EDINBORO — General McLane started out fast, but Warren stayed with the Lancers with its season on the line. Ultimately, McLane and quarterback Dylan Sheeder pulled away, winning the regular season finale 37-16 on Friday.

“It is a heartbreaking way to end our season, especially for our seniors,” said Warren coach Mark Morelli, whose Dragons finish the regular season at 5-5 after two straight losses. “They really wanted this game, but we just could not sustain our momentum.

“We were down 15-0 at the half, took a 16-15 lead late in the third quarter, and then, several plays later, Dylan Sheeder goes 75 yards on RPO. … There goes our momentum,” added Morelli. “But the fight and heart our kids showed in the third quarter was certainly a positive, gritty display of never giving up.”

The 15-0 lead for 9-1 General McLane came from the legs of Sheeder. The speedy quarterback ran 58 yards up the gut for a 6-0 first-quarter lead.

General McLane won Region 5 at 6-0 with Warren finishing third in Region 4 at 3-2. Both teams are in Class 3A with McLane seeking a top playoff seed and the Dragons hoping to be invited.

Neither team was moving the ball much otherwise in the first half, and Warren pinned McLane inside their own 1-yard line in the second quarter. Six first downs later, Wilson Spires plunged in from 1 yard out for a 99-yard drive that chewed clock and gave the Lancers a 12-0 lead.

McLane’s Kyle Cousins picked off Warren quarterback Eric Dippold on the next possession. Sheeder connected with Kyle Birkmire to the Dragons’ 21-yard line with 28 seconds left in the half. Cooper Robson’s 38-yard field goal with a half second left put the Lancers’ up 15-0.

A Tommy Nyquist 15-yard run in the second quarter was innocent enough and left him with 19 yards rushing in the first half. But he exploded in the second half.

In wildcat formation, Nyquist ran for 14 yards on the first two plays of the second half. He then ran up the middle and 54 yards for a touchdown a minute into the drive. Dippold hit Cayden Wright for the 2-point conversion.

Sam Harvey and Carson Farr stopped McLane on fourth down and Nyquist took over again — 33 yards, 4 yards, 5 yards, 4 yards, and a 27-yard touchdown reception from Dippold. He also caught the conversion for a 16-15 lead at 8:16 of the third.

“Tommy Nyquist had another huge game for us and went over 1,000 yards (rushing) for the season,” said Morelli.

Nyquist finished the second half with 152 yards and had 18 carries for 171 yards for the game.

“Sheeder was the difference-maker for them — two long runs,” added Morelli. “We did not contain him very well.”

After Nyquist’s second score, Sheeder immediately broke free to the Dragons’ 3-yard line. He finished off the drive with a fourth-down, 1-yard TD scamper.

McLane picked off Dippold three more times in the second half, and McLane built its lead on the legs and arm of Sheeder. He added scoring passes to Birkmire and Cousins after Warren turnovers. After padding its lead, the Lancers sat back, knowing Dippold had to pass to catch up.

Warren senior back Ethan Senz had two long runs on the Dragons’ last drive; possibly the last of the season.

“5-5 — our fifth season at .500 or better,” said Morelli. “Our seniors deserve a lot of credit. They set an example for the underclassmen.”

One of those was the junior Nyquist.

“Well, tonight was definitely a tough night with emotions running high,” said Nyquist. “It does suck that this might be our last time playing together, but I believe we didn’t leave anything on that field. We had a good halftime talk with everyone, which really helped us get out to an early lead in the second half. Those first two drives in the second half, our line dominated with Nick (Pennucci) and Alan (McAllister) leading the way for me on that left side. If tonight was the last game I played with my seniors, then I don’t really have much to say except it’s not going to be the same without them. I mean, Alan was great all year; you could always count on running behind him. Nick being that quarterback of the defense. If any play needed made, you know Nick would be making it. Cayden (Wright) at wideout was also amazing this year. He made some catches throughout the year that I didn’t even know were catchable. All I know is that I’m going to miss every single senior.”