By alexis bartolomucci

abartolomucci@vindy.com

BEAVER TOWNSHIP

After a slow start, South Range running back Peyton Remish scored three touchdowns in the second quarter Friday night to help the Raiders beat Brookfield 27-20 and stay unbeaten.

South Range was out three starters and had to work six younger guys into the rotation. Losing two kickers to leg injuries, Anthony DeLucia stepped in to take over Brandon Youngs’ starting position.

South Range coach Dan Yeagley said the youngers guys rose to the occasion — they were able to get some big plays.

“We hope for the best for those guys and we want them to get well soon,” Yeagley said. “The next guy has to step up and play.”

Brookfield was the first to get on the board with a 2-yard touchdown pass from freshman quarterback Haden Gibson to wide receiver Alex Bell.

Less than two minutes later, Remish scored his first touchdown of the night with a 15-yard run. Remish scored all three of his touchdowns within eight minutes of each other. His others came on runs of 2 and 3 yards.

On Remish’s third touchdown, South Range decided to go for the extra point with a kick rather than another two-point conversion. DeLucia was able to get the extra point for the Raiders allowing them to lead the Warriors 19-7 going into the half.

“The holes were there every time and I tried my best to run through hard,” Remish said. “I think a lot of guys really stepped up filling in spots that we needed filled.”

Coming back into the second half the Warriors again scored first. Gibson scored with seven minutes left in the third quarter on a 9-yard run to cut the South Range lead to 19-14.

“We started a freshman quarterback, his first game he’s played at the high school level,” Brookfield coach Randy Clark said. “I think he played very, very well for us.”

During the very last seconds of the third quarter, Raiders quarterback Aniello Buzzacco ran 21 yards for a touchdown.

South Range went for the extra two points and converted to make it 27-14 entering the fourth quarter.

“Every time they would score, we just told ourselves we have to get back into the game,” Buzzacco said. “We gotta score and never give up. Keep moving the ball and on defense stop the running backs.”

Remish led the Raiders rushing for 152 yards on 21 carries. Buzzacco added 81 yards on seven attempts.

Gibson scored the final points of the game with his second touchdown in the fourth quarter.

“Our kids came out tonight and played Warrior football and I’m very proud of all of them,” Clark said.

“Coach Clark has a phenomenal team and his kids played really, really hard,” Yeagley said. “It was a war, it was a battle. It was a hard-fought ball game and I’m very proud of my kids sticking with it.”

Up next for South Range is former Inter-Tri County League rival Crestview. Both are independents this season after the breakup of the ITCL.

“Crestview is going to be a hard game, but I’m excited for it,” Buzzacco said. “It’s going to be a tough next couple weeks. We just have to shape up, heal our injuries, perform a little bit tighter, look better and just play the game how we always play.”