POTTSVILLE — For the game’s first 22 minutes, Lehighton had everything going its way in Friday’s Schuylkill/Colonial Red Division game against Pottsville.

The Indians dominated the line of scrimmage, controlled the clock, stymied the Crimson Tide’s running game and used a Philip Ebberts field goal to take a three-point advantage.

The only thing missing was a big play to get in the end zone.

That play never came.

It did for Pottsville.

The Crimson Tide showed its growth in the second half, combining two long pass plays with a blocked punt and two interceptions by Shay Strencosky to capture a 21-3 victory on homecoming at a rainy Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The win evens Pottsville’s record at 3-3, while Lehighton drops to 2-4.

“We really felt good about a lot of the things that we were doing,” Lehighton coach Tom McCarroll said. “When it came to those money downs, trying to punch it in, we didn’t have an answer. That starts with me. I have to do a better job of putting us in a better position to have explosive plays.”

Lehighton (2-3 Red) set the tone for the first half on its opening possession, putting together a 10-play drive that was centered around the running of Lukas Croizier. The Indians reached the Tide 14 before stalling, and Ebberts’ 31-yard field goal put Lehighton up 3-0 midway through the first quarter.

After a Pottsville drive was halted at the Lehighton 13, the Indians went on the march again, mounting a 18-play drive that took nine minutes off the clock. Again, Lehighton came up short, as Tsirell Curry intercepted Jayse Lawrence on a fourth-and-10 play at the Tide 30.

In the first half, Croizier rushed 16 times for 88 yards, while the Lehighton defense held Pottsville to 38 yards rushing.

“I thought going into this game we were very balanced, very comparable to them. Similar record, similar types of wins and losses,” McCarroll said. “I thought this was one of those games that could go either way.

“I was really pleased with the way we played in the first half, right up until they hit the big one.”

“The big one” was a 46-yard pass from Andrew Allen to Curry down the seam as the sophomore quarterback hit the 6-foot-4 senior in stride with a pass that split two defenders. Curry was pulled down at the Lehighton 5-yard line, and two plays later JuJu Bainbridge plowed in from the 1 to give the Tide a 7-3 lead with 40.2 seconds left until halftime.

“Your best players have to make plays like that in times when things aren’t going well to give your team a chance,” Pottsville coach Mike Brennan said. “That was huge to go up 7-3 and give us some energy going into half. It gave our kids a lot of confidence on both sides of the ball. We came out more aggressively on both sides of the ball in the second half.”

Pottsville used two more big plays in the third quarter to take control of the game.

The first came on Lehighton’s second possession of the frame as Averey Maroukis blocked a Blake Roberts punt and the Tide recovered at the Indian 32.

Allen then hit Letrel Montone for 15 yards and Christian Alvarez for 20 yards before connecting with Curry for a 17-yard touchdown catch in which Curry leaped back over the defender — ala Randy Moss — to make the TD reception.

“At practice we always emphasize being aggressive going for the catch,” Curry said. “That’s exactly what that was.”

Strencosky then made his presence felt on Lehighton’s next possession, intercepting an errant Lawrence pass at the Tide 40. Two plays later, Allen hit Montone on a quick out pattern and Montone weaved his way 58 yards for a touchdown that put the Tide up 21-3 with a minute left in the third quarter.

“That was a big momentum shift,” Strencosky said of his interception. “We had to finish plays, make big create turnovers and get a big bounce back from last week. People were flying around in the second half.”

Pottsville’s defense was the story in the second half, holding Croizier to 11 yards on seven carries and forcing Lehighton to attempt 20 passes.

Strencosky had his second interception on the Indians’ next possession, while Luke Schane, Jacob Filiac, Eli Accardi, Tahlil White and Brayden Evans all made their presence felt in the backfield by pressuring Lawrence and stuffing the Indians’ run game.

Allen finished 13-of-20 for 270 yards through the air, with Curry hauling in five passes for 112 yards and Bainbridge churning out some tough second-half runs to compile 106 yards on 21 carries.

The win gives Pottsville some momentum heading into a clash next Friday at unbeaten Northwestern.

“It was a grind tonight. That checked another box,” Brennan said. “We had to grind and find a way to win one. The ones we had to grind so far, we didn’t win those. Finding a way to pull away in the second half was certainly a step in the right direction and something we haven’t done yet.”

Pottsville 21,

Lehighton 3

Lehighton 3 0 0 0 - 3

Pottsville 0 7 14 0 - 21

L - Ebbert 35 FG

P - Bainbridge 1 run (Allen kick)

P - Curry 17 pass from Allen (Allen kick)

P - Montone 58 pass from Allen (Allen kick)