BALTIMORE —
Ben Roethlisberger couldn’t have done it any better.
Third-string quarterback Charlie Batch directed a 61-yard drive in the closing minutes, and Shaun Suisham kicked a 42-yard field goal as time expired to give the Pittsburgh Steelers a 23-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
Playing without the injured Roethlisberger for a third straight week, the Steelers turned to the 37-year-old Batch for the second game in a row. He went 25 for 36 for 276 yards, threw a touchdown and rallied the Steelers past their arch rivals in the AFC North.
Pittsburgh trailed 13-3 in the first half and 20-13 in the fourth quarter before coming back. Batch missed a wide open Mike Wallace in the end zone near the end of the first half, but the veteran quarterback more than made up for it after halftime.
Pittsburgh (7-5) snapped a two-game losing streak and kept alive its slim hopes of overtaking Baltimore (9-3) in the division. The teams have split their games this season, with each team winning by three points.
The Ravens could have clinched a playoff berth with a victory. Instead, Baltimore had its 15-game home winning streak snapped and also lost for the first time in 13 games against division foes.
Batch outplayed Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco, who went 16 for 34 for 188 yards and fueled Pittsburgh’s comeback by losing a fumble in the fourth quarter.
One week after committing eight turnovers in a loss to Cleveland, the Steelers gave the ball away three times against Baltimore. The Ravens converted two of the takeaways into touchdowns, and the third — a leaping interception by Ed Reed in the end zone — kept a 20-13 lead intact with 10:59 left.
Pittsburgh got the ball back, however, when James Harrison forced a fumble by Flacco at the 27. Batch threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Heath Miller to tie it with 7:24 to go.
The next time Pittsburgh got the ball back, Batch showed his poise with a beat-the-clock march. The key play in the final drive was a 15-yard completion to Wallace on a third-and-7.
After generating only 93 yards in offense in the first half, the Steelers opened the third quarter with a 78-yard touchdown drive to pull even at 13.
Batch threw a 43-yard pass to Miller before Jonathan Dwyer scored on a 16-yard run.
Later in the quarter, Batch connected with Emmanuel Sanders near midfield with no defender in sight. But Sanders inexplicably lost his grip on the football after taking two steps, and the Ravens recovered on the Baltimore 37.
The Ravens turned the miscue into a 20-13 lead. Flacco completed a 19-yard pass to Dennis Pitta before Ray Rice took a handoff, veered right, then broke left and outside for a 34-yard score.
The bickering between these two familiar foes began with the opening kickoff, when several players had to be separated after Baltimore’s Jacoby Jones downed the ball for a touchback.
Flacco then threw six straight passes before the Ravens had to punt, and Batch moved the Steelers 48 yards in 11 plays to set up a 46-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.
Baltimore tied it early in the second quarter when rookie Justin Tucker capped a 40-yard drive with a 45-yard field goal. Then, after Pittsburgh went three-and-out, a pass interference call against Cortez Allen accounted for 30 yards in a 54-yard drive that produced Tucker’s second field goal.
Just when it appeared the Ravens were taking control, Flacco threw an up-for-grabs floater that was intercepted by Ryan Clark near midfield. Pittsburgh gave it right back, though, when wide receiver Antonio Brown took a handoff and ran left before throwing a pass across the field that was picked off by Corey Graham.
Baltimore didn’t waste the gift. Flacco connected twice with Anquan Boldin during a four-play, 69-yard drive, including a 31-yard touchdown throw just beyond Allen’s reach to make it 13-3.
Sports
Steelers stun Ravens with late field goal
Third-string QB guides Pittsburgh to 23-20 victory
- Sports
-
-
Oregon St. knocks Indiana out of CWS
Matt Boyd pitched a four-hitter and struck out 11 and Oregon State made a fourth-inning sacrifice fly stand for a 1-0 victory over Indiana in the College World Series on Wednesday night.
-
Blanco’s 2-run triple in 7th helps Giants win, 4-2
Gregor Blanco had a pinch hit, two-run triple in the seventh inning, leading the San Francisco Giants to a 4-2 victory over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday.
-
Gallagher making a name for himself in racing world
Thornville, Ohio, native Patrick Gallagher has been putting the pedal to the metal since he was a child.
-
HERTZEL COLUMN- Bailey, Austin turning heads in St. Louis
This will not surprise you if you’ve been in this neck of the woods the past three years, but it sure got those good folks in St. Louis fired up.
-
Pirates end Latos’ streak, beat Reds, 4-0
Pedro Alvarez singled home a pair of runs in the first inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates ended Mat Latos’ streak of 21 regular-season starts without a loss, beating the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 on Tuesday night.
-
FURFARI COLUMN- Are Clements and Luck fair to media and jobs?
This column is going to be strictly a “think piece” — mine! I feel it’s one none of the younger columnists could or would undertake.
-
‘Heisman curse’ may come to an end
When you hear the term “Heisman Trophy,” you think of Desmond Howard striking the pose in the end zone against Ohio State in the 1991 football season. You think of Tim Tebow’s speech following the loss to Ole Miss. You think of the hail mary from Doug Flutie to Gerard Phelan that gave Boston College the win over the Miami Hurricanes.
-
Pirates give up 4 solo homers, lose to Reds, 4-1
A hanging a slider, a fastball that strayed right down the middle. With no margin for error, left-hander Francisco Liriano made two of them that went a long way and decided a close game.
-
Local lineman commits to WVU
Morgantown High offensive lineman Amanii Brown has committed to West Virginia’s 2014 recruiting class.
Brown grew up in Clarksburg before moving to Morgantown during his sophomore year of high school. -
EFHS’s Ronnie Mills battles back from season-ending shoulder injury
All Ronnie Mills felt was numb.
The quarterback of East Fairmont’s football team, Mills was playing at Preston County on a freezing Friday night last season. - More Sports Headlines
-
Oregon St. knocks Indiana out of CWS



