With season-opening victories in the books, football teams from Solvay and Westhill each had a chance to match their 2016 win totals (two) and establish themselves in the Class B West division race. Neither would do so.
Instead, Marcellus maintained possession of the Tom Anthony Silver Cup by defeating the Bearcats 32-7, while Chittenango spoiled the Warriors’ home opener in a 21-13 game largely decided by Westhill’s special teams problems.
Having lost its opener Sept. 1 to Homer, Marcellus knew it could not afford an 0-2 start, and that urgency led to a strong all-around effort against Solvay, including a defense that shut out the Bearcats over the course of the last three quarters.
Nick Patterson got it rolling for the Mustangs with a 62-yard first-quarter touchdown pass to Matt Reich. For a moment, Solvay answered, twice converting on fourth down on its ensuing drive, including a fourth-and-eight that turned into a TD when Lamar Flood took a Mike Bliss screen pass 36 yards to the end zone.
Trailing 7-6, Marcellus mixed passes and runs to take the lead for good in the second quarter, Rob Seeley scoring on a seven-yard run. After an exchange of turnovers, the Mustangs stretched the lead to 18-7 on Patterson’s second TD pass to Reich, covering 21 yards.
It remained that way until the start of the third quarter, where a long Patterson pass set up a 10-yard scoring strike to Connor Wixson. Overall, Patterson completed 12 of 25 passes for 202 yards.
What made the passing game so effective was that the Mustangs were just as good on the ground. Seeley, overall, gained 157 yards on 16 carries, and Mike Licamele added 39 yards plus a fourth-quarter TD run of 10 yards.
Westhill, off its 28-13 season-opening win at Cortland Sept. 1, returned home, only to get into immediate trouble against Chittenango, in large part due to Francis Cerio.
The Warriors kicked off, and hit it out of bounds. Instead of taking the ball on its own 35-yard line, the Bears opted for another kickoff, and were quite glad when Cerio took that kick at his own 15 and sped 85 yards to the other end zone.
That sudden 7-0 lead did not hold up. A botched punt snap late in the first quarter set up the Warriors for a tying touchdown on Marcus Welch’s three-yard run.
Cerio went back to work, his long kick return setting up a short field that the Bears converted into six points when Cerio scored from three yards out early in the second period
That’s where it stood at halftime, the Warriors down 13-7 saved by its defense making several stops as Chittenango could not convert on two turnovers and a blocked punt.
Early in the third quarter,the Bears’ Sam Hill blocked another punt, putting the ball on the Warriors’ eight. Two plays later, Cerio’s third TD made it a 19-7 lead.
Even with that, and even with the Bears’ defense producing its second safety in as many weeks with 8:30 to play, Westhill, trailing 21-7, tried to rally as Welch replaced an injured Zavion Barrott at quarterback.
Aided by several Chittenango penalties, the Warriors cut the margin to eight on Logan McNitt’s three-yard scoring run with 3:19 left, and then Westhill recovered the onside kick, moving to the Bears’ 20 in the waning minutes.
But the Bears’ defense, a constant strength throughout the early portion of this season, made the stop it needed, Jacob Burgan breaking up a fourth-down pass in the end zone to snuff out the Warriors’ attempt to tie it.
Westhill would look to bounce back next Friday against Institute of Technology Central as Marcellus has a non-league game at Jordan-Elbridge and Solvay faces 2-0 Homer.