A harsh humid air filled up Shaler Area Middle School during Week Zero of high school football as Shaler defeated Butler, 38-7, in non-conference action Friday night.

The night was lead by Titan quarterback Keegan Smetanka who completed 20 of 22 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns.

“I think (Smetanka) is able to control the offense more,” Shaler coach Jim Ryan said. “(Smetanka) will see something and we say go do what you need to do. Keegan is becoming a coach on the field at this point.”

Shaler was able to get revenge in the game after falling to the Golden Tornado last season, 35-28.

The game started slow on both sides, after Butler received the opening kickoff.

Both teams traded punts, but after Butler was able to grab a little momentum from the running game, it was short-lived after Shaler was able to cash in off an Alec Teff interception from a Nathan Rozzo 2-yard touchdown run just a few plays later.

“We talked on the sideline about the game being fast and trying to slow it down,” Butler coach Eric Christy said. “(Teff) needs to let the game slow down a little bit for him and we saw more of that in the second half.”

The game did not slow down in the second quarter as Shaler scored 24 points which was capped off by a Riley Douglas 45-yard field goal as time expired in the second half.

“(Douglas) put in a lot of work in the offseason,” Ryan said. “I mean the kid has been lifting hard and that’s why his leg strength is what it is right now.”

Shaler kept the momentum going in the third quarter after receiving the second half kickoff.

The Titans marched down the field in a drive that took over seven minutes off the clock and was capped off by a Juilin Tortorea 2-yard run.

“That’s what you set out to do,” Ryan said. “You get the ball in the second half and you want to score and put the game away so we can get things going with the younger guys and move on.”

In the fourth quarter, Butler was able to get the offense going with a long drive that was lead by Teff with two completions for over 30 yards.

The drive was finished off by Teff, who ran the ball into the end zone from one yard out.

“I was happy our starters stayed in the game and were engaged,” Christy said. “From the sideline, there was still a lot of energy coming out.”

Christy’s goal for their next game at home against Meadville is to make sure more players see some playing time to give certain guys a little rest so they can be at the top of their game.

“I thought maybe we were gassed a little bit,” Christy said. “We’ve got to get more kids playing and have a better rotation of guys that way we are not relying on the same guys on both sides of the ball.”

Butler 0 0 0 7 - 7

Shaler Area 7 24 7 0 - 38

First Quarter

S — Nathan Rozzo 2 run (Riley Douglas kick) :12

Second Quarter

S — Keegan Smetanka 1 run (Douglas kick) 9:16

S — Joe Desabato 15 pass from Smetanka (Douglas kick) 8:18

S — Brandon London 13 pass from Smetanka (Douglas kick) 1:20

S — Douglas 45-yard field goal :00

Third Quarter

S — Juilin Tortorea 2 run (Douglas kick) 4:53

Fourth Quarter

B — Alec Teff 2 run (Christian Mortimer kick) 6:07

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Butler, Alec Teff 3-19, Alexander Catalfano 5-20, Landon Lacey 3-4, Braylon Littlejohn 1-3, Noah Ritchie 3-12, David Graef 3-14, Mark Klemz 1-6. Shaler Area, Keegan Smetanka 6-30, Nathan Rozzo 13-73, Juilin Tortorea 6-12, Braylon Ronel 2-2.

Passing: Butler, Alex Teff 9-18-147-2, Noah Ritchie 1-3-6-1. Shaler Area, Keegan Smetanka 20-22-180-0, Aaron Aversa 1-1-50-0.

Receiving: Butler, Braylon Littlejohn 2-46, David Graef 4-33, Landon Lacey 3-66, Ian Wilson 1-8. Shaler Area, Joe Desabato 8-45, Kaden Orga 5-57, Brandon London 4-57, TJ Belles 2-18, Nathan Rozzo 1-3, Hyatt Montgomery 1-50.