La Salle College downs Central Catholic again, 34-20: live updates, highlights from Pennsylvania PIAA Class 6A championship originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
MECHANICSBURG, Pennsylvania, Dec. 6 — The NEXT No. 17 La Salle College [Wyndmoor, PA] Explorers pulled away from the Central Catholic [Pittsburgh, PA] Vikings in the fourth quarter for a 34-20 win in Pennsylvania’s PIAA Class 6A state championship played at Cumberland Valley High School.
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Joey O’Brien was the star of the game for the Explorers with three interceptions, and his 90-yard touchdown run on the final pick effectively put the game out of reach at 34-14.
Still, the Vikings played to the final whistle, scoring a touchdown with just seven seconds to play for the final margin, but the Explorers would not be denied.
La Salle College finishes the season 13-1 while Central Catholic drops to 13-2
WATCH ON THE NFHS NETWORK:SN NEXT No. 17 La Salle College [Wyndmoor, PA] vs. Central Catholic
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End of fourth quarter: La Salle College 34, Central Catholic 20
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 34, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 20
With just seven seconds to play, the Vikings get on the board one last time. It won’t change the outcome, but it makes the score more reflective of how close this game was most of the way.
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 34, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 14
Joey O’Brien picks off his third pass of the state championship game, and he takes this one 90 yards to the house for the clincher. La Salle College High School is going to win the Pennsylvania’s PIAA Class 6A title.
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Just 3:18 left to play, and Central Catholic is having to burn timeouts to stop the clock.
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 27, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 14
Central Catholic got a big stop on defense on a fourth down, and then promptly threw an interception. With a short field, La Salle College punched it in, and with just 3:50 to play, they’re back up two scores. The PAT was no good, but this is going to be tough for the Vikings to overcome.
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 21, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 14
And Central Catholic opens the fourth quarter with a touchdown to keep this thing close. Still plenty of time to go.
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End of third quarter: La Salle College 21, Central Catholic 7
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 21, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 7
La Salle College getting fancy. On fourth and goal from the 2, they throw a lateral to the halfback who then completes a pass in the corner of the end zone. It’s a gutsy call in a game where a field goal would have given them a two-score lead late in the third quarter. The Explorers aren’t here to play it safe, though … they’re here to win a state title.
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And the third quarter is under way in Mechanicsburg.
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End of second quarter: La Salle College 14, Central Catholic 7
And that’s your first half in the books. It’s been a tight affair as we expected in Mechanicsburg.
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 14, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 7
With under 10 seconds to play in the first half, La Salle College surges back into the lead.
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CENTRAL CATHOLIC 7, LA SALLE COLLEGE 7
With just a shade under five to play before halftime, Central Catholic finally breaks into the scoring column. It’s been a tough defensive game, but the Vikings might finally be figuring out some things on offense.
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LA SALLE COLLEGE 7, CENTRAL CATHOLIC 0
And La Salle College finally breaks the ice and gets the first points on the board in this game.
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End of first quarter: Central Catholic 0, La Salle College 0
It’s been a defensive struggle so far. It feels like these two heavyweights are still feeling each other out.
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The game is under way in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania!
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Coming soon!
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Central Catholic vs. La Salle College start time
Start time: 7 p.m. EST local
Saturday’s game between Central Catholic and La Salle College is being played at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.
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