Photo by Lauren Florence St. Clairsville’s Tyson Pastor (40) runs with the ball after catching a pass Friday night against Union Local at Red Devil Stadium. The Jets’ Gannon Kernsd (88) tries to make a tackle.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The lightning struck and the thunder rolled during St. Clairsville’s 39-6 Homecoming Night victory over rival Union Local inside Red Devil Stadium.

On the first play following a 30-minute lightning delay at the beginning of the second quarter, the thunder got rolling as St. Clairsville running back Dino Burk rumbled 97 yards for a touchdown that put the Red Devils on top 11-0 and they never looked back.

“In June and July we were talking about adversities,” St. C. coach Brett McLean said. “My first game here as a head coach we played half of it Friday and the other half on Saturday. So, we warned them of that potential and it happened (Friday). I’m happy they handled it the way they did. We had an opportunity to make adjustments during the delay and the kids responded to it. I said, ‘let’s make it our goal to go 97 yards.’ I didn’t know they were going to do it that fast though.”

Burk continued his stellar campaign with 213 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

“Dino will tell you the guys blocking for him are doing a phenomenal job this year but we are happy we have him,” McLean said.

Union Local coach Bernie Thompson felt his squad was in good position in the first quarter but Burk’s long touchdown on the first play after the delay was a game-changer.

“It was frustrating because we had a little momentum (at the time of the delay),” Thompson said. “It was only 3-0 and we had them pinned deep but understood we had to come off the field and then a few plays we just didn’t execute and when you don’t execute against a good team, they make you pay.”

Burk was far from finished as he made it an 18-0 St. C. upper hand later in the second quarter when he added a 10-yard TD run to his Friday night resume on a drive that was sparked by a 26-yard quarterback scramble by Brady Schafer.

Schafer opened up the second half showcasing his passing abilities as he found Tyson Pastor for a 33-yard pickup that led to a 3-yard play action touchdown pass to Brennan Stout to create a 25-0 cushion with 9:43 remaining in the third.

On St. Clairsville’s following drive, Burk got the ball rolling as he zig-zagged his way through enemy territory with a 67-yard burst before Schafer raced in from 30 yards out on an option keeper to extend the Red Devils’ advantage to 32-0 midway through the third.

The Jets were able to avoid the shutout when a bad snap on a St. Clairsville punt landed inside the 1-yard line. Moments later, Brody Perzanowski dove in for the score.

St. Clairsville backup quarterback Sam McLean had one final answer for the Jets as he led a 75-yard touchdown march down the field before he finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run of his own to put the finishing touches on a dominating Homecoming Night triumph.

“I’m proud of our defense, too,” McLean said. “Even our junior varsity players late in the game were pounding away trying to keep them out of the end zone. I hope and pray that our kids go enjoy Homecoming and get back here safely Monday.”

Jacob Meager connected on a 27-yard field goal that put the Red Devils up 3-0 in the opening stanza, while Shafer finished with 76 yards passing and 58 yards rushing.

UL quarterback Colby Carpenter threw for 167 yards with Billy Schumacher being his top target with 86 yards receiving on four grabs. Perzanowski tallied 80 yards rushing on 19 carries.

Despite the final score, the Jets were able to move the ball down the field throughout the contest but St. Clairsville defenders made big plays in the red zone as the Jets were turned away five different times. Those big plays included four interceptions and a play with 4 seconds left before halftime where Carpenter looked to spike the football but it was ruled that his knee touched the ground before he let go of the ball, allowing the remaining time to tick off the clock.

“We knew coming into this week that it was going to be a tough task,” Thompson said. “St. Clairsville is a phenomenal team. Obviously looking at the two teams, they are physically bigger than us but I’m proud of our guys’ effort. We showed life there and if we make a play early on in the red zone I think it’s a different game. It will be good for our young guys to go back and watch the film and correct mistakes because the next two games are big for us.”