Forks rallies past Hoosick Falls for Class C title

Mike Mangan, mmangan@pressconnects.com
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin

SYRACUSE – Chenango Forks senior Tony Silvanic said the belief all season long among he and his teammates was that, no matter the circumstances, the fourth quarter belongs to the Blue Devils.

That was certainly the case Saturday night, and because of that another state football title belongs to Forks as well.

Ryan Bronson rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning score from 43 yards out midway through the fourth quarter as the Blue Devils rallied for a 20-14 victory over Hoosick Falls in the Class C title game at the Carrier Dome.

Overcoming various miscues over the first three quarters — particularly four lost fumbles — Forks won its second straight state Class C title and fourth state title overall, the Blue Devils also capturing Class B titles in 2003-04.

"It was more a relief last year because that was the first time in a while we had won," Forks coach David Hogan said. "This time, I just knew how bad the kids wanted this from day one. They did everything we asked them to do, I'm so happy for them and our community, it was a great time."

Things weren't quite so great for much of Saturday's contest, the prospect of a particularly bitter loss a reality with the Blue Devils controlling play for much of the day only to trail its Section 2 foe 14-12 entering the final quarter.

But Bronson, whose final high school football contest was undoubtedly his finest, and the Forks defense made sure that wouldn't happen.

On a day in which he lugged the ball 31 times, Bronson's biggest carry came on a third-and-6 play from the Hoosick Fall's 43-yard line.

The 5-foot-8, 190-pound senior found a hole on the left side, broke a tackle a few yards into his run and then rumbled into the clear — getting a key block from teammate John Hardy along the way — for the touchdown that put Forks ahead with 6:55 remaining.

"I'm dead, I can't really move that well, but it was worth it." Bronson said. "Coach (Hogan) knew I could get it done, but you also have to give credit to the line, though, they gave me the holes to get into the open field and break the tackles. It's not on me, it's on them."

After Bronson's touchdown, however, Hoosick Falls (12-1) still had a pair of chances to tie or regain the lead.

The first of those chances stalled when Panthers' quarterback Garrett Wright's throw fell incomplete on third-and-8 from the Forks' 48 with a little over six minutes remaining. After Forks was unable to run out the clock, Hoosick Falls had one last chance when it took over at its 27 with about three minutes to go.

After two short completions by Wright followed by an incomplete pass, Panthers wide receiver Connor McCart was stopped for a 3-yard loss on a sweep play on fourth-and-2 on a diving stop by Silvanic with just under two minutes remaining to seal Forks' victory.

"We always talk about how (different) players need to step up," Silvanic said. "I saw (McCart) coming my way. I wanted the win, I went for it and we got it."

Things started ominously for Forks, as the Blue Devils lost fumbles on their first two possessions of the game.

The first fumble stopped a promising drive in which Forks had driven to the Hoosick Falls' 21. Forks' defense forced a quick three-and-out, but Hoosick Falls got the ball immediately when a bad exchange on a handoff from quarterback Jack Sherwood to Bronson was recovered by Evan Hand at the Forks' 23.

Seven plays later, the Panthers grabbed a 7-0 lead when Austin Pitt scored on a 1-yard dive with 3:52 to go.

Forks would respond with a methodical 15-play, 80-yard drive capped by Bronson's 4-yard touchdown run with 10:18 to go in the second quarter to draw within 7-6, Bronson preceding the touchdown with a 5-yard pickup on fourth-and-1.

Forks then took its first lead later in the quarter when Tim McDonald busted up the middle for a 24-yard touchdown run with 3:55 to go, and it seemed that perhaps the momentum had shifted in the Blue Devils' direction.

But Hoosick Falls answered right back, grabbing a 14-12 lead before halftime as Wright completed 5 of 6 passes for 65 yards on a drive that he would finish off with a 4-yard touchdown scamper with 55 seconds remaining.

Hoosick Falls was poised to add to its lead twice early in the third quarter, as Forks lost fumbles on its opening two possessions of the frame, both times on its side of the field.

The first of those drives was stifled at the Forks 24 when Wright's completion to Mark Hackett on fourth-and-7 came up a yard short of a first down.

The Panthers had an even better scoring opportunity following Forks' second fumble, moving to the Forks 2 after Wright's 28-yard pass to Alex Mendez. However, on third-and-goal from the 5, Silvanic sacked Wright for a 10-yard loss and Damon Dubois missed wide right on a 32-yard field goal attempt that kept the score 14-12.

"You can't make those mistakes against good teams," Hogan said of the fumbles. "Fortunately we made those mistakes and still prevailed.

