SLC VARSITY FOOTBALL VS. CANTON....9/5/2015
BRASHER FALLS - A fast start against St. Lawrence Central turned into a close call for the Canton Central varsity football team on Saturday.
“We didn’t know a whole lot about them and we weren’t sure what to look for. We got ahead early but St. Lawrence got a lot better very quickly,” said coach Tom Vandevere after the Bears outlasted the Larries 18-12 in the hot and humid NAC season opener for both squads and the first game of his varsity career.
“We did some nice things but we kept putting ourselves in tough situations. We made first-game mistakes and St. Lawrence was a tough team. We’re just happy to be coming away with the win,” he added.
Defense dictated to tone of the game as the Larries came out and stopped the Bears on their first possession but a perfectly placed punt from the St. Lawrence 38 by Cooper Newman came to rest inside the one-yard line and the first play from scrimmage of the season for SLC ended with sophomore running back Felix being swarmed by Canton defenders and pushed out the back of the endzone for a safety with 5:38 left in the first quarter.
The Bears took the ball over on their own 47 and quickly put together a seven-play scoring drive that ended with junior quarterback Jacob Fenlong darting into the endzone from 13 yards out. He then added a two-point run to push the lead to 10-0 with 2:07 left in the opening frame.
After being stopped on their next possession, the Larries got the ball back just three plays into the first Canton drive of the second quarter when Garrett Clark stripped the ball away from Fenlong while attempting to make a tackle and Noah Felix was there to pounce on the loose ball.
Canton quickly regain possession when Eric Writesel intercepted Isaiah Lyon on the next play but just three plays later, junior Luke Collins stepped in front of a Fenlong pass and returned the ensuing interception 86 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown with 8:19 left in the second quarter and the score stood at 10-6 at the half.
“We didn’t have a scrimmage this year because of injuries and this was the first chance our guys had to go up against someone else, so this game was really like our first scrimmage,” said coach Bruce Truax, who also made his varsity coaching debut on Saturday.
“We had quite a bit of confusion in the first half but we came out and played much better in the second and that’s what we want to build on,” he added.
The Larries opened the second half with the ball on their own 35 and methodically churned out 65 yards on 12 straight running plays, taking the lead at 12-10 when sophomore Keith Felix worked his way around the right side and into the endzone from nine yards out with 4:22 left in the third quarter.
The lead held until Ian Erlichman capped an eight-play, 62-yard scoring drive with a six-yard run with 7:55 left in the fourth quarter. Fenlong then raced in for the two-point conversion that put Canton ahead 18-12.
The Larries started their next possession on their own 45 and reeled off 11 plays, including a successful conversion on fourth and eight on the Canton 45, before being stopped on downs on the Canton 27.
Four plays later, a high snap eluded Fenlong and Keith Felix was there to fall on the loose ball at the Canton 14. But the Bears defense once again stiffen and pushed the Larries back to the 25-yardline taking the ball over on downs to seal the win.
“Our defense definitely came up big when we needed it to,” said Vandevere.
Fenlong was the leading rusher in the game with 56 yards on 11 carries while completing six of 15 passes for 80 yards. Erlichman went of 38 yards on 13 carries while Chauncey Douglas caught five passes for 58 yards.
Keith Felix was the top SLC rusher with 44 yards on 14 carries while Lyon ran the ball seven times for 26 yards and completed two of nine passes for 12 yards.
“We have a very young team and I’m very proud of the way they hung in there,” said Truax. “We were a couple of plays and a couple of tackles away from maybe pulling out a win.”
“I want to congratulate coach Vandevere on getting his first win,” he added. “I just wish it was mine.”
Read More“We didn’t know a whole lot about them and we weren’t sure what to look for. We got ahead early but St. Lawrence got a lot better very quickly,” said coach Tom Vandevere after the Bears outlasted the Larries 18-12 in the hot and humid NAC season opener for both squads and the first game of his varsity career.
“We did some nice things but we kept putting ourselves in tough situations. We made first-game mistakes and St. Lawrence was a tough team. We’re just happy to be coming away with the win,” he added.
Defense dictated to tone of the game as the Larries came out and stopped the Bears on their first possession but a perfectly placed punt from the St. Lawrence 38 by Cooper Newman came to rest inside the one-yard line and the first play from scrimmage of the season for SLC ended with sophomore running back Felix being swarmed by Canton defenders and pushed out the back of the endzone for a safety with 5:38 left in the first quarter.
The Bears took the ball over on their own 47 and quickly put together a seven-play scoring drive that ended with junior quarterback Jacob Fenlong darting into the endzone from 13 yards out. He then added a two-point run to push the lead to 10-0 with 2:07 left in the opening frame.
After being stopped on their next possession, the Larries got the ball back just three plays into the first Canton drive of the second quarter when Garrett Clark stripped the ball away from Fenlong while attempting to make a tackle and Noah Felix was there to pounce on the loose ball.
Canton quickly regain possession when Eric Writesel intercepted Isaiah Lyon on the next play but just three plays later, junior Luke Collins stepped in front of a Fenlong pass and returned the ensuing interception 86 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown with 8:19 left in the second quarter and the score stood at 10-6 at the half.
“We didn’t have a scrimmage this year because of injuries and this was the first chance our guys had to go up against someone else, so this game was really like our first scrimmage,” said coach Bruce Truax, who also made his varsity coaching debut on Saturday.
“We had quite a bit of confusion in the first half but we came out and played much better in the second and that’s what we want to build on,” he added.
The Larries opened the second half with the ball on their own 35 and methodically churned out 65 yards on 12 straight running plays, taking the lead at 12-10 when sophomore Keith Felix worked his way around the right side and into the endzone from nine yards out with 4:22 left in the third quarter.
The lead held until Ian Erlichman capped an eight-play, 62-yard scoring drive with a six-yard run with 7:55 left in the fourth quarter. Fenlong then raced in for the two-point conversion that put Canton ahead 18-12.
The Larries started their next possession on their own 45 and reeled off 11 plays, including a successful conversion on fourth and eight on the Canton 45, before being stopped on downs on the Canton 27.
Four plays later, a high snap eluded Fenlong and Keith Felix was there to fall on the loose ball at the Canton 14. But the Bears defense once again stiffen and pushed the Larries back to the 25-yardline taking the ball over on downs to seal the win.
“Our defense definitely came up big when we needed it to,” said Vandevere.
Fenlong was the leading rusher in the game with 56 yards on 11 carries while completing six of 15 passes for 80 yards. Erlichman went of 38 yards on 13 carries while Chauncey Douglas caught five passes for 58 yards.
Keith Felix was the top SLC rusher with 44 yards on 14 carries while Lyon ran the ball seven times for 26 yards and completed two of nine passes for 12 yards.
“We have a very young team and I’m very proud of the way they hung in there,” said Truax. “We were a couple of plays and a couple of tackles away from maybe pulling out a win.”
“I want to congratulate coach Vandevere on getting his first win,” he added. “I just wish it was mine.”
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