The Seneca Valley Raiders varsity football team defeated the fifth seeded Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils Friday night at North Allegheny’s Newman Stadium.

Yet again, the offense again put up video game numbers, but the story of the game belonged to the Raider defense.

Coming into the game, the Raiders were focused on shutting down the WPIALs most dynamic passer, Mt. Lebanon’s Tyler Roth.

Roth had averaged about 237 yards per game in his previous ten games, but the stingy Raider defense kept him in check all night. He finished the game completing 10 of 32 passes for just 139 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

The secondary shut down the Blue Devil weapons and the front seven of the Raiders took care of the ground attack and harassed Roth all night by recording five sacks. The defense also forced Roth into committing an intentional grounding penalty in his own end zone, resulting in a safety which clinched the game for the Raiders.

Outside linebacker Ryan McCauley and safety Jonathan Dorogy had two interceptions for the Raiders.

Quarterback Jordan Brown said “I feel that the defense gives us a big boost in confidence and takes some of the pressure off us to score after they get a stop. It makes everyone on the offense even more excited to drive down the field and score.”

As strong as the defense played, the offense matched them by putting up 437 yards of offense.

Brown finished the game completing 11 of 14 passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns, two of which went to Dorogy.

Dorogy finished the game with three catches for 136 yards and the two touchdowns, coming on 44 and 84 yard passes respectively.

Running back Forrest Barnes racked up 141 yards on the ground and sealed the game with a 43 yard touchdown run late in the game.

McCauley also caught a four yard touchdown pass on a fourth down on the Raiders opening drive.

The Raiders find themselves in unfamiliar territory reaching the WPIAL semi-finals for the first time in 15 years, and the win gives them two playoff victories for the first time since 1989.

The Raiders await a match up with the number one seeded North Allegheny Tigers at North Hills’s Martorelli Stadium. The Raiders lost to the Tigers by a score of 48-3 in the third week of this season.