Common sense tells you it’s easier to play with a lead.

And that was exactly Pleasant Valley’s plan coming out after halftime of Friday night’s game against rival Pocono Mountain East.

After scoring two late touchdowns in the second quarter to trim their deficit to just two points, the Bears were hoping that momentum would carry over when they received the second-half kickoff.

Unfortunately for PV, a promising drive to start the third period ended with no points.

Not only did the march fail to give the Bears the lead, but it also seemed to sap them of positive energy the rest of the way.

Pleasant Valley never really threatened after that and the Cardinals (4-5) held on to record a 28-19 Eastern Pennsylvania Conference win and reclaim the Old Oaken Bucket.

“We had a 12-0 run and were getting the ball to start the second half,” said PV head coach Mark Versuk. “We went right down the field but kind of fizzled out there.

“Our goal at halftime was to try and get a score and that would force them to play catch-up. It’s always different for the other guy when they’ve led the whole half and then they’re down. We really wanted to punch that in. I really think that was a big play in the game when they stopped us and we weren’t able to score. I think if we score and take the lead, now they’re chasing us and then it becomes a different scenario.”

Pocono grabbed a 14-0 advantage less than five minutes into the game, and maintained its 14-point margin until two touchdown passes from Aidan McHugh late in the second quarter pulled the Bears within 21-19.

PV (2-7) received that second-half kickoff and, thanks to a big 31-yard pass to Tristian Gerstenmaier, drove inside the red zone. The Bears ended up with a fourth-and-8 at the 9-yard line, but a pass to the end zone fell incomplete to preserve the Cardinals lead.

“We spoke about this during the week in terms of getting stops at the right times and they did that,” said PM East mentor Rob Melosky. “They got stops and they just played great.

“Anytime you’re up 14 early, sometimes the kids get a little false sense of (security). And believe me, PV’s not a team that’s going to quit in this ballgame. But we always kept that lead, and that kept us going.”

After that scoring chance, the Bears managed just 39 yards in their final 20 plays.

A comeback seemed even less likely when Praize Andrews tallied his third touchdown of the game early in the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run.

“Give credit to Pocono Mountain,” said Versuk. “They made plays when they needed to. Our kids played hard, I’m really proud of them. Sometimes you play hard, but you don’t win. I know they’re upset right now, but they don’t have to hang their heads.”

STREAK ENDS ... Pleasant Valley had defeated PM East eight straight times. This was the 57th meeting in the rivalry and PV holds a 33-24 advantage.

PRAIZE-WORTHY ... Andrews finished with 189 yards rushing on 32 carries. “What can you say about Praize, he carried the load,” said Melosky. “He’s a guy that is a real workhorse.”

TO KICK OR NOT TO KICK ... Versuk admitted he thought about kicking a field goal on the first possession of the second half. If successful, it would have given his team a 22-21 advantage. The try would have been about 26 yards. “We contemplated kicking a field goal, because that would have given us the lead ... but we’ve had some issues. We had an extra-point blocked tonight. We were kind of concerned about that, so we thought our best chance was to score a touchdown.”