Malone, Peru, Saranac Lake, Ticonderoga Fall in State Openers

CAMBRIDGE RALLIES TO END TICONDEROGA SEASON 44-25

BURNT HILLS-BALLSTONE LAKE 63, MALONE 20
Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake’s powerful interior line and explosive offense ran roughshod over the Malone Huskies in a 63-20 win in the New York State Class A quarterfinals and forged a fourth consecutive trip to the semifinals at Dietz Stadium in Kingston, NY. However, it was the Huskies that dealt the first scoring blow when quarterback Mitchell Gallagher exploded through the interior of the usually sturdy Spartan defensive line and rocketed 38 yards to paydirt. But then Burnt Hills (10-1) burnt four consecutive paths to the end zone over the next 15 minutes of play to grab the upper hand. Daniel Porter nailed the first two scores on TD runs up the gut for 53 and 59 yards for a 14-7 lead midway through the opening quarter. Senior running back Tom Rappel, who spearheaded the offense with a game-best 211 yards on 10 carries and scored four touchdowns, put home the next score for a yard out, followed by a 70-yard touchdown rumble on the next drive. For Malone, Corey Prue slammed into the end zone on a one-yard run, followed by a 38-yard TD pass from Gallagher to Austin Dunlavey. Rappel’s 66-yard score, followed by a 28-yard scoring sprint for Eric Dillon, opened a 42-20 gap for the Spartans at the half. Porter scored a third touchdown from two yards and Darian Jehl raced for TD scores of 7 and 28 yards to close out the scoring. Malone finished its championship season at 9-2 overall.

SCHALMONT SURVIVES PERU SCARE IN QUARTERFINAL 25-20

SCHALMONT 25, PERU 20
In a battle of unbeatens, the Peru Indians staged a courageous comeback, but fell a score short to Schalmont 25-20, in the New York State Class B quarterfinal or Region II Championship at AuSable Valley. After the Sabres lost three key players including quarterback Nico Nicoletti to injuries in the second quarter, Peru had surged back from a 25-0 hole, starting midway through the third quarter. But the Indians had to overcome their own demons in the second half, after turning the ball over four times before intermission. The comeback started with quarterback Taylor Rock’s swing pass to Mike Holdridge for 42 yards and one score. The Indians capitalized on a fumble recovery and a scoring drive capped by Rock’s one-yard plunge to cut the margin to 25-12. After holding the Sabres on downs, the Indians zeroed in on the end zone a third time, converting two critical fourth downs, and completing a 19-play 84-yard drive to close within 25-20 with just 2:24 to go. And after holding Schalmont again, the Indians got their final chance with 55.6 seconds remaining. Two first downs later, Peru was in position to pull off a heroic finish. Rock pitched a solid pass to wide receiver Tyler Murphy, but Sabres’ linebacker and freshman Nick Gallo delivered a solid hit to the receiver from behind causing a fumble, covered by teammate Jean Gomez with just 29.5 seconds left to end the Indians’ rally. The Indians closed their season at 10-1, while Schalmont advances to face another unbeaten, Croton-Harmon in the State Semifinals in Kingston.

AUSABLE VALLEY STUNS O.F.A. AGAIN: 17-14 WIN IN SEMIFINALS

AUSABLE VALLEY 17, OGDENSBURG 14
Some late-game trickery, a tie-breaking field goal with under four minutes remaining and a final stop of the Blue Devils, completed another AuSable Valley comeback for a stunning 17-14 win that propelled the Patriots past Ogdensburg and into the Northern Football Conference Class C final. The Patriots – whose only win in the first six weeks of the season shocked the conference when they beat Ogdensburg 26-12 – did it again in the Class C semifinals. Each team’s defense matched up well in a nearly scoreless first half, until Josh Liebstein snagged a 10-yard touchdown pass with 4:04 remaining till intermission, then Andrew LeBeau drove home the extra point for a 7-0 Ogdensburg lead. AuSable Valley scored on its first two possessions of the second half. Quarterback Austin House called his own number for a five-yard battle to the end zone less than two minutes into the third quarter. Less than four minutes later, Kyle Prinsen took an 18-yard pass to the house to vault the Patriots into the lead. With extra points added by Connor Manning, AuSable Valley surged ahead 14-7. Midway through the fourth quarter, O.F.A. quarterback Nate Angel drove behind the offensive front line and scored from a yard out. LeBeau’s extra-point kick deadlocked the game 14-14 with 6:11 to go. AuSable Valley gambled with a little late-game trickery on a double reverse passing play from their own 26-yard line. Kodie Simpson pulled up and heaved a 69-yard pass completion to Prinsen on a fly pattern, taking the ball to the OFA 5. The Ogdensburg defense dug in and three plays and just three yards later, AuSable Valley was forced to settle for a field goal attempt – an unfamiliar circumstance for the Pats – but Manning connected again to put AuSable ahead 17-14. The Patriots stopped Ogdensburg’s next drive on 4th-and-1 from 30 yards out, then ground down the clock. A quarterback keeper for 40 yards and a first down with time running out, sealed the Patriot victory. AuSable Valley had the only two interceptions in the game. House led the Patriots (3-5) with 63 yards passing and 62 rushing, while Prinsen collected 103 yards receiving. For Ogdensburg, Angel ran for 100 yards, but was held to just three completions for 18 yards. Zach Sharpe carried 17 times for 92 yards.
 