"That says a lot about our boys, they still fought had and believed all the way to the end."

For Forks, this state title was about grinding

Blue Devils overcome some uncharacteristic mistakes to get past Hoosick Falls

Kevin Stevens, kstevens@pressconnects.com
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Though turnover bug bit hard, Chenango Forks carries on and seals the deal.
• And make that back-to-back championships for the second time in program history.
• Critical drive for a score in the fourth quarter showed what Forks is made of.

SYRACUSE – Years from now, when today's kiddie corps are the ones snapping the straps of those red helmets, what'll be remembered about the autumn of 2014 will be that state football championship.

Details of the finale will be dismissed, all that'll matter was the Week 13 victory that brought Chenango Forks' fourth state title in program history and second in as many seasons.

But then, someone will pull out the scrapbook or dust off the DVD — or whatever means of video review may be in vogue at the time. And then ... Oh, Boy!

Chenango Forks 20, Hoosick Falls 14 was, indeed, all that mattered in the end, when pad-on-pad contact had ceased at 6:07 p.m. Saturday in the Carrier Dome. But along the way?

This one was, from an offensive perspective, something other than vintage Forks football.

This, at times, begged the question, "Who are those boys in blue and what have they done with the Blue Devils?"

Forks fumbled away the football on consecutive first-quarter snaps, the second time giving Section 2's unbeaten champions less than a-quarter of a football field to cover for points — which they did, 8:08 into the contest.

Then — get this! The Devils did likewise in the third quarter. In fact, gagged up possession on their second and third offensive plays.

This, mind you, was Chenango Forks. These guys are known to play clean, efficient football. The Blue Devils don't beat themselves, they leave that to opponents, been that way since the present crew members were assigned seats in a kindergarten classroom.

And especially odd it was given whence Forks has come this postseason.

Since that substandard showing in the Section 4 semifinal, when they were fortunate to escape with a 13-6 win over Waverly, the Blue Devils had played outstanding football. Especially impressive were the state quarter and semi, won by a combined 84-14 over Utica Notre Dame and Maple Grove/Chautauqua Lake.

But Saturday under the roof, it was Forks making the mistakes, turning over the football to a 12-0, second-ranked squad of Panthers seeking a second state championship in three years.

Those boys from Rensselaer County can play quality football, as the program's six consecutive sectional championships would suggest.

Good thing that Devilish defense was up to the task, as it has been all along.

"I think we overthought the game too much, let it get in our heads a little bit. But in the end we corrected things," said Forks senior Caleb Gould.

"They were stripping the ball really well. I had one that was my bad, I rode it too long," quarterback Jack Sherwood said of the fumbles. "They were holding us up and grabbing on, we weren't securing the ball like we should have. That's good on their part but we just had to do better.

"We had to fix it and keep smashing it."

And smash the Blue Devils did when they absolutely had to smash, or else they'd have been on a southbound bus lamenting the one that got away against an opponent that was good, but not Forks' equal.

Forks took the football at its 19-yard line following a 54-yard punt by Hoosick Falls' Damon Dubois, who played a big-time role in the contest. Ten minutes, 28 seconds remained in the game and, in the varsity tenure of Ryan Bronson and Hunter Luybli, Gould, John Hardy, Sherwood, Allan-Michael Rios and the rest of those Blue Devils seniors.

Three minutes, 39 seconds later, Forks had itself a lead that would stand through the conclusion.

The Blue Devils took that lead in large part thanks to Bronson, who played remarkable football from start to finish in this one, but also thanks to the work done by an offensive front that helped create space to grind out those 10 yards per carry on an eight-play scoring drive.

Bronson cashed in his team's final touchdown of 2014 from 43 yards, hopping through an attempted shoe tackle 4 yards into the rush and sprinting across the goal line. Most Valuable Player? Can't miss for the selection committee.

"What's nice was, defense kept us in the game and our offense was still able to sustain drives and finish a few of those," said coach David Hogan. Since succeeding Kelsey Green as head man in 2008, Hogan has steered Forks to a 68-10 record. Through the last three seasons, it's been 34-3 with a couple state championships.

Ah, but even a guy who's overseen so much success and whose teams have found a way so frequently, is not immune to a few moments of angst when things go so uncharacteristically haywire.

"Among the coaches, yeah," Hogan admitted. "But the kids? That's what's so great about these kids. There's some very strong leadership there, it's positive, it's good stuff.

"Naturally you're frustrated when you do those things, when you're not used to doing them. But our kids stayed poised, still believed, fought to the end and came out with a win."

