Sep 6, 2008 3 min read

That mere fact puts him on a short list of WPIAL players, especially among the district’s lower two classifications. On Friday night, Bogdan batted 1.000, nailing all three of his field goal attempts to lift the Gladiators past Waynesburg Central, 9-6, in Interstate Conference action.

Bogdan’s third field goal came from 37 yards out with 6:02 to play, and it gave South Allegheny (2-0, 2-0) a 9-6 lead. The Raiders’ final possession began at their own 25-yard line and ended at the Gladiators’ 40, when quarterback Mark Paugh’s pass to Gary Zupper fell incomplete on a fourth-and-nine play.

Waynesburg (1-1, 1-1) was trying to start 2-0 for the first time since 2003, but a miserable first half which netted just 20 yards of total offense and two inopportune turnovers were too much for the Raiders to overcome.

“The kids are upset right now, but if they weren’t upset, I’d be disappointed,” said second-year coach Scott Orndoff. “Last year, we wouldn’t have even been in a game like this. This team stayed in the game and battled and fought back in the second half.”

Trailing 6-0 at halftime after a pair of Bogdan 26-yard field goals, Waynesburg opened the second half and drove from its own 36-yard line to the South Allegheny 10, but on the 11th play of the drive, John Sinnot fumbled and the Gladiators recovered at their 2.

Sinnot made up for the miscue on the Raiders next possession when he scooted 49 yards on the final play of the third quarter for the game’s first and only touchdown. Waynesburg missed the extra point, and the game remained tied.

After being stuffed in the first half and held without a first down, Waynesburg moved the ball on all three of its second-half possessions.

“We made some adjustments at halftime,” Orndoff said. “They (South Allegheny) had all of their kids in the box, but we still thought we could run out of it.

“We’re going to have to throw the ball more. Tonight, we didn’t think we had to throw going into the game, but we needed to.”

The Gladiators started their game-winning drive at their own 43-yard line after a 30-yard kickoff return by freshman Ian Hay.

The drive ate nearly six minutes of clock, and was aided by two key third-down conversions.

NOTES: South Allegheny’s Mike Cleary led all rushers with 81 yards on 18 carries, while Sinnot paced the Raiders with 60 yards on six attempts. … Paugh finished 0 for 4 with an interception.

Scoring summary:

South Allegheny 3 3 0 3 – 9

Waynesburg Central 0 0 6 0 – 6

First Quarter

SA-Dylan Bogdan 26 FG, 2:20

Second Quarter

SA-Bogdan 26 FG, 16.9

Third Quarter

WAY-John Sinnot 49 run (kick failed), 0:00

Fourth Quarter

SA-Bogdan 37 FG, 6:02