RED STORM WINS SEMIFINAL IN 49-22 VICTORY OVER CANTON

After mishandling the kick return, Canton's Eb Foote (right) is driven away from the loose ball by Red Storm linebacker Ethan Barge (33). Barge's hit allowed teammate Dylan Gunther to scoop the ball and return it 20 yards for a go-ahead score 13-8 just 2:58 into the Class C semifinal. Saranac Lake won the game 49-22 and advanced to host the championship game vs. AuSable.  (Ferguson photo)  Game Gallery  Game Broadcast

SARANAC LAKE 49, CANTON 22
Canton rocketed off to a fast start, going just three plays and finishing the opening drive with a 48-yard reverse play to Peyton VanBibber for a touchdown as the Golden Bears took an 8-0 lead. But it was very short-lived. After Storm quarterback Matt Phalen pumped a 69-yard strike to Devin Darrah to the Canton 6, Kyle Dora scampered to the end zone to finish a two-play drive. Then on the ensuring kickoff, the bouncing football eluded Canton’s Eb Foote, popped in the air and was scooped up by Saranac Lake’s Dylan Gunther for a 20-yard score that completely shifted the momentum. The Red Storm went on to post 26 points in the first quarter and 17 more in the second half, en route to a 49-22 elimination of Canton in the Northern Football Conference Class C semifinals. To their credit, down 40-8 with two minutes left in the half, the Bears played stronger football the rest of the way and outscored Saranac Lake 14-6 in the final 26 minutes. Mike Burpoe’s 21-yard pass reception and Ethan Barge’s slant-route catch from 15 yards over the middle, capped the 26-point Red Storm attack in the first quarter. Dora and Darrah each scored one-yard touchdowns in the second quarter, before Canton QB Jay Proulx muscled in a two-yard keeper with 1:21 left in the first half. Dora booted a 28-yard field goal at the intermission horn. Foote netted 21 yards to paydirt in the third quarter, before Saranac Lake’s Ty Curry closed the scoring with a goal-line plunge to close the scoring. Matt Phelan tossed for 144 yards and three touchdowns. Kevin Morgan and Devin Darrah each reeled in three of those passes. Foote finished his senior season with 22 carries and 142 yards. Saranac Lake advances to a rematch with AuSable Valley for the Class C championship. Canton closed its season at 0-9.

TOP-SEED MALONE ZOOMS PAST ST. LAWRENCE IN SEMIS

Malone’s Harvey Smith (21) shakes off a tackle from behind by St Lawrence’s Dakota Vallnce (5) for a long run.  Top-seeded Malone quickly set the tone by scoring four first-quarter touchdowns and gave the #4-seeded Larries no foothold to score in a 44-0 rout in the Northern Football Conference Class A semifinal. Quarterback Mitch Gallagher ran for one touchdown and tossed for another in the win to propel Malone against Potsdam next week for the Class A championship.
(Scott Bartenstein photo)  Game Gallery
 The Larries' best chance: St. Lawrence’s Dakota Vallence (5) is stopped just short of a touchdown by Malone’s Taylor Halyard (26) and John Picaro (11).
 

MALONE 44, ST. LAWRENCE CENTRAL 0
Top-seeded Malone quickly set the tone by scoring four first-quarter touchdowns and gave the #4-seeded Larries barelly a foothold to score in a 44-0 rout in the Northern Football Conference Class A semifinal. Quarterback Mitch Gallagher ran for one touchdown and tossed for another in the win to propel the Huskies into the Class A championship at home against Potsdam next week. The game will be a rematch of the Week 4 contest in which the Huskies outlasted Potsdam 31-24, also at Franklin Academy. Malone invaded the end zone three times in the first seven minutes in a 21-yard Gallagher keeper, a five-yard TD run from John Picaro and a 46-yard aerial to Harvey Smith for a 21-0 lead. The Huskies tacked on just one score int eh second quarter when lineman Doug Marshall planted the ball in the end zone from the one-yard line. Taylor Hilyard hit paydirt from the 11-yard line to finish the scoring. Gallagher finished the day with 96 all-purpose yards, while Smith rolled four times for 120 rushing yards. The Larries’ best scoring chance came from Dakota Vallance, who had a 53-yard run and totaled 75 yards on the day. He was stopped just short of the goal line by Hilyard and Picaro. The Larries closed out the 2011 campaign at 1-7.


