CLARION – Matt Carnahan rushed for 198 yards and three touchdowns to lead Karns City past Clarion 24-16 in KSAC football action Friday night at Clarion.

"Matt was going 100 miles an hour," Karns City head coach Ed Conto said. "They couldn’t tackle him."

Dave Larson had a big game for Clarion (2-2 overall, 1-2 KSAC) rushing 25 times for 152 yards.

"I was really glad to see Davey come out and run the way he is capable of doing," Clarion head coach Larry Wiser said. "We were getting some holes open, and he was also running hard and hitting some people."

Karns City (3-1 overall, 3-1 KSAC) looked like it was going to have an easy victory when it led 24-6 after three quarters.

But Clarion (2-2, 1-2) used a muffed punt snap that went for a safety early in the fourth quarter as a springboard to make the game close.

"I think that gave Clarion a bit of a spark," Conto said. "It brought them within scoring range."

Karns City had built the 18-point lead thanks in large part to Carnahan, but the Bobcats caught a break nine seconds into the fourth quarter when the snap to punter Mike Croyle, standing two yards deep in his on end zone, was high. The ball rolled out of the end zone cutting Karns City’s lead to 24-8.

Clarion got a 28-yard return from Corey Corbett on the ensuing free kick setting the Bobcats up at the Karns City 37-yard line with 11:42 left to play.

The Bobcats then used three straight running plays from Dave Larson to gain 13 yards to the Karns City 24.

Will Lewis then made a sensational catch in the end zone on a throw from Jamie Arner to cut Karns City’s lead to 24-14. Lewis went high in the air to catch Arner’s pass and came down with despite being sandwiched by Karns City’s David Black and Erik Fuhrer when he was in midair.

"Will has incredible focus," Wiser said. "Fuhrer just plowed him as he was catching the ball."

Trailing by 10, Clarion went for the two-point conversion. It was successful when Arner found a diving Larson in the front of the end zone making the score Karns City 24-16.

Clarion’s defense then came up with a big play on the Gremlins next possession, as Ambrogio Giambanco recovered a Fuhrer fumble at the Clarion 43-yard line.

The Bobcats were able to move the ball to the Gremlin 46, and a 2-yard run by Reed got it to the 44.

But a 3-yard loss by Corbett brought up third-and-11 from the Karns City 47, and a screen pass was incomplete with 4:51 left in the game.

With one time-out remaining, the Bobcats elected to punt the ball away.

"We still had a lot of time left," Clarion head coach Larry Wiser said. "There were only so many plays we would have had with them sitting back in a fourth-and-11 situation."

The decision to punt looked like it was going to work out when Brady Buzzard’s punt was downed at the Karns City 11-yard line.

But the Gremlins went to their big man Carnahan on the first two plays from the 11, and he gained 16 yards out to the 27.

"It looks like the fourth quarter might by Carny quarter," Conto said. "He just packed it up in there."

A 9-yard run by Fuhrer and a 5-yard scamper by Carnahan set the Gremlins up with a first-and-10 from their 41-yard line with just over two minutes to play.

Clarion’s defense was finally able to stop Karns City holding it to negative one yard on the next three plays and forcing a punt.

Croyle got a good punt away pinning the Bobcats at their 25-yard line with 48 seconds to play and no time outs.

Arner through incomplete on first down, as he was hit when he threw the ball by Collins and Carnahan.

On second down, Arner found Reed over the middle for a five yards pickup to the 30-yard line. But Reed was unable to get out of bounds so the clock continued to roll.

A fourth-down sack of Arner by Carnahan followed an incomplete pass on third down ending Clarion's hopes.

Karns City jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first half thanks to scoring runs of one yards and 27 yards from Carnahan.

His first score came at the end of the game’s first drive, an 8-play, 64-yard march by the Gremlins that saw Carnahan rush for 47 of the yards.

Carnahan’s second touchdown came 1:14 into the second quarter, as he bowled over two Clarion defenders on his way to the end zone.

Clarion crawled back into the game with 39 seconds left in the half on a 4-yard pass from Arner to Reed.

But Karns City marched from its 39-yard line to the Clarion 7-yard line in three plays and 30 seconds at the end of the half. The Gremlins drive was capped by a 24-yard field goal by Fuhrer as the half ended.

The Gremlins upped their lead to 24-6 on their first drive of the second half scoring on a 2-yard run by Carnahan. Carnahan had runs of 13, 16 and 36 yards on the drive while running for 69 yards during the drive.

KARNS CITY 24, CLARION 16

Score by Quarter

Karns City 7 10 7 0 – 24

Clarion 0 6 0 10 – 16

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

K – Matt Carnahan 1 run (Erik Fuhrer kick) 9:47

Second Quarter

K – Carnahan 27 run (Fuhrer kick) 10:46

C – Jason Reed 4 pass from Jamie Arner (Kick failed) 0:39

K – Fuhrer 24 field goal 0:00

Third Quarter

K – Carnahan 2 run (Fuhrer kick) 6:52

Fourth Quarter

C – Safety (Punt snap out of the end zone) 11:51

C – Will Lewis 24 pass from Arner (Dave Larson pass from Arner) 10:02

K C

First Down 16 17

Rushes-Yards 40-247 44-208

Passing Yards 75 54

Passes: Comp-Att-Int 5-13-0 6-19-2

Total Yardage 322 262

Punts-Average 3-23.7 2-26.5

Fumbles-Lost 3-2 3-1

Penalties-Yards 6-53 6-37

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing – Karns City: Matt Carnahan 26-198 3 TD’s, Erik Fuhrer 5-7, Jordan Collins 8-55, Team 1-(-13). Clarion: Dave Larson 25-152, Jason Reed 4-28, Jamie Arner 1-(-10), Caleb Kifer 3-12, Will Lewis 1-(-4), Corey Corbett 10-30.
Passing – Karns City: Erik Fuhrer 5-for-13, 5 yards. Clarion: Jamie Arner 6-for-19, 54 yards, 2 TD’s, 2 INT’s.
Receiving – Karns City: Noll Steiner 1-9, Nate Wilson 1-25, Matt Carnahan 2-34, David Black 1-7. Clarion: Will Lewis 2-27 1 TD, Jason Reed 3-21 1 TD, Corey Corbett 1-6.