped up early in the fourth, as two Keen sacks led to a fourth-and-23 for the Red Devils from their own 17, and the ensuing punt snap went awry. Clark pounced on the loose ball in the end zone for PikeView’s final score at the 9:43 mark.

Oak Hill avoided a shutout late in the game when Derek McGuffin broke free from a scrum near the 30 and raced to paydirt on a 42-yarder. Nick Smith’s kick put the final score at 35-7. That score was aided by a PikeView roughing the kicker penalty on fourth-and-6 from the Oak Hill 24 that moved the chains and kept the drive alive.

After that possession, the Panthers were flagged for several infractions on the kick return, but the game’s outcome had long since ceased to be in doubt.

Nester ran for 54 yards and one score and passed for 57 yards and two more TDs to lead PikeView. Ratcliff rushed for 61 yards.

McGuffin ran 14 times for 53 yards and a score for the Red Devils, who completed none of their seven pass attempts on the evening.

PikeView plays another Fayette County foe, Midland Trail, at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Concord University.

“The game was sloppy at times (the first four possessions of the second half ended in turnovers), and being off the regular routine may have had something to do with that,” said Damewood. “I think it was good for us to play in these conditions. It gave us a chance to work on plays to control the ball.

“We want to take this momentum to Friday and get into the playoffs.”

Oak Hill hosts Mount View Friday.

— E-mail:

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PikeView 35, Oak Hill 7

PV (6-3) 6 14 9 6 — 35

OH (0-9) 0 0 0 7 — 7

First Quarter

PV: Ben Nester 6 run (kick failed), 2:34

Second Quarter

PV: Joel Calfee 22 pass from Nester (Aaron Nash kick), 5:11

PV: Corey Clark 9 pass from Nester (Nash kick), 0:10

Third Quarter

PV: Team safety, 2:43

PV: David Keen 9 run (Nash kick), 0:29

Fourth Quarter

PV: Clark fumble recovery in end zone (kick failed), 9:43

OH: Derek McGuffin 42 run (Nick Smith kick), 2:56



INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — PV: Robbie Samosky 10-37, Josh Neal 8-37, Nester 9-54-1, Tanner Ratcliff 8-61, Keen 2-19-1, Tyler Rose 3-0, Tyler Farley 1-1. OH: McGuffin 14-53-1, DeAndré Leonard 12-19, Kyalo Bradford 8-9, John Green 2-11, Kameron Carroll 3-2, Team 1-(-2).

PASSING — PV: Nester 3-8-2-57-2. OH: Bradford 0-5-1-0-0, Leonard 0-2-0-0-0.

RECEIVING — PV: Calfee 1-22-1, Ratcliff 1-26, Clark 1-9-1. OH: None.

TURNOVERS — PV: Calfee (INT), Farley (FR), Jake Patton (FR), Clark (FR-TD). OH: Carroll (INT), Green (FR), Quinton Coats (INT).