Said Hardy, who had a hand in so much high-grade work up front for Forks this season: "We're always a little bit concerned when someone scores on us first, usually that doesn't happen. That just made us want to work a little harder. All those turnovers just gave us a little more fuel for the fire."

Winning ugly?

Nah, let's go with summoning some championship mettle.

Wide range of emotions for champion Blue Devils

'Can't describe it,' Blue Devils senior Caleb Gould said of a second consecutive state title

Kevin Stevens & Mike Mangan
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin

Finally, when the grind was complete and the boys were able to exhale, several Chenango Forks players expressed the feeling of being a part of the program's fourth state championship squad.

"Amazing," said senior lineman John Hardy, following Saturday's 20-14 win over Hoosick Falls. "I mean, we stuck to our assignments, played hard and worked like we know how to do and we came out on top. It's just an amazing feeling."

"Oh, Gosh. I'm pretty sure every emotion I had was out there today," said fellow senior Caleb Gould, who like Hardy was hip-deep in so much of what Forks' defense did as the backbone of this victory.

"I can't really describe it," Gould added. "To win it twice? There's nothing like it. You work since you're a little kid to get here, when you get it ? Can't describe it."

Quarterback/DB Jack Sherwood said: "To go back-to-back and do it in the fashion that we did, against really good opponents, it says a lot."

Bronson carries the load

Ryan Bronson has been a key cog in Chenango Forks' offense much of the season.

But he took on an especially significant role in the victory over Hoosick Falls, carrying 31 times for 192 yards and two touchdowns.

"It's not hard to call plays, it's like 'Bronson, where do you want to go?'" Forks coach David Hogan said with a smile. "I wouldn't have expected him to carry it 30 times because he plays so hard on defense, but if there's anyone that can handle it, Ryan can.

"It was unbelievable, hands-down the best game I've seen him play and he's played a lot of good games. What a way to go out as a senior."

Forks defense stout again

Offensive miscues early made for some troubles, but the Blue Devils were bailed out by a defense that was again impressive.

Forks limited Hoosick Falls to 52 rushing yards on 21 carries, forcing the Panthers to turn almost exclusively to the pass as quarterback Garrett Wright threw a whopping 35 times.

"We want to make them one dimensional and it kind of worked," Hogan said. "They didn't have a lot of success running the ball. We did practice some things with trying to defend their passing game, and I think for the most part we did a pretty good job."

Big game for Borchardt

Forks' junior Trevor Borchardt put his 6-foot-5 frame to very good use Saturday.

Borchardt blocked a punt midway through the fourth quarter that swung field position the Blue Devils' way and also swatted away a pair of second-quarter Hoosick Falls passes that hindered Panthers' drives. And for good measure, he had a 27-yard reception on a third-and-long pass that kept a Forks drive going in the third quarter.

The latter featured a fantastic bit of improvisation by quarterback Sherwood.

It was a third-and-15 play late in the third quarter on which Sherwood demonstrated a fetching combination of patience, awareness and footwork.

From the Blue Devils' 15-yard line, Sherwood accepted the snap from center and headed to his right. He surveyed, waited ? waited some more ?then let go of a pass that Borchardt caught for the 27-yard gain to Forks; 42-yard line.

The Blue Devils were forced to punt four plays later, but field position gained proved mighty helpful.

Odds and ends

Hoosick Falls' Damon Dubois displayed some impressive kicking ability during Saturday's game.

The senior averaged nearly 40 yards on his five punts, including boots of 54 and 47 yards. ?

Forks had 20 first downs to Hoosick Falls' 10, and nearly doubled the Panthers' yardage as well, gaining 382 to their 206.

A classic for starters

Saturday's tripleheader in the Carrier Dome began with a wild contest in the Class D final pitting Randoplh against Chester.

Two-time defending state champion Randolph was gouged by Chester's passing game in the first half and fell behind by 27-6 at the midway point.

However, the Cardinals scored four consecutive touchdowns and grabbed a 34-27 lead with 7:55 to play in the game.

Then Chester scored .. And then Randolph ? And then Chester again to go ahead by 41-40 with one minute remaining.

Ah, but back Randolph charged and pulled out a 48-41 win when Bryce Morrison rushed 5 yards for a TD and added the two-point conversion with 26 seconds remaining. The win came despite allowing Chester 434 passing yards.

Panthers one chance short
Hoosick Falls shut out in second half despite creating four turnovers

By James Allen
Albany Times-Union

Hoosick Falls was ready and itching to engage once again in a fearsome football fight against Chenango Forks on Saturday night, but Connor McCart, Jake Bakaitis and the rest of the Panthers were finally out of opportunities.

