They had reached halftime in Friday night’s game at Mexico, and the Cazenovia football team again found itself in front – but was also furious.
Instead of the efficient, relentless and versatile machine fans were used to seeing, the state Class B no. 3-ranked Lakers were shaky, prone to self-destructive errors and only led the Tigers by a touchdown.
This simply wouldn’t do, and Tom Neidl, along with his fellow Laker coaches, let his players know about their unhappiness. Suffice to say, the players listened.
What resulted, in the second half, was more like Cazenovia, featuring 27 unanswered points and a lights-out defense that reclaimed control, leading to the Lakers beating Mexico 41-7 to move to 5-0 on the season.
That, combined with Oneida’s 37-20 win over South Jefferson (it was 26-0 through three quarters before the Indians eased up late), left those two sides a win away from an Oct. 17 showdown for Class B East supremacy.
First, though, there was the matter of Mexico, who had sprinted to a 3-1 start and was treating this like its biggest home game in years. And that emotion carried the Tigers for a while.
Cazenovia did move in front 7-0 in the first quarter, a steady drive leading to T.J. Connellan scoring on a three-yard run. But that didn’t faze Mexico, who put together its own march that cumlinated with Collin Haynes going nine yards for the touchdown.
That tied it, 7-7, early in the second period, so the Lakers promptly went back to its ground game, with big runs from Dan Phillips and Jake Wozniak leading to the Tigers’ 13, from where Connellan went in for his second TD of the night.
Just before halftime, Keaton Ackermann missed a 34-yard field-goal attempt. That seemed to symbolize a half where Cazenovia didn’t take full advantage of its opportunities to seize control, and so it only had a 14-7 advantage at the break, which didn’t sit well.
Challenged to play better, the Lakers did so right away, taking the ball at the start of the third quarter and marching down the field to the Tigers’ nine, where Ackermann threw his first TD pass of the night, finding Jake Shaffner and then adding the extra point to make it 21-7.
When Cazenovia got the ball back, it began to wear Mexico’s defenses down. Big blocks set Wozniak free on a 42-yard scoring run that extended the lead to 28-7, and before the period ended, another Laker drive led to another TD pass from Ackermann to Shaffner, covering 12 yards.
Just to be sure, Phillips tacked on a four-yard scoring run in the final period, part of a night where he gained 130 yards on 10 carries, just behind Ackermann’s total of 142 yards on 13 carries. He also completed six of 10 passes for 81 yards.
Aside from that early Mexico scoring drive, the defense made all the stops it needed, from Sam Langan and Hayden Polhamus recording 10 tackles apiece to Alex Devine making an interception.
Now the Lakers simply have to avoid looking ahead to its trip to Oneida and take care of next Saturday’s Senior Day game against Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, which kicks off at 2:30 at Buckley-Volo Field.
Chittenango, playing on the same night as Cazenovia, fell to 1-4 on the season in its only non-league game of the season, a 49-20 defeat to Norwich, of the Section IV ranks.
Mike Addison scored two of the Bears’ three touchdowns, on runs of 10 and five yards, with Justin Gondeck adding a 36-yard scoring pass to Matt Milliman. Chittenango hosts 5-0 Westhill on Friday – a game Cazenovia could closely scout, knowing the Warriors are a possible playoff foe.
