TURBOTVILLE — Warrior Run quarterback James Keifer probably didn’t expect to be throwing the ball much in the Defenders’ District 4 Class Class AA quarterfinal against South Williamsport Friday.

With winds gusting into the 20-30 mph range and a week after the Defenders rolled up 24 first downs and 360 rushing yards in a win over Milton, it seemed a good bet the Defenders would keep things on the ground.

But a couple of injuries changed things and Keifer and his teammates had to take a different approach. Keifer completed 12-of-15 passes for 148 yards and three touchdowns, and Max Fogelman stepped up when it was apparent that running back Ty Ulrich wasn’t quite right, and had a great game as Warrior Run overcame a sluggish first half for a 41-7 win over the Mounties.

In doing so, the Defenders (10-1) became the first team in school history to post 10 wins and earned a semifinal spot next week against defending state champion Troy.

Fogelman caught two passes for 60 yards, both for touchdowns, and added a 68-yard touchdown run to boot as the Defenders pulled away in the second half after leading just 14-0 at the break.

“I want to give a big shoutout to Max Fogelman,” Keifer said. “He’s had some adversity at times this season but when he got his chance he played one heck of a game. It just goes to show that if you keep working, the ball will eventually find you. Tyler Shiposh also came in for Jackson Albright on the line and did a great job.”

“Without a doubt Max had the game of his life,” said Defender head coach Derrick Zechman. “They were doing all they could to take (leading receiver) Cole Zechman out of the game. But I’ve said all along that we have a lot of guys that can make plays and we showed that tonight.”

Ulrich was limited to 27 yards on eight carries and perhaps even more troublesome, Albright, the 6-5, 295-pound tackle who spearheads the offensive line, spent the whole second half on crutches after apparently injuring an ankle on two consecutive plays in the first half.

“We’ll know more about what’s going on with that tomorrow,” Zechman said.

And South Williamsport (6-5) made things rough with a very deliberate first-half attack. Despite its 14-0 lead, Warrior Run had just a 96-79 yardage margin at halftime and nine fewer offensive snaps.

“I thought they might try to (shorten the game),” said Zechman.

Warrior Run took a 7-0 lead on a four-yard touchdown run by Ulrich which culminated a nine-play, 40-yard drive after a short nine-yard punt by the Mounties.

South Williamsport then held the ball for 10 plays and a couple first downs before being held on downs. Keifer started clicking on the next series, hitting all four passes for 38 yards, the last a six-yarder to Liam Moore.

Moore also came up big on defense as the half ended, intercepting a ball at the three-yard line on a fourth-down attempt by South, which had reached the six-yard line before Eli White was hit with a seven-yard loss.

Keifer’s 26-yard touchdown to Fogelman capped a 10-play, 55-yard drive to open the second half and the combination connected again on a 34-yard score with 3:34 left in the third quarter to make things more comfortable at 28-0.

Denyn Beachel scored on an eight-yard run on the next possession and Fogelman capped things with a 68-yard run for his third score midway through the final period.

South Williamsport’s Cade Lusk scored on a one-yard plunge late in the game.

“(South Williamsport) is going to be a real nice team next year,” said Zechman. “They’re playing a lot of young kids.”