Photo by Scott McCloskey
Wheeling Park running back Stevie Mitchell, right, takes the ball upfield as St. Clairsville’s Carson Woodford, left, attempts to get in position to make a tackle.

WHEELING — Blood, sweat and tears — Tyler Tonkovich left it all on the field Friday night.

With his team trailing 21-20 with 4:33 left to play, the St. Clairsville quarterback led his team on a game-winning, 54-yard drive, that culminated in a 1-yard QB sneak with 41 seconds to play to give the Red Devils a 26-21 victory over Wheeling Park at Wheeling Island Stadium.

On the play leading up to the touchdown, Tonkovich looked to get shaken up on a hard hit. That didn’t stop the senior QB from putting it all on the line to get the win.

“I’ve coached some really good kids but he is one of the best, there is no doubt about it,” St. Clairsville coach Brett McLean said of his quarterback. “He’s got all the heart and determination in the world. He has the athleticism and the smarts. He’s a phenomenal kid and all I can do is thank him for all he has put into our program because it’s a special senior season.”

Wheeling Park had one last chance following the Red Devils’ go-ahead touchdown, which was their first and only lead of the game, but senior defensive back Austin DaRe intercepted Park quarterback Beau Heller to clinch the victory.

“There is a million things you can look back on in a game like this but at the end of the day our kids played hard,” Park coach Chris Daugherty said. “We lost weeks of practice, we lost a scrimmage, we lost Game 1. So, we knew we were kind of behind at some level and at times it showed but I thought our kids executed at times well, too. We just have to keep battling and grow from this. We’ll be a different team in two-to-three weeks.”

The Patriots delivered the first blow in the matchup of juggernauts. After runs of 16 and 19 yards by senior Stevie Mitchell, the tailback finished the job with a 10-yard burst into the endzone to put his team up 7-0 midway through the first quarter.

After a Red Devils’ punt, the Park offense struck again. This time it was Heller, starting in his first game at QB, the senior launched a strike to speedster Torrence Walker, who was off to the races for a 70-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 14-0 late in the opening frame.

Heller finished his first start 12-for-17 for 155 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

“I thought he handled it well,” Daugherty said of Heller’s first start. “It’s a tough atmosphere for your first start playing St. Clairsville in a big game but overall I thought he did a nice job.”

Despite falling behind, the Red Devils kept battling and received a big swing in momentum when Tonkovich found Jaren Starks on fourth down for a 12-yard pickup, which led to a 4-yard touchdown pass from Tonkovich to Luke Jozwiak and cut the lead in half at intermission.

“Our staff has been in so many big games and playoff games that have prepared us to not panic,” McLean said. “All we needed was a spark and we got a couple. We left some points out there, if we clean a couple of things up, I think we have some opportunities where we can score.”

Will Balgo showcased his toughness in the third when he bulldozed his way in for the game-tying touchdown from 13 yards out on Tonkovich’s second touchdown pass of the night.

Wheeling Park had an answer, though. After feeding Mitchell for an 18-yard gain, Heller found wide receiver Shaheed Jackson for a 17-yard burst, followed by a 15-yard screen pass for a touchdown, giving Park a 21-14 upperhand as time expired in the third.

Starks made his presence felt on the ensuing kickoff as he raced 50 yards up the field to give St. Clairsville outstanding field position.

The Red Devils took advantage. Tonkovich broke a 13-yard run on fourth-and-1 and tailback Jacob Jordan found paydirt from 7 yards out.

However, Walker crashed through the line of scrimmage and blocked the point after to keep Park’s lead intact at 21-20 with 8:23 remaining in the game.

Park moved the ball into St. Clairsville territory but was unable to put the game away, turning the ball over on downs. Tonkovich and the Red Devils took over and the rest was history.

St. Clairsville 26, Wheeling Park 21

St. Clairsville 0 7 7 12 — 26

Wheeling Park 14 0 7 0 — 21

W — Mitchell 10 run (Glass kick), 6:17

W — Walker 70 pass from Heller (Glass kick), 2:12

S — Jozwiak 4 pass from Tonkovich (Bolyard kick), 5:52

S — Balgo 13 pass from Tonkovich (Bolyard kick), 1:00

W — Jackson 15 pass from Heller (Glass kick), :00

S — Jordan 7 run (kick failed), 8:23

S — Tonkovich 1 run (run failed), :41

Rushing: St. Clairsville 59-204-2td (DaRe 1-3, Jordan 25-86-td, Tonkovich 19-53-td, Shields 14-62), Wheeling Park 16-106 (Mitchell 15-106-td, Heller 1-0).

Passing: St. Clairsville 14-21-131-2td-x (all by Tonkovich), Wheeling Park 12-17-155-2td-x (all by Heller)

Receiving: St. Clairsville 14-131-2td (Shields 1-5, Jordan 2-19, Starks 2-26, Jozwiak 1-4-td, DaRe 2-11, Balgo 3-28-td, Oberdick 3-38-td), Wheeling Park 12-155-2td (Hairston 2-11, Sinclair 2-13, Walker 2-76-td, Mitchell 1-3, Jackson 3-30-td, Namack 2-23-td).

First Downs: St. Clairsville 27, Wheeling Park 11

Fumbles-Lost: St. Clairsville 0-0, Wheeling Park 1-1

Penalties-Yards: St. Clairsville 7-40, Wheeling Park 6-47.