Sep 28, 2018 4 min read

FREDERICKTOWN – After nearly four quarters of dominating football by Beth-Center, Charleroi seemed to have the Bulldogs right where it wanted them.

With Beth-Center clinging to a one-point lead, it all started falling apart.

A drive in which time melted off the clock turned into a 4th-and-38 for B-C after two unsportsmanlike penalties and a sideline infraction with over a minute left.

Then, it went from bad to worse for Beth-Center when its punt was blocked.

The Cougars, the highest-scoring offense in the WPIAL, were licking their chops, needing only 25 yards and two points in 1:20 to stay undefeated and atop the Interstate Conference standings.

“A bad play for (Charleroi) is 20 yards,” said Beth-Center coach Joe Kuhns.

But as the echoing of cowbells heard throughout Fredericktown rained down as the Beth-Center defense dug into the pasture-like field conditions, the Bulldogs stopped Charleroi on four straight plays to force a turnover on downs and hold on for a 28-27 victory Friday night.

“This is probably the best win I’ve ever been a part of,” Kuhns said. “We knew last week (a 48-14 loss to McGuffey) was not us. But what it says about my kids to come back and do this after what happened last week, they’re amazing.”

The final four plays for the Cougars were all passes beyond the first-down marker, including the first three that fell incomplete in the end zone.

“Not every play was designed to go to the end zone,” said Charleroi coach Lance Getsy. “We try to put our kids in the best position to make plays. That last drive, when you have no timeouts left, I’ll take the blame. That’s on me.”

Charleroi (3-1, 4-1) erased what was a 14-point deficit at halftime when Geno Pellegrini rolled to his left, threw across his body and found Hunter Perry for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 12-yard line with 5:41 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Cougars then missed the game-tying extra point to leave the score at 28-27.

“The field helped a little bit, but I’m not going to apologize,” Kuhns joked about it slowing Charleroi’s offense, which was averaging 59.3 points per game.

“Any time we got their punter on the field it was a huge win. When we were up 16, all we said was to answer. (Charleroi) is going to get their big plays. You just have to answer right back. We did that for the most part.”

Beth-Center (4-1, 5-1) had emphatic answers when the Cougars cut the deficit to one score twice. After Pellegrini scored on a 10-yard touchdown run to cap a 8-play, 70-yard drive to cut the gap to 16-8 at the end of the second quarter, two plays and 23 seconds later the Bulldogs scored. B-C quarter back Bailey Lincoski kept the ball, broke a few tackles and spun inside the five-yard line before being knocked into the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown run that gave the Bulldogs a 22-8 halftime lead.

“Bailey is Bailey,” Kuhns said. “He is doing this to honor his dad and you can see it in his play.”

Lincoski finished with 22 carries for 145 yards and two total touchdowns, including a 62-yard pass to Devin Dingle on the second play of the second quarter.

When Charleroi cut the deficit to seven points in the middle of the third quarter, on Pellegrini’s second rushing touchdown from four yards, the Bulldogs responded with 9-play drive lasting more than five minutes and was culminated with a one-yard touchdown plunge by Dominic Fundy to give B-C a 28-15 lead.

“We only played Dom (on offense),” Kuhns said. “He is probably at 60 percent but there was no way he was missing this game.”

Fundy had 82 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.

The last drive for Charleroi was the second time it started at the Bulldogs’ 25-yard line, failing to score on both possessions. Drake Zellie recovered a fumble for Beth-Center on the Cougars’ first opportunity.

Pellegrini had 155 of his 227 passing yards in the second half, completing 18 of 32 passes with four total touchdowns.

“(Our players) could have stuck their head in their butt again but they didn’t,” Kuhns said. “We know what we are and last week wasn’t us. We were very disciplined and played four solid quarters of football.”