When the West Genesee football team traveled to Horseheads on Sept. 7 and ended up on the wrong end of a 35-14 defeat, there was real concern that this brand-new lineup would never get close to the success the Wildcats enjoyed a year ago, when it reached the Section III Class AA title game.
Things felt a lot better, though, after the Wildcats finished off a 28-12 victory over the visiting Corcoran Cougars in Friday night’s home opener at Mike Messere Field.
Even with a short week of preparation and an opponent that had won its season opener (over Binghamton), WG made big plays early and then saw its defense take over late.
An active first quarter saw both teams score twice. The Wildcats got its points from a pair of Exavier Brumfield touchdown runs, covering 10 and 24 yards, Riley Small adding the extra point on each occasion.
Corcoran found the end zone through the passing game, T.J. Harness delivering scoring strikes of 20 yards to Dewayne Young and 58 yards to Kjair Gareau. Each time, though, the Cougars missed the conversion.
So it was 14-12, and from there the Wildcats kept Corcoran off the board, its defense adjusting well and making several key stops even after WG build its margin.
This allowed the Wildcats to weather a drought of its own that lasted deep into the second half. Not until a scoring drive capped by Braeden McNeil’s one-yard TD plunge late in the third quarter did WG expand upon its margin.
Brumfield finished it with a 53-yard fourth-quarter dash to the end zone. For the night, he carried the ball 29 times for 177 yards, an even more valuable asset since the Wildcats passing game was mostly kept in check amid windy conditions.
Now WG heads into Class AA-2 division play, where next Friday at 7 p.m. it meets Baldwinsville at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium. The Bees are 0-2, having dropped a Sept. 7 overtime decision to Jamestown in the Kickoff Classic before falling 44-14 to the same Horseheads team that had handled the Wildcats the week before.
