MarletteÕs John Bishop races 68 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter against Peck on Friday night. The Raiders handed the Pirates their only loss of the regular season and clinched a playoff spot with the 30-16 victory. (Photo by Joe Crawford)

The non-conference game between county rivals had plenty at stake, but unfortunately only part of the initial crowd remained to see it unfold. A power outage in the afternoon in Peck and surrounding areas was not corrected until just past 9 p.m., two hours after the set kick-off time.

The Raiders, who needed a win to finish 6-3 and collect a guaranteed spot in the playoffs, generated their own electricity shortly after the 9:47 starting time. The Pirates (8-1), looking to wrap up an unbeaten regular season, couldn't get their generator cranked soon enough.

After Peck was forced to punt on the first possession of the game, Marlette quarterback Austin Comment, three plays later, darted through the line on a 47 yard touchdown run. A couple of minutes later Peck's offense stalled again. The Raiders' John Bishop, on the first play from scrimmage, broke a tackle in the backfield, raced around right end, and went 68 yards. Jordan Hayward's two-point run made it 14-0 with 5:23 left to play in the opening quarter.

It was the start that Marlette needed and one the Pirates could not quite overcome.

When it was all said and done just after midnight, the Raiders were going to the playoffs, the same place the Pirates will be looking to rebound.

"It was nice to actually to see the kids go out and achieve this goal," said Marlette coach Dennis Lester. "The kids are excited, the community is excited. It's fun."

While Peck still has an NCTL title to their credit and, at least, one home game in the playoffs, one goal of 9-0 slipped away.

"It was disappointing," said Peck coach Rob Pouch, "but the better team won. We didn't do the basic things - tackling and blocking.... and that's the difference."

In a game that was plagued with penalties, including some iffy flags, the early Raider success was a major factor in the outcome.

"We were able to get some big plays, especially early, and that allowed us to get momentum," said Lester.

Pouch added, "On all three of their touchdowns (in the first half), we had guys on them, but we didn't make the tackle." Pouch also said, "We put a lot of emphasis on slowing down the passing game in practice. That's one positive thing we did. But, they have too many weapons, a lot of skilled players."

After both teams exchanged fumbles after Marlette second TD, the Pirates finally settled down and marched 75 yards in 14 plays to score on a seven yard pass from Zac Overstreet to Bryan Carrier. Donell Hamilton's two-point run closed the gap to 14-8.

It took the Raiders less than a minute and a half to respond. On a third-and-four, Comment, the senior QB, raced 53 yards to paydirt. He then found Bishop in the back of the end zone for the two-pointer and a 22-8 lead.

The Raiders appeared headed for another score late in the half that could have put the Pirates away. After a first-and-goal at the Peck one, six penalties were called (three on both sides), including one that negated a Marlette touchdown. The Raiders threat ended at Pirate three.

The third quarter started on a Marlette march that ended inside the Peck 10. The Pirates then owned the next seven minutes, with the help of two more Marlette penalties.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Michael Mann, who came into the game with over 1600 yards rushing on the season, took a pitch to the right side, followed blocks by guard A. J. Kiley and end Billy Burns to go three yards for the score Overstreet's pass to Carrier for the conversion brought the Pirates back into the game, trailing just 22-16.

The Raiders, however, responded quickly again. They moved eight plays in four minutes to go up 30-16 on Comment's 23 yard jaunt. Bishop added the two-point run.

Peck drove down to Marlette's 30. A 10 yard Pirate penalty and Marlette's defense ended the last threat.

"We knew going in that this would be a hard-fought game," said Lester. "I thought if we played well enough, defensively, we'd be all right."

Comment lived up to his big-play reputation with his three touchdown runs and overall total of 234 yards rushing on 16 carries. Bishop, a junior, added 89 yards rushing on just four tries as Marlette finished with 371 yards on the ground, but just 27 in the air in their spread offense.

Pouch said Comment is a big difference-maker. "He's a great athlete. We knew that coming into the game. We just haven't seen a quarterback play at his level."

Mann finished with 148 yards rushing, on 35 carries, for the Pirates. They had 241on the ground as a team and added just 14 through the air.