Trinity gives nothing, handles Latrobe, 21-0
Last year’s football playoff game at Hiller Field was heartbreak for the Trinity Hillers. A much happier scene, however, played out for the hosts Friday night.
Coach Dan Knause’s squad used stifling defense and opportunistic offense to shrug off Latrobe to the tune of a 21-0 win.
The Hillers (6-5) face top-seeded Pine-Richland in the next round of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs.
Trinity lost a close one to eventualWPIAL champion Aliquippa in 2025. The Hillers were not about to let Latrobe (6-5) do the same thing.
“I’m so happy for these kids as they’ve done everything we’ve asked of them,” Knause said. “It didn’t come easy this year with all the obstacles and injuries. But we never made excuses. We just came and worked.”
Trinity was able to put some distance between themselves and the Wildcats in the third quarter. After forcing a Latrobe punt, Owen Samogala took matters into his own hands and raced 72 yards for a score. The Hillers got the two point conversion when Samogala found Ayvari Chandler who reeled in the throw and a 14-0 lead with five minutes and change remaining in the third.
Samogala finished with 104 yards on 12 carries. Owen Gardner added 56 yards rushing on 13 carries.
Latrobe then dug the hole deeper for themselves when Ty Wisniewski was stripped of the ball on their ensuing possession. Edrick Williams recovered on the Latrobe 24. Unfortunately for the Hillers, they were unable to add to the lead as Cooper Cincinnati’s 37 yard field goal sailed wide right.
The Wildcats took one more swing at climbing back into the contest as they drove again into Trinity real estate. But quarterback Dom Scarton lost the ball as he cocked back to throw. Teagan Barr scooped up the present and ran up the sideline 70 yards to the end zone. Cincinnati’s extra point was good, giving the Hillers a 21-0 lead at 10:02 of the fourth.
“He’s been a warrior for us on both sides of the ball,” Knause said in reference to Barr. “We love our wrestlers who play ball for us. The kid works hard, deserves it.”
A Chase Kostelnik interception on Latrobe’s ensuing possession on the Hiller 30 shut the door for the Hillers.
“They’re a well coached football team for sure,” Latrobe coach Tom McIntyre noted afterwards. “They’re physical and they don’t beat themselves. They’ll be a tough out for sure.”
Latrobe looked to take an early lead after their defense forced a fumble by Kostelnik on the opening drive of the ball game. The Wildcats recovered the loose ball on the Hiller 34 and appeared to be in business.
But the Trinity defense stepped up and forced a turnover of their own three plays later when a direct snap to Drew Blossey was misplayed and rolled toward midfield. Carson Gerba recovered the ball and gave life to the Hillers’ offense midway through the first quarter.
Trinity took advantage of the turnover and drove to the only score of the first half as Daniel Glass gathered in a 28 yard pass from Samogala. The score remained 6-0 as a bad snap forced Cincinnati to improvise. Cincinnati scooped up the ball and stayed alive long enough to complete a throw to Barr, who appeared poised to make it a two-point conversion, but tripped. Leaving the Hiller lead at 6-0 with 31 seconds left in the opening quarter.
Latrobe’s offense looked to get in gear early in the second quarter as they moved from their own 30 to the Trinity 13. The Hillers’ defense stiffened and forced a 30 yard field goal attempt by Will Hebenthal, who missed the kick wide right.
Trinity then looked to add to is lead on their ensuing drive as they moved from their 20 to the Wildcat 9. Two Samogala passes to Jamir Johnson totalled 53 yards on what looked to be another scoring drive. But the march stalled at the Wildcat 9, where Cincinnati came on to kick what would have been a 26 yard field goal. Latrobe’s special teams came up big as they blocked the field goal late in the quarter to leave the halftime score at 6-0 in favor of the Hillers.