Three-peat: Ohio down Penn. 40-31 in Stateline Classic

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Shane Lux | June 19, 2026

Beaver Falls – Ohio wins third straight stateline classic, 40-31 over Pennsylvania.

From a historical standpoint, Pennsylvania still leads the all-time series, 29-17. Perhaps the tide is turning as the Buckeye State turned in another stellar performance, firing on all cylinders Thursday night at Reeves Field on the campus of Geneva College.

Outside of running the clock out to close the first half, Ohio scored touchdowns on five consecutive drives, including all three of its second-half possessions.

They piled up 407 yards of total offense and were led by co-offensive MVP’s, Ashton Hinchcliffe of Lisbon High School and Cletis Monroy of Salem.

“It was fun just to have the experience, just to do it,” Monroy said. Especially having a couple of my buddies from high school, just to have one final memory with these guys. Our guys just wanted to win. We had a lot of practice coming in, and playmakers on our team. We got it done.”

After a rough start, the Buckeye State took control in the second quarter with a pair of touchdowns to take a 16-7 lead into the locker room.

Landen Heffner of Southern Local broke loose for a 38-yard touchdown run, capping a 5-play 76-yard drive. Monroy ran in the 2-point, giving Ohio an 8-7 lead, a lead they would never relinquish.

Heffner rushed for 62 yards on six carries.

Ryan Smith of Boardman then scored his first of two rushing touchdowns, scoring on a 3-yard run following a 45-yard drive with 2:50 to play until halftime.

To preserve their lead at halftime, Grady Close intercepted a M.J. Stuckey pass in the final minute after Pennsylvania had driven into the red zone.

It was the Keystone State that opened the scoring on the first snap of the football game, following a fumble recovery. Beaver’s Travis Clear launched a 60-yard bomb into the hands of Chartiers Valley’s Julius Best.

The second half saw scores on every possession as Pennsylvania attempted to play catch-up.

Hopewell’s Rocco Marcantonio booted a 33-yard field goal to open the half, and cut the deficit to 16-10 near the third quarter’s midway point.

However, Ohio came right back, answering with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Monroy to Hinchcliffe.

Monroy completed 7-of-10 passes for 79 yards and a touchdown, while adding 52 rushing. Hinchcliffe also ran for 52 yards and caught two passes for 32 yards.

Travis Clear would add a 4-yard run touchdown early in the fourth quarter. He passed for 135 yards and a touchdown, and added four rushing yards.

Ryan Smith then scored his rushing touchdown of the night on a 5-yard run, following a 48-yard drive. Smith ran for a game-high 81 yards on 15 carries.

M.J. Stuckey of Cornell then helped Pennsylvania quickly respond with a 5-yard run, following a 4-play 64-yard drive. Stuckey completed 10 of 13 passes for 143 yards, while also rushing for four yards and a pair of touchdowns, including a 2-yard run with 28 seconds to play, closing the scoring.

Ohio’s final touchdown came when Ian Starkey of Indian Creek scored on a 4-yard run with 2:24 remaining.

Game Highlights:

Ohio 40 Pennsylvania 31

Score by Quarters

Ohio – 0 16 8 16 – 40

Pennsylvania – 7 0 3 21 – 31

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

PA – Julius Best 60 yd pass from Travis Clear, (Rocco Marcantonio pat), 6:48 – 1-60

Second Quarter

OH – Landen Heffner 38 yd run, (Cletis Monroy rush), 8:25 – 5-76

OH – Ryan Smith 3 yd run, (Monroy rush), 2:50 – 9-45

Third Quarter

PA – Marcantonio 33 yd field goal, 7:40 – 9-36

OH – Ashton Hinchcliffe 32 yd pass from Monroy, (Smith rush), 1:18 – 11-80

Fourth Quarter

PA – Clear 4 yd run, (Marcantonio pat), 10:53 – 5-56

OH – Smith 5 yd run, (Eli Wonner from Monroy), 7:15 – 6-48

PA – M.J. Stuckey 5 yd run, (kick blocked), 5:20 – 4-64

OH – Ian Starkey 4 yd run, (Starkey to Jeremiah Thomas), 2:24 – 7-47

PA – Stuckey 2 yd run, (Lukas Gerovac from Stuckey), 0:28 – 9-56

Individual Stats

Rushing: OH – Heffner 6-62, Smith 15-81, Monroy 9-52, Hinchcliffe 7-52, Jeremiah Thomas 1-27, Starkey 3-1. Totals: 41-275. PA – Tayshaun Lewis 2-15, Jake McNabb 4-6, Clear 4-4, Jared Moyer 1-(-8), Stuckey 7-4. Totals: 18-21.

Receiving: OH – Thomas 5-47, Nate Alexander 2-23, Brady Fair 1-6, Hinchcliffe 2-32, Wonner 1-24. PA – Lewis 2-44, Jack Miles 3-54, Dom Hogue 1-5, Best 6-135, Moyer 2-26, McNabb 1-4.

Passing: OH – Starkey 3-for-5, 29 yards, Monroy 7-for-10, 79 yards, 1 TD, Thomas 1-for-2, 24 yards. PA – Stuckey 10-for-13, 143 yards, 1 INT, Clear 5-for-8, 135 yards, 1 TD.

Interceptions: OH – Grady Close.

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