Through two parts of its season-opening three-game homestand, all is going well for the Chittenango football team.
And just like it did the week before against Skaneateles, the Bears used a big play to go in front for good, only in this instance it came much earlier in the course of events during Friday night’s 38-6 victory over Syracuse’s Institute of Technology Central.
Those two wins already match Chittenango’s entire 2014 win total, and much more could be in store, especially since it has the ability to hurt the opposition anywhere, at any time.
Against ITC, who moved up from Class C this fall, the Bears got on the board with Justin Gondeck’s six-yard touchdown run, only to have the Eagles answer with a scoring drive that ended with Lucky Pettiford scoring from nine yards out.
So the game was tied, 6-6, late in the first quarter – but only for a matter of seconds.
Duncan Smith received ITC’s ensuing kickoff at his own 20-yard line. Picking up blocks from Chittenango’s special teams members, Smith ran it back 80 yards for the go-ahead score.
That single play turned the game permanently int he Bears’ favor, and it patiently pulled away. Gondeck connected with Hunter Hendrix on a seven-yard TD pass, making it 20-6 at halftime. For the night, Gondeck completed six of 12 passes for 111 yards.
While Chittenango’s defense continually shut down whatever the Eagles tried to establish, it tacked on three more touchdowns in the second half. Connor Fredericks scored from 16 yards out, Tony Cutrie found the end zone on a seven-yard run and Cooper Young returned an interception 42 yards for the game’s final points.
In order to get to 3-0, the Bears will need to defeat Marcellus next Friday night at 7 p.m. The Mustangs are 1-1, having beaten Solvay in its opener before a wild 38-35 defeat to the same Skaneateles side Chittenango got past 26-21 to get things started.
