Marian's Rory Dixon. (Photo by Justin Reed/Skook News)

HOMETOWN – On a night when the Marian seniors were taking their last bows, sophomore Rory Dixon was in the spotlight.

The feisty, tough running back delivered early and late at Stan Dakosty Field at Men of Marian Stadium. Dixon scored three touchdowns on runs of 6, 14 and 2 yards, tallying 138 yards on 28 carries. He also went over 1,000 yards rushing for the season and 2,000 for his career as the Colts broke free from a determined, youthful Pine Grove team to lace up a 34-7 victory in a Schuylkill/Colonial Blue Division game.

The outcome was surely deceiving. The Cardinals (1-8, 1-7 Blue) trailed only 13-7 at the intermission and still were hanging around, pestering the home club right up until a barrage of 21 fourth-quarter points finally set Marian (4-5, 3-5 Blue) free from a possible upset bug.

The win keeps Marian’s District 2/11 Class A subregional playoff hopes alive heading into next Friday’s regular-season finale against Nativity.

As for the Colts’ final home game, they roared down the field on their first possession. Pine Grove opted out of taking the opening kickoff, the watched Marian churn out a perfect 10-play drive to hit the end zone.

Marian tight end and Buffalo recruit Michael Gelatko was the focal point in the drive, even though Dixon carried the payload down to the Pine Grove 21. Senior quarterback Dylan Rodino hit Gelatko for a 23-yard gain early in the drive, then capped the march with a 21-yard pass for a touchdown.

The Rodino-to-Gelatko combo enabled their team to take a 6-0 lead. Things were very positive for Marian, and on its second possession put together another 10-play drive. Dixon’s number kept getting the call and the quick, elusive tailback responded with seven carries in the march, charging into the end zone on a 6-yard touchdown run before Jah Bushati booted the PAT.

“We had a great start, then we throw the pick-6,” Marian coach Billy O’Gurek said. “I thought our tempo was good. We did some nice things with the run and what can you say about Rory … he is such a great back and he finds a way to bounce out of trouble.”

Troubles were brewing for Marian on this frosty night, when Pine Grove dug in and relied on its defense to score the team’s only touchdown. Logan Troup, a sophomore and the heart of the Pine Grove running attack, turned in a defensive gem. He was in the right spot, picking off a pass flung by freshman Gregory Tirpak. Troup read the play, stepped in and latched on to the pass, then went sailing down the far sideline for a 45-yard touchdowns with 28 seconds before the half.

“We are a very young team, but we’ve gotten so much better since Week 1 to this point,” Pine Grove coach Dave Shiffer said. “That pick by (Troup) was a big play for us at that time. For a sophomore, he keeps getting better each week. We have a lot of those underclassmen, but they just got to learn from games like this.”

Shiffer said the defensive game plan was on target, for the most part. And it was for a while. However, Marian got its wheels back, turned to the dynamic Dixon and when the fourth quarter hit the scoreboard, the speedy back got rolling once again.

“I just felt comfortable. I wasn’t worried about getting my yardage, that comes. You just need to be patient,” Dixon said. “I was just focusing on getting a win after the last two weeks (losses) we’ve had.”

There was 10 minutes to play in the game when Dixon bolted 14 yards for his second touchdown. It finished a 12-play drive that started on the Marian 39.

Marian then got back-to-back short fields to work with and took advantage of both tries. Pine Grove used up four downs after Dixon had put his team up 20-7 giving up the ball on its 27-yard line. It took just five plays with Dixon zipping up inside on a 2-yard run.

Another short field, this one at the Pine Grove 37. Senior Charlie Hower had six carries in the drive, his final a 5-yard run to paydirt.

“Charlie has been with us four years, and Senior Night, we tried to get him in the end zone,” O’Gurek said. “Early in the year, we just couldn’t do it.”

ADDING IT UP … Marian’s defense was stalwart all evening. It allowed Pine Grove a grand total of 36 yards. The Colts rushed for 210 yards and had 57 yards passing. In addition to Dixon, the Hower brothers combined for 76 yards on the ground.

STANDOUTS … Marian’s defensive line gets a game ball for its play. Pine Grove QB Wyatt Snyder is a load at 6-foot-3, 230 pounds and turned in a standout game.

QUOTABLE I … “We did some good things in that first half, obviously we got that pick-6. We’re young and I said to the guys, ‘We got to grow and learn from this.’ ” Pine Grove coach Shiffer.

QUOTABLE II … “We’re not pretty at times but we got it done. We told our kids during the week, we want to be playing meaningful football games in October.” O’Gurek on how the Colts graded out after Week 9.

Game Summary

Marian 34, Pine Grove 7

Pine Grove (1-8, 1-7 Blue) 0 7 0 0 — 7

Marian (5-4, 4-4 Blue) 6 7 0 21 — 34

Scoring

MC – Gelatko 21 pass from Rodino (run failed)

MC – Dixon 6 run (Bushati kick)

PG – Troup 45 pass interception (Ludwig kick)

MC – Dixon 14 run (Bushati kick)

MC – Dixon 2 run (Bushati kick)

MC – Charlie Hower 5 run (Tom kick)

Team Statistics

       PG         Marian

First Downs —- 4 15

Rushes-Yards — 21-38  25-210

Passes —- 1-8-0  4-4-2

Passing Yards —- 2  57

Total Yards —- 40  267

Fumbles/Lost —- 1-0  0-0

Penalties —-3-20  5-45

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING: Pine Grove — Troup 10-29, Snyder 9-14, Pillsbury 1-(-2), Ibarra 1-(-3). Marian — Dixon 28-138, Charles Hower 7-40, Chase Hower 8-30, Gelatko 1-2.

PASSING: Pine Grove — Snyder 1-8-0, 2. Marian — Rodino 2-5-2, 50; Tirpak 1-3-1, 7.

RECEIVING: Pine Grove — Nagle 1-2. Marian — Gelatko 4-50, Griguoli 1-7.

INTERCEPTIONS: Pine Grove — Lyons, Troup.