Sam Walborn (6) leads a parade of Nativity seniors onto the field at Saint Clair Veterans Memorial Stadium during the team's Senior Night ceremony. The Green Wave lost to Marian 21-18.

SAINT CLAIR — For Marian freshman running back Tyler Price, his time has arrived.

With the Colts trailing by four points in the fourth quarter and their fate uncertain for the upcoming District 2/11 Class A subregional playoffs, they needed a spark to rally past Nativity.

Price was right on the money in a 10-play, 76-yard scoring drive that gave the Colts a 21-18  Schuylkill/Colonial Blue Division victory over the Green Wave that earned Marian a berth in Friday’s subregional semifinals.

Operating out of a Wildcat formation, Price had five carries for 50 yards – the last 40 coming with 9:19 remaining for the winning touchdown that helped Marian answer after Nativity forged an 18-14 lead with a third-quarter rally.

Marian (6-4, 5-4 Blue) built a 14-6 halftime lead with two second-quarter touchdowns and the all-so important extra-point kicks by Jah Bushati.

Nativity (6-4, 5-4 Blue) was unsuccessful on all three of its conversion attempts – the extra-point kick hitting the left upright after Sam Walborn’s 4-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and the Wave failing on both two-point attempts in the third quarter.

“We wanted to pick the right spot to go with Price because it was a new look for them,” Marian head coach Billy O’Gurek said. “I almost went to it in the first half, but I knew they would make adjustments at halftime to stop that play.”

As has been their norm, the Colts pounded away with the punishing runs of sophomore Rory Dixon, who carried 24 times for 95 yards, giving him 1,179 yards on 226 carries for the season. When the Colts changed up and went with Price running the option, the Green Wave had no answer, as he finished with 10 carries for 110 yards.

“No, we hadn’t seen that,” Nativity coach Pat Mason said. “What was the big thing was not being able to get anything going and find consistency on offense.”

With two-way starter and U.S. Naval Academy recruit Sam Spolski still sidelined with an injury, Sam Walborn was the main running threat with 17 carries for 70 yards. Running for third-quarter touchdowns were Nick Wagner and Ben Kreitzer, but a combined 11 carries netted minus-11 yards.

Noah Dolbin added to his standout season with four receptions for 70 yards, but the pressure on Kreitzer was relentless. And although Marian QB Dylan Rodino completed just 3-of-4 passes, his 47-yard touchdown pass to Michael Gelatko in the final two minutes of the first half was a stunner and made the score 14-6.

With the playoffs opening next weekend, the injury jinx continues to hurt the Green Wave. Guard George Shimko and two-way back Mike Stank left in the third quarter with injuries.

Nativity is also in the running for a spot in the four-team Class A subregional. The final pairings will be released Sunday morning.

Game Summary

Marian 21, Nativity 18

Marian (6-4, 5-4 Blue)   0       14      0       7  — 21

Nativity (6-4, 5-4 Blue)  6       0       12      0  — 18

Nat — Walborn 4 run (kick failed)

Mar — Dixon 2 run (Bushati kick)

Mar — Gelatko 47 pass from Rodino (Bushati kick)

Nat — Wagner 6 run (run failed)

Nat — Kreitzer 5 run (pass failed)

Mar — Price 40 run (Bushati kick)

Team Statistics

Marian-Nativity

First Downs —- 10      13

Rushes-Yards — 37-201      28-59

Passes —- 3-4-0      9-17-0

Passing Yards —- 57      194

Total Yards —- 258      253

Fumbles/Lost —- 1-1      0-0

Penalties — 5-50      5-45

Individual Statistics

RUSHING: Marian — Price 10-118, Dixon 24-95, Hower 2-2, Rodino 1-(-14). Nativity — Walborn 17-70, Wagner 6-6, Kreitzer 5-(-17).

PASSING: Marian —- Rodino 3-4-0, 57. Nativity —- Kreitzer 9-17-0, 194.

RECEIVING: Marian — Gelatko 1-77, Hower 1-6, Dixon 1-4. Nativity – Dolbin 4-74, Walborn 3-55, Stank 1-39, Wagner 1-26.