And were there ever chances for Hoosick Falls to secure a second Class C championship in three years. The Blue Devils coughed up the football to the Panthers four times, including three inside their own 35. Hoosick Falls, however, failed to take advantage of the gifts its defense provided ­ and it proved costly.

Chenango Forks' relentless ground attack gained yardage all game and bruising senior fullback Ryan Bronson scored on a 42-yard touchdown run with 6:54 remaining and the Blue Devils held on to register a gritty 20-14 victory over Hoosick Falls in the state championship game at the Syracuse Carrier Dome.

"Our guys competed hard again. We know we're going to be outsized, which is all right. We battled, but it didn't end up like we wanted to today," Hoosick Falls coach Ron Jones said.

"Well, we deserve respect, as do they," said Bakaitis, a senior defensive tackle who finished with five solo stops and five assisted tackles. "We made it to the Dome. You can't ask for a better season than that."

Hoosick Falls (12-1), winners of a Section II-record six straight sectional titles, lost for just the second time in its past 38 outings since the start of the 2012 season. It was going to take a special team to deny the Panthers another state championship and Chenango Forks sure displayed its championship pedigree when it mattered most.

"We said (during the off-season) someone was going to have to take it from our cold dead hands to get the title. We held onto it," Bronson said.

Hoosick Falls had two chances to answer Bronson's go-ahead touchdown, but punted on the first series and was stopped on downs with 1:45 left.

"They are a great team ," McCart said of Chenango Forks. "But if we just had one more opportunity with the offense, I am sure we would have gotten the job done. We didn't get that opportunity."

The Blue Devils (12-1) certainly reveled in a second straight championship. They also know they survived an epic tussle. Chenango Forks trailed 14-12 at halftime, then survived two quick fumbles that set up Hoosick Falls for two prime scoring chances.

"We knew if we scored a touchdown, Damon (Dubois) would make the extra point. It didn't go that way," McCart lamented. "I don't know, man, it just (stinks)."

Chenango Forks outgained Hoosick Falls 375-202, including limiting the Panthers to a season-low 63 yards rushing on 20 carries. Hoosick Falls entered halftime with the lead on short touchdown runs by Austin Pitt and Wright, but overall converted just 3 of 13 third-down attempts.

"I didn't think they would be able to stop us that much. Again, they played great. It was not that we played poorly," Jones said.

"Perseverance," said Bronson, who led the Blue Devils with 192 yards rushing and two touchdowns. "I can't say enough about our guys and how much they fought. They didn't give up."

It would have been easy for the Blue Devils to falter after Brunson and Cody Lamond both had the ball stripped away in their territory, each one recovered by senior Colby Davendonis.

"We were going to hold (up Bronson) and have others guys rip at the ball. That's what we did," Davendonis said.

Dubois missed on a 48-yard field-goal attempt after Brunson's fumble. Hoosick Falls, however, had a first-and-goal situation at the 2 after senior quarterback Garrett Wright connected with senior receiver Alex Mendez for a 28-yard pass. A motion penalty, an incomplete pass and a two-yard gain by Wright set up the Panthers with third-and-goal from the Chenango Forks' 5, but Wright was sacked by Tony Silvanic for a 10-yard loss. Dubois then missed on a 32-field-goal attempt.

"We were down there in the red zone, but couldn't capitalize with our opportunities," McCart said.

"That was huge for Chenango Forks to stop us. They put a bust in our drives," Davendonis said.

"You know what? If they score, we're down two touchdowns. Those stops were bigger than my last touchdown," Bronson said. "That was a credit to our defense."

The teams went back and forth with little in the way of offense in the second half until Chenango Forks used a series of rushing plays to move across midfield. Facing a third-and-5 from the 42, Brunson broke a tackle at the 35 and dashed for the game-winning touchdown.

"We actually had someone run right by him. It was pretty well defended, but he sort of ran by him," Jones said. "(Bronson) has been breaking off big runs all year."

Even though he shared the disappointment of his players, Jones came away from Saturday's loss grateful for the chance to compete for a state championship.

"I love coaching these guys. Twelve wins is always special," Jones said. "Getting into the state final is a great accomplishment."

Hoosick Falls’ bid for state title falls just short against Chenango Forks

By James Costanzo
The Troy Record 

Syracuse >> In the week of preparation leading up to today’s state championship game, Hoosick Falls head coach Ron Jones said that, above all else, his goal was to be a teacher first and a football coach second.

