Tug Valley advances to semi-finals

BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

NAUGATUCK, W.Va. — The Tug Valley Panthers advanced to the semi-finals of the W.Va. Class A playoffs with an impressive 49-20 victory over the visiting Petersburg Vikings Saturday evening at Bob Brewer Stadium.

Tug Valley, now 12-0, went into the playoffs ranked No. 1, while Petersburg, out of Grant County, was ranked No. 8.

Junior All-Stater Bryson Elia had an incredible game on both sides of the football. He scored four touchdowns, rushed for 247 yards and came away with two big interceptions on defense. He also had 4 tackles.

The first quarter was a defensive battle between the two Class A powers as both teams had a couple of good stands.

“We had two or three drives where we got in the red zone in the first quarter and came away empty. That hurt us right off,” Tug Valley coach Hady Ford said. “We finally got into the end zone in the second quarter and really took off after that.”

After taking over on downs from the Tug Valley 47-yard line, Petersburg took the first lead late in the opening stanza. Quarterback Payton Matheny hit Caden Arbaugh on a slant pass and he raced to the house for the 64-yard TD. The extra point kick by Alejandro Brualla gave the Vikings a 7-0 lead with 1:06 left in the first quarter.

Elia took the kickoff to the 49-yard line and TV mounted a good drive all the way to the 1-yard line. But again the Vikings defense kept the home team out of the end zone. Elia was stopped from the 1-yard line on what many TV fans thought was a touchdown.

In the second quarter, the Panthers finally got on the scoreboard with 3:40 left in the half. The drive started on the Petersburg 45-yard line. It concluded on an Elia 2-yard TD run. Aiden Bosserman’s extra point kick tied the game at 7-7.

On the ensuing drive, Elia intercepted a Matheny pass at the 41-yard line. Quarterback Preston May then connected with Adam Slone for a 33-yard TD pass. The extra point was good and TV led 14-7 with 1:33 left in the first half.

Tug Valley’s defense held the Vikings again and took over on their one 30-yard line. May then hit Cane Thompson for a 70-yard catch and run score with 28 seconds left in the half. Bosserman’s kick made it 21-7.

The Vikings did not go away quietly. They hit paydirt first in the third quarter as Matheny threw a TD pass to Peyton Tingler. After a penalty, the point after kick was wide left and TV led 21-13 at the 8:09 mark.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Panthers put together a nice offensive drive. It culminated in an Adam Slone 33-yard TD pass reception. The point after kick made it 28-13.

The next Petersburg drive saw the Vikings threaten, but Cameron Slone picked off a Matheny pass to halt the Vikings on offense. The Panthers took over the pigskin at midfield.

Elia hit paydirt again and the Bosserman kick made it 35-13.

On the next Vikings possession, Elia, a first-team All-Stater last season, came away with his second interception of the game.

Then the speedy running back scored his third touchdown of the game on a 2-yard run. The kick made it 42-13.

Elia was not finished. Tug Valley took over after a Petersburg punt and he broke free and scored on a 64-yard TD scamper with 6:09 left in the game. It was his fourth of the game. The conversion kick made it 49-13.

“Bryson played well tonight. He ran the ball great and found the holes on offense and on defense he was able to read the quarterback and make some plays,” Ford said of Elia’s play.

Petersburg got a final TD in the final minute of the contest. Caden Arbaugh made it into the end zone from a couple of yards out. The XP kick made it 49-20.

May was 14-20 passing with 3 TDs. Cam Slone caught two passes for 72 yards, Thompson one for 68 and a TD, Adam Slone two receptions for 46 yards and 2 TDs, Brady Brewer caught two for 33 yards, and Ashton Davis one for 19 yards.

Elia had a total of 247 yards rushing and had several yards on kick returns.

On defense, Thompson, a linebacker, led the way with 10 tackles. Adam Slone had seven, Brewer, Elia and Dakoda Walker four each and Davis had a big sack on an early offensive drive.

Matheny led the Vikings on offense with 201 passing yards and a couple of TDs.

“It’s great to be in the position that we’re in—to be in the final four is great—and to host is absolutely amazing,” added Ford. “Our fans deserve it and I’m glad we’re able to do it at Bob Brewer Stadium.”

Tug Valley will host No. 4 Cameron (11-1) on Friday, Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m. This will be the final home game of the 2024 football postseason before the state championship in Charleston at Laidley Field.

Score by quarters:
P-burg: 7 0 6 7 – 20
Tug: 0 21 7 21 – 49