For Gateway, it was another bus ride home from Heinz Field with an unfulfilled feeling. For Woodland Hills, it was a night when its coach fulfilled his sixth sense for this championship stuff.

Woodland Hills knocked off Gateway, 10-0, in the WPIAL Class AAAA championship last night in the final of four championship games at Heinz Field.

Woodland Hills used an opportunistic offense in the first half to score 10 points and a tremendous defensive effort the entire game, shutting out a Gateway team that had been averaging 45 points overall and 42 in the postseason.

It was the third year in a row Gateway lost in the title game, the fourth time in the past six seasons and the second consecutive year the Gators took an undefeated record into the championship. Every time, the Gators went back to Monroeville with the runner-up trophy.

The win put Woodland Hills coach George Novak into some select company. Legendary company, to be precise. It was Novak's sixth WPIAL championship -- five at Woodland Hills and one at Steel Valley.

He is only the third coach in the history of the WPIAL to win six titles. Art Walker won five at Mt. Lebanon and one at Shady Side Academy. Legendary Phil Bridenbaugh won seven at New Castle from 1924-49. He won six titles outright and one co-championship.

"I've been blessed. I've had great staffs and great players," Novak said. "I'm honored, but I'm a humble guy. I still learn every game."

This game had a strange twist to it. Woodland Hills' defensive coordinator Bill Morton spent the game in the hospital. Three days ago, Morton was light-headed and went to the hospital, where blood clots were discovered in his lungs. Doctors would not permit him to leave -- so Morton watched the game on television and actually was calling in defensive signals to Woodland Hills' coaches booth by cell phone.

"It's an amazing story, isn't it?" Novak said. "Give [Morton] credit because he had a great scheme and defense won this game."

It was an impressive overall effort for Woodland Hills (12-1), considering the Wolverines lost a handful of starters to injuries in the game. Defensive end Richard Gray, defensive back-running back Lafayette Pitts and fullback Cameron Thompkins did not make it to the finish. Leading rusher Dom Timbers also missed much of the game (back).

"They were injured coming into this game, but they wanted to play," Novak said. "We were down to our fourth tailback, but they just kept gutting it out. They never gave up. We got that lead, and the defense played great the whole game."

It was the first time Gateway had been shut out since 2006, when the Gators were blanked by, coincidentally, Woodland Hills.

This Woodland Hills team limited Gateway to 148 total yards.

The Gators (12-1) could not run the ball, and the Wolverines pressured standout Gateway quarterback Rob Kalkstein most of the night.

"We got more pressure on him than most teams," said Novak, whose team had six sacks.

Kalkstein, the third-leading passer in WPIAL history with more than 6,000 yards, finished 9 of 30 for 118 yards and threw two interceptions.

Gateway coach Terry Smith did not make himself available to the media after the game.

Gateway could never come up with a big play. It turned the ball over on downs twice inside its 30 and had the ball in Woodland Hills territory nearly the entire second half, but could not score.

Gateway lost two fumbles in the first half. Maybe it was a sign of things to come on the opening kickoff when Gateway could not handle a squib kick, and Woodland Hills' Mike Caprera recovered at the Gators' 37. It set up Sam Scifo's 24-yard field goal, his 10th of the year.

A 40-yard pass from John Yezovich to Thompkins set up the Woodland Hills touchdown, which came on a fourth-and-4 when Jayron Polk ran a reverse around left end for 14 yards. Scifo's extra-point kick gave Woodland Hills a 10-0 lead with 9:21 left in the first half.

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