Name any stat, and chances are that Montour senior Kaleb Platz recorded it on Friday night, Oct. 18 during Montour’s 36-35 win.

Platz finished the game with 12 passing yards, a 12-yard rushing touchdown, four catches for 40 yards, two interceptions, 12 tackles, two tackles for loss and a blocked extra point. 

This performance came against a team that had not lost a conference game since 2019, the Aliquippa Quips.

“We’ve been grinding all year, just waiting for this game,” Platz said after the win. “It took everything out of us.”

Montour head coach, Lou Cerro described some qualities of Platz’s game that make him so successful. 

“He is a student of the game. He’s been a three-year starter for us, and is truly a leader,” Cerro said. “He watches a lot of film, knows what’s going on and is really prepared every week.”

Ever since Aliquippa and Montour started playing each other again in 2018, Aliquippa had won every matchup, although Platz caught two touchdowns against Aliquippa last season in a 42-18 loss. He credits this year’s success to his team having another year of experience under their belt. 

“Everyone has gotten older and more mature. We’ve got guys that can perform at all spots, and both the offensive and defensive lines have been very good this year,” Platz said.

Platz’s 12 passing yards came when senior quarterback, Trey Hopper was briefly forced out of the game to get checked out for an injury.

“Quarterback was something I played in middle school and a little bit during my freshman year,” Platz said. “I was always a tight end on offense though.”

With such change in position over the years, Platz noted that he still does have a favorite side of the ball to play on. 

“I like defense better because I love hitting people and making plays,” Platz said. 

Platz certainly made plays on defense in this contest, with his first interception halted a promising Aliquippa drive. Later on, he tackled running back Tikey Hayes, a Penn State football commit, multiple times in the backfield.

Montour senior linebacker, Nino DiMichele talked about what it is like to play alongside Platz.

“Kaleb is a beast, a great leader all around,” DiMichele said. “To have a guy like him in the middle linebacker position making plays as consistently as he does is a huge help to the team.”  

Montour, trailing with four minutes left in the game, was stopped on fourth down. That gave Aliquippa the ball back on Montour’s 33-yard line. It looked like Aliquippa was home free, until Montour stuffed three consecutive run attempts. 

Aliquippa left the offense on the field for fourth down. Junior quarterback, Marques Council was sacked by DiMichele.

“It felt really good to get the sack, but I feel as if I just did my job, just as every single player on our team did the whole game,” DiMichele said. “Everybody made big plays, and in a game where every play mattered, you can’t ask for more out of a team.”

Montour took over, down by seven, with two minutes and eight seconds left in the game. Hopper completed a fourth down pass to junior running back Caden Halajcio to keep the game alive. 

Halajcio scored a touchdown a few plays later, and with 31 seconds left in the game, Montour was left with a decision. An extra point would tie the game, while a successful two-point conversion would give Montour the lead.

“I told everyone, the staff and players, that if we were fortunate enough to score, we were going for two,” Cerro said.

That decision paid off, as Hopper completed a pass to senior wide receiver, AJ Alston to give Montour the lead, 36-35. 

Aliquippa had enough time to run three plays of offense. On the third play, Council threw an interception as time expired, with this one also coming toPlatz.

The win improved Montour to 8-0, with the last time Montour having had a perfect regular season record was in 2010. 

“I really do think we can get it done,” Platz said, referring to the perfect regular season. “We’ve been really working hard, and we’re gonna get that win next week.”

The game will be televised on Channel 22 The Point, home of the Pittsburgh CW, at 7 p.m.