Twenty Years Later, North Allegheny Golden Again After Winning State AAAA Title

By: Bruce Markey
Saturday, December 18, 2010 | 12:00 AM

The North Allegheny Tigers pitched a shutout, the first in a state title game since Pittsburgh Central Catholic blanked Parkland in 2007, defeating LaSalle College 21-0 in the PIAA Quad A championship game Saturday night at HersheyPark Stadium.

It's the second PIAA football championship for NA, the first was in 1990, a 21-14 victory over Ridley.

The Tigers jumped on the board in the first quarter, taking advantaged of a Tim Wade fumble, recovered by Kevin Cope. North Allegheny scored nine plays later, quarterback Michael Buchert diving for the pylon on a four yard run.

The District 12 champions had a 16 play drive, starting from their own 7 to the North Allegheny 11, Ryan Winslow set up to attempt a 28 yard field goal but the Explorers false started. Head coach Drew Gooden elected to pass on the 33 yard attempt, quarterback Matt Magarity threw an interception, grabbed by Seth Marx.

One possession later, the Tigers took over at their own 29 and moved quickly down the field with a pair of long gainers by Buchert. Head coach Art Walker used some trickery, as Matt Steinbeck ended up with the ball on a reverse and scored from 28 yards to give NA a 14-0 lead at the half. The Tigers racked up 118 yards over the first 24 minutes, all on the ground.

The Tigers took advantage of another Explorers turnover, Steinbeck picked off Magarity and returned it to the LaSalle College 23. Following an intentional grounding call, Coach Walker reaching into his bag of tricks, calling a wide receiver pass with Brendan Coniker throwing to the 1 for Dan Slivka. Buchert went over on the next play to give North Allegheny a 21-0 lead after three. Walker said they were able to spot on LaSalle's pursuit that led to the success of both trick plays.

Slivka sealed the win with an interception with just over five minutes remaining. The Tigers gained 250 yards overall, 220 on the ground. Steinbeck led the way with 120 yards on 20 carries. Coach Walker said he leaned heavily on his offensive line during the season, as they were a major key to NA's success. Walker also said he enjoyed playing the underdog role as the Tigers were not picked by many to win either a WPIAL or PIAA crown. The Tigers finish 15-1, the defense held the Explorers to just 192 total yards, including just 77 rushing and forced five turnovers. Coniker led the Tigers with six tackles.

LaSalle College was led by quarterback Matt Magarity who was 12 of 26 for 115 yards, Sean Coleman had five catches for 65 yards. Mark DeFrangia led the Explorers with 8.5 tackles. LaSalle College finishes the season 14-1.

Score by Quarters:
North Allegheny 7 7 7 0 – 21
LaSalle College 0 0 0 0 – 0

Scoring Summary:
First Quarter:
North Allegheny: Michael Buchert 4 run(Alex Greenblatt kick) 5:32

Second Quarter:
North Allegheny: Matt Steinbeck 28 run(Greenblatt kick) :47

Third Quarter:
North Allegheny: Buchert 1 run(Greenblatt kick) 7:46