NEWARK — Once again, the Big Red football team never quit.

Trailing by two touchdowns at halftime, Steubenville came storming back to stun Licking Valley, 17-14, with no time left Friday night in the Division III, Region 11 semifinals to reach a fourth-straight regional final.

Cole Bowers, the first team all-district kicker who’s heading to Army next season to kick for the Black Knights, boomed a school-record 47-yard field goal as time expired to complete the thrilling comeback.

“It was a typical game from our players, they just refused to quit working, we just never quit,” Big Red head coach Reno Saccoccia said. “We were down a little at the half … but we didn’t quit.”

After a scoreless first quarter, Licking Valley took advantage of a couple big breaks to surge ahead at halftime.

The Panthers scored on a 1-yard touchdown with under three minutes to play in the first half after a blocked punt set them up in good field position.

On the next Big Red (9-2) drive, the Panthers (11-1) intercepted a pass and on the next snap, the Panthers fired a 49-yard pass to make it 14-0 in a span of less than 30 seconds.

“We had so many opportunities in the first half that we let slip away, but those same opportunities we took advantage of in the second half,” Saccoccia said. “Anything that could go right for them in the first half went right, and anything that could go wrong for us, went wrong, but that second half we kept with it and took advantage of our opportunities.” Those opportunities started with a wild start to the second half as there were turnovers on three-straight plays.

Big Red’s Charlie Abbott, who had a big sack late in the first half to help keep the score where it was, recovered a Licking Valley fumble. The Panthers picked off a pass on the first Big Red play, but on the next snap Ziare Scurry stepped in front of a Panther pass to give Steubenville the ball right back.

From there, Ca’Juan Bryant broke a couple of nice runs down to the 1, and Santino Haney plunged across the goal line to cut the deficit in half.

The Big Red defense, which did not allow a point in the second half, held the Panthers at bay to give the offense a chance.

Ephy Kelly and Tre Wiggins had back to back tackles for loss to force a Panthers three and out, but a Big Red fumble put the defense right back on the field.

James Turner, though, recorded a sack to push the Panthers backwards and the Big Red defense got a fourth down stop, leaving it 14-7 after three quarters.

On the first possession of the fourth quarter, Big Red had to punt, giving the Panthers the ball back, but again a Turner sack got the ball back for Big Red.

After Steubenville converted a fourth down and inches deep in its own end with a Haney sneak with under five minutes to play, Bryant broke free from multiple would-be tacklers, all while staying in bounds down the sideline and rumbled to a 63-yard game-tying touchdown with 4:28 to play.

Needing one more big stop, the defense came through again, a Landon Crosier sack forcing another Licking Valley three-and-out.

Big Red got the ball on its own 47 with 2:48 to go and all three timeouts.

A big Haney to Crosier completion on a third down moved Big Red close to Bowers’ range, and then Bryant picked up some more yardage as time ticked under a minute.

The Licking Valley defense kept Big Red from making the field goal attempt any closer, but Steubenville had gotten close enough.

Bowers, the all-state soccer player who had missed a shorter kick earlier in the game, waited through being iced by the Panthers and when it was time to go, boomed a perfect strike under pressure that would have been good from even further, sending his teammates and a large Big Red crowd that made the more than two-hour trip into a frenzy.

“Usually we don’t like field goals, we want to score touchdowns, but tonight we love field goals,” Saccoccia said.

Big Red will advance to take on the No. 1 ranked, defending state champion Bishop Watterson Eagles in the Region 11 championship next Friday. The Eagles defeated Tri-Valley 48-6 in the other semifinal on Friday.

“I want to thank all the fans that made the trip and supported us and listened on the radio back home,” Saccoccia said. “We had a beautiful crowd. Big Red Nation has stuck with us all year and we appreciate them. We’re not done yet.”