PITTSBURGH — Move the chains on offense and take the ball away on defense.

It should have been a recipe for success for Seneca Valley's football team.

But in the first 20 minutes of Friday's WPIAL Class 6A title game, the Raiders failed to do the most important thing — score.

The span included Seneca Valley drives of 50 and 62 yards and three turnovers forced by the Raiders.

But a pair of missed field goals and a failed fourth-down attempt in the red zone left the door open for Central Catholic and the Vikings strolled in to grab the sixth district title in program history with a 42-7 win at Heinz Field.

“Getting three turnovers, if we could have gotten any points out of those, it would have been big for us,” said SV coach Dave Vestal. “We just couldn't get the big play to score.”

The Raiders took the opening drive 50 yards, but Dylan Good's 39-yard field goal attempt fell short.

The next series covered 62 yards, but halfback Hank Royal was dropped for a loss on a 4th-and-1 play from the Viking 14.

With Central leading 7-0, the Raiders were handed a golden opportunity when Jake Holl recovered a muffed punt at the Viking 12. But the Raiders were unable to pick up a first down and Tanner Sherry's 30-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.

“The size of their athletes, they have so many Division I (recruits), eventually they are going to wear you down,” said SV quarterback Jack Cook. “That's why we wanted to jump on them early. It sucks to drive down the field like we did and not be able to score.”

“Our defense did a nice job of putting out a few fires in the first half,” said Central coach Terry Totten of the unit's bend-but-don't-break approach early in the game.

SV cornerback Walik Shabazz recovered a Viking fumble near midfield late in the first quarter. Jack Cook intercepted a Troy Fisher pass in Raider territory mid-way through the second period.

Neither play led to points for the Raiders.

The Vikings (12-1) received a pair of special teams touchdowns in the second quarter to frustrate the Raiders.

Justice Evans' 66-yard punt return put Central up 14-0 midway through the second period.

The Raiders finally met with success with an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive when Jack Cook hit Payton Skalos with a 5-yard scoring pass with 2:05 left before halftime.

It was the fourth pass Cook completed on the drive, with Skalos and Jake Holl also making 10 and 11-yard grabs, respectively, earlier in the series.

But J.J. Younger, who had scored on a 14-yard run to open the scoring in the first quarter, returned the ensuing kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown to dash any momentum the Raiders (8-4) had gained.

“Special teams has been good for us all season,” said Totten. “J.J. is a special kid.”

Central opened the second half with a 12-play, 80-yard drive, capped with Fisher's 4-yard scoring run that put the Vikings up 28-7.

The Raiders turned the ball over on downs near midfield on their next drive and the Vikings easily closed out the game with their ground attack.

Skalos ended the game with 12 catches for 98 yards and the lone SV touchdown.

Younger gained 136 yards on just 11 carries.

Central Catholic claimed its third district title in four years.

“It's always new for the players,” said Totten of winning the WPIAL. “It's great to see them meet the challenge of high expectations.”

The Vikings had posted a 42-14 victory over Seneca Valley at NexTier Stadium Sept. 23. Not many people outside of the Raider locker room gave the team a chance in the rematch.

“I'm so proud of the kids,” said Vestal. “We did a lot of things most people didn't think we could do.”

“We were riding an emotional wave coming in here, beating (Mt. Lebanon and North Allegheny),” said Holl. “This game was David vs. Goliath. We just couldn't slay the giant this time.”

Central Catholic 42, Seneca Valley 7

Seneca Valley 0 7 0 0 — 7

Central Cath. 7 14 14 7 — 42

SV CC

11 First Downs 18

25-47 Rushes-Yards 38-360

175 Passing Yards 73

21-35-0 Comp.-Att.-Int 5-10-1

222 Total Yards 433

0-0 Fumbles-Lost 2-2

0-0 Penalty Yards 4-62

First Quarter

CC — J.J. Younger 14 run (Matt Olon kick), 4:13

Second Quarter

CC — Justice Evans 66 punt return (Olon kick), 6:16

SV — Payton Skalos 5 pass from Jack Cook (Tanner Sherry kick), 2:05

CC — Younger 82 kickoff return (Olon kick), 1:55

Third Quarter

CC — Troy Fisher 4 run (Olon kick), 7:07

CC — Younger 5 run (Olon kick), 2:26

Fourth Quarter

CC — Jack Reilly 33 run (Olon kick), 6:56

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Seneca Valley, Hank Royal 16-42, Jack Cook 7-4, Noah Mancuso 2-1. Central Catholic, J.J. Younger 11-136, David Green 4-83, Troy Fisher 10-52, Jack Reilly 1-33, David Marshall 4-29, David Adams 3-13, Justice Evans 2-9, Gabe Frerotte 1-7, TEAM 2-(-2).

Passing: Seneca Valley, Jack Cook 21-35-175-0. Central Catholic, Troy Fisher 5-10-73-1.

Receiving: Payton Skalos 12-98, Jake Holl 4-25, Noah Mancuso 2-3, Jake Bunofsky 1-40, Luke Smith 1-5, Hank Royal 1-4. Central Catholic, Justice Evans 3-57, Dominic Dodson 1-11, J.J. Younger 1-5.