POTSDAM 49, MASSENA 27
Potsdam will defend its 2010 Northern Football Conference Class A Championship, but to do so the road goes through Malone. The Sandstoners turned away the improved Massena Red Raiders 49-27 in the Class A semifinals, behind Jesse Bradish’s 33 carries, 219 yards rushing and three touchdowns. With another 200-plus game, Bradish passed the 1,000-yard rushing plateau for the season and thrust him ahead of Malone quarterback Mitch Gallagher as the conference’s overall rushing leader. The two will go head-to-head next week in the Class A title game. In a wild first quarter, Potsdam jumped ahead 21-13 on two rushing scores of a yard and three yards by quarterback Will Coleman, who also wired receiver Jacob Moose on a 37-yard touchdown. Massena quarterback Troy Meyers’ arm was just as pumped with TD strikes of 30 yards to Trevor Convertini and 66 yards to Jordy Mitchell. But the Wild West shootout ended there. In the second quarter, Potsdam used its strength in the trenches to pound out a one-yard rushing touchdown from Bradish to gain a two-possession advantage at the break. The Sandstoners put the ball back in Bradish’s hands to open the third quarter and he did not disappoint. Potsdam scored on their first two possession of the second half on rushes of five and 33 yards to blow the game open at 42-13. By then, Bradish had rolled up 206 of the 219 yards he would collect for the game. Dominic Centofanti added a one-yard score in the fourth quarter. Ifem Ononye and Kyle Martens each scooped up a Massena fumble. For the Red Raiders, Myers closed out his senior season with a two-yard TD run and 225 all-purpose yards. Jeremy Malone added an eight-yard rushing score to close. The Raiders finished their season at 4-5 overall.

PERU RISES TO 10-0 & CLASS B TITLE BEATING BEEKMANTOWN

PERU 21, BEEKMANTOWN 14
Peru nicked away with seven points in each of the first three quarters, then had to fend off a fourth-quarter rally to beat the Beekmantown Eagles 21-14 in the Northern Football Conference Class B Championship. With the win, the Indians completed a perfect 10-0 mark. Jeff Kurz’s eight-yard run capped Peru’s first drive encompassing 61 yards at 2:39 of the opening quarter. Quarterback Taylor Rock pitched a six-yard TD pass wiht just eleven seconds left in the half that built a 14-0 lead for intermission. Rock ran a four-yard scamper to paydirt midway through the third quarter open a 21-0 advantage. Beekmantown scrambled for two scores in the final seven minutes. Quarterback Carter Frechette punched in a two-yard touchdown and then hooked up with Luke Weaver for 17 yards and a touchdown, but time was down to 53 seconds and the Eagles never got the ball back. For the Indians, Alex Cederstrom ran for 105 yards, while Kurz added 63. Kyle Remillard rushed for 52 yards and added 21 more in receiving. For Beekmantown, Frechette had 11 passes for 212 yards and 18 yards rushing. Luke Weaver was the primary recipient with eight catches for 167 yards. Peru advances to state playoffs, while Beekmantown closes the season at 7-3 overall.

TICONDEROGA BACK ON TOP, DETHRONING MORIAH 22-0

TICONDEROGA 22, MORIAH 0
After a scoreless and defensive struggle in first quarter, the Ticonderoga Sentinels nibbled a way with single touchdowns in each of the final three quarters to post a 22-0 victory over the defending champion Moriah Vikings to claim the 2011 Northern Football Conference Class D Championship.  The victory snapped a three-year reign for the Vikings who had made two appearances in the New York State Semifinals in Kingston and one trip to the State Final at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.  The Sentinels received one rushing score from each of its running backs.  Miles Austin finally broke the scoreless battle when he bolted through a seam and raced 36 yards to score with just 2:58 remaining before halftime.  Ticonderoga struck quickly in the second half with a successful 59-yard scoring drive that culminated with a seven-yard run by Jay Hebert to open up a 14-0 lead.  Ryan Borho completed the scoring early in the fourth quarter when he scrambled in from the ten-yard line.  Borho led the Viking offense with 16 carries for 110 yards, while Austin added 74 yards on 18 totes.  Moriah was led by Tom Ida's 40 yards of ground gain.  Moriah ends its season at 2-8 overall.  Ticonderoga improved to 6-4 and advances to the New York State quarterfinal and Region II Championship contest against a Section II opponent, either Rensselaer or Cambridge.