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Aaron Pegues Sets Farrell Passing Record, Steelers Fall to Ursuline 24-13

 
Tagged under: Beyond The Keystone, District 10, Game Photos-Videos, Gameday Hub, News, Non-PIAA, pfn

| September 25, 2026

Farrell – The Steelers saw their record book broken, but their quest for an undefeated regular season also ended.

Ursuline pounded out 169 second-half rushing yards-163 by senior tailback Vinnie Fecko as the Irish wore down Farrell en route to a 24-13 victory.

“I felt like we probably got worn out a little bit at the end,” said Farrell head coach Anthony Pegues. “But I’m proud of my guys; they battled all night long and fought to the end. We had a chance to win this game, but that’s why we schedule these competition games like this, to give us this confidence so that we can learn from them and move on.”

Despite the loss, Steelers quarterback Aaron Pegues made history, passing 2024 graduate Kabron Smith with 4,674 passing yards, taking over sole possession of first place on the all-time passing list.

In the game itself, the Steelers struggled to corral Fecko. While they limited him to 63 yards on 13 carries, his 163-yard performance in the second half proved the difference as the senior rushed for a game-high 231 yards on 39 carries with three touchdowns.

“It’s great feeling coming out of here with a win,” said Fecko. “That’s a great team we played; we had to dig deep and just keep doing what we do. We had some mistakes to clean up, but we kept pounding away. My line started picking it up as the game went on; we got into a rhythm.”

He became the workhorse in the second half, getting carry after carry as the Steelers defense, which didn’t have the luxury of substituting the way the larger Division III Ohio power could, ran out of gas late in the contest.

Farrell has only 80 boys in the senior high, which would place them in Ohio’s Division VII, the smallest classification. In contrast, Ursuline’s enrollment would place them as a AAA school in Pennsylvania, and a great one at that.

“We started to get worn down a little bit up front,” Pegues said. “Sometimes when you play bigger schools, you’ll notice that a lot of our guys were going both ways and many of theirs were not. That contributed to this game.”

The Irish took the football and, running an uptempo hurry-up offense, quickly moved the ball 50 yards in 15 plays but settled for Antonio Ricchiuti’s 35-yard field goal to take the early lead.

Ursuline then extended their lead in the second quarter when they capitalized on a special teams blunder as Timmy Jackson fumbled a punt, allowing the Irish to cap their 9-play, 54-yard drive with a 22-yard touchdown run by Fecko, pushing their lead to 10-0.

Defense kept the Steelers in the contest all night long and contributed to their first touchdown as Gavin Pettiford intercepted a Patrick Reardon and returned it to the Irish 39-yard line. Eight plays later, Aaron Pegues scored on a 3-yard run, pulling the Steelers to within 10-7 with 3:12 to play in the half.

An Omario Boatwright interception on the succeeding drive ensured the halftime score held. It also kept Ursuline from continuing to test the Steelers’ secondary, as they attempted only a single pass in the final 24 minutes.

Farrell’s defense continued to give them opportunities in the third quarter, forcing punts and setting them up with short fields at the Irish 45 and 41-yard lines. Still, the Ursuline defense proved to be no slouch either and turned them away both times as Pegues threw incomplete on 4th-and-10 and 4th-and-5, respectively, from their 16 and 18-yard lines.

“We were down in the red zone a few times but couldn’t convert the way we usually do,” Pegues said. “We have to learn from that and get better.”

Following the 4th-and-5 stop, Ursuline marched 84 yards in 13 plays and finished off the drive with Fecko’s 23-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter.

Farrell was able to respond when Dorean Cain went up for a ball, came down with the reception, and raced past the Irish defenders for a 54-yard touchdown reception, cutting the deficit to 17-13 with 9:39 to play.

Dorean Cain also had a 57-yard reception in the first quarter that resulted in a missed field goal. Cain had a game-high four receptions for 121 yards and the score. At the same time, Pegues completed 9 of 21 passes for 204 yards.

Despite the record-setting performance by Aaron Pegues and a big day from Dorean Cain, the Steelers didn’t move the ball much, rushing for only 44 yards and seeing 111 of their 248 yards coming on the two completions to Cain. In comparison, Jason Marshall added two receptions for 61 yards, including a 36-yarder on the final play of the first half.

Ursuline went on a 14-play drive on the ensuing possession looking to put the final nail in the coffin, but Jordan Hines broke into the backfield and forced a fumble, recovering the ball in their own red zone; however, the Steelers were forced to punt with 5:27 to play.

They never saw the football again as the Irish milked the final minutes off the clock, capping a 9-play, 44-yard drive with Fecko’s third rushing touchdown of the evening from 16 yards out with 43 seconds to play. After recovering a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, the game was over.

“Our defense hung in there, and they battled their hearts out,” said Pegues. “That’s what they do. They gave us a chance to get this win. We’re going to move on and get better.”

Farrell will aim to get back on track next Friday night when they make the short trip to Sharpsville.

Game Highlights

Ursuline 24 Farrell 13

Score by Quarters

Ursuline – 3 7 0 14 – 24

Farrell – 0 7 0 6 – 13

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

U – Antonio Ricchiuti 35 yd field goal, 6:52 – 15-50

Second Quarter

U – Vinnie Fecko 22 yd run, (Ricchiuti pat), 10:28 – 8-54

F – Aaron Pegues 3 yd run, (Nick Ellsworth pat), 3:12 – 8-39

Fourth Quarter

U – Fecko 23 yd run, (Ricchiuti pat), 11:38 – 13-84

F – Dorean Cain 54 yd pass from Pegues, (kick blocked), 9:39 – 5-64

U – Fecko 16 yd run, (Ricchiuti pat), 0:43 – 9-44

Individual Stats

Rushing: U – Fecko 39-231, Zalin Strother 7-17, Tyshaun Hamilton 1-4, Ray Javey 2-(-1), Patrick Reardon 5-(-25), Team 1-(-4). Totals: 55-222. F – Pegues 13-45, Jason Marshall 8-18, Team 1-(-19). Totals: 22-44.

Receiving: U – Javey 3-38, Ethan Sandusky 2-22, Dale Peterman Jr. 2-14, Strother 2-14, Tyshaun Hamilton 1-5. F – Dorean Cain 4-121, Timmy Jackson 1-22, Marshall 2-61, Jordan Hines 1-4, Gavin Pettiford 1-(-4).

Passing: U – Reardon 10-for-20, 93 yards, 2 INT. F – Pegues 9-for-21, 204 yards.

Interceptions: U – Pettiford, Omario Boatwright.

 
 
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