His philosophy was put to the test in the Carrier Dome on Saturday, when the Panthers were dealt their toughest lesson of the season -- their first loss in over a year.

Jones was right there, however, amongst the heartbreak, to provide some much needed perspective. A teaching moment.

“Anybody that hangs their head, they’ve lost perspective. We’re champions, we played like champions tonight. We didn’t win this one but their effort, their enthusiasm, their attitude proved that,” said Jones on the Dome turf after the game.

“Hopefully this carries them forward in life and they get the idea of courage, class, confidence and composure. That’s what we’re trying to teach.”

Hoosick Falls (12-1) fell to defending state champion Chenango Forks (12-1), 20-14, in the Class C state final game in Syracuse on Saturday afternoon, its first loss of the season.

The Panthers forced four turnovers, including two in the opening minutes of the third quarter, but failed to get points after three of them, ultimately squandering their best chance at winning.

The Blue Devils ran for 326 yards against Hoosick Falls, however, and, although they were down at multiple points during the game, controlled both lines of scrimmage and eventually bullied their way to a narrow victory.

“(Taking advantage of those turnovers) would have been a big help. Maybe it would have swung them into a little bit of an uncharacteristic mode for themselves, where they had to pass a little more,” said Jones. “But, you know, it didn’t happen. They helped us out and we didn’t get any points out of it.”

The Panthers were the first score, taking a 7-0 lead after Chenango fumbled on its own 23-yard line midway through the first quarter. Senior running back Austin Pitt made them pay seven plays later with on a one-yard touchdown run at the goal line with 3:52 left in the first.

The Blue Devils scored twice to take a 12-7 lead in the middle of the second quarter, but missed a point after attempt and a two-point conversion attempt, and the Panthers closed the half with an eight-play, 69-yard touchdown drive to regain the lead.

Quarterback Garrett Wright hit Connor McCart along the right sideline for 36 yards to set up a four-yard touchdown by Wright with 55 seconds left.

But Chenango, the defending Class C state champions, carried its experience and resiliency into the second half. Even after they fumbled the ball away two more times in the third quarter, the Blue Devils managed to muster a series of impressive defensive stands and one more long run.

They scored the go-ahead touchdown, a 42-yard run by championship game MVP Ryan Bronson, with 7:37 to go in the fourth quarter.

“I think our experience might have a lot to do with it. We have a lot of kids that have been here before,” said Blue Devils head coach Dave Hogan. “We pride ourselves on our defense, too. Our defense rose to the occasion when they had to. We hung in there and kept believing, we have a lot of good seniors that our leaders.”

The Blue Devils defense took the Panthers off their game early in the contest, shutting down their dynamic rushing attack of Pitt and Colby Davendonis and forcing them to pass.

Wright was up to the task, going 16-for-34 with 152 yards passing, but Pitt and Davendonis could only muster 36 yards on 13 carries -- not a recipe for success.

“They just clogged up the holes, we really didn’t have much to work with. We had to go to our passing game and unfortunately they came out on top,” said Davendonis after the game.

“We played against some pretty tough backs this year. For the most part, our defense has been pretty tough stopping the run,” said Hogan, who was on the sideline speaking to reporters and relishing the moment long after the game was over.

“It doesn’t get old. It’s such a great, such a great, feeling,” he added. “It was hard fought, against an excellent program. We knew that. We talked about how tough it was going to be and it was.”

Despite the tears and the knowledge that their impressive season was now over, a number of Panthers were able to share Jones’ perspective after the game.

“I feel a little heartbroken. I just wanted to come out on top for one last time, with my brothers. Unfortunately we weren’t able to do that,” said Davendonis. “I couldn’t be more proud of my team, getting here is a great accomplishment. Even though we didn’t come out on top it was still an amazing, amazing thing to do.”

Both Davendonis and senior Mark Hackett walked off the field, their second state title game in their four years at Hoosick Falls, with a message to their younger teammates.

“Hit hard, get in the weight room and keep the streak alive,” said Davendonis, speaking of the Panthers 59-game Section II winning streak and their record six consecutive Class C Super Bowls.

“Cherish every moment, man,” added Hackett. “It goes by so quick.”

Jones praised his team one final time before heading into the locker room while offering up a closing thought to his returning players.

“We had a great year. They had a great year. They fought. There’s nothing to be disappointed about, those guys are the defending state champs. They played great. They had to play great to beat us and that’s what we said going into the game,” he said, adding, simply, “Let’s come back and do it again.”

Hoosick Falls downed in Class C state title game

Panthers unable to capitalize on Chenango Forks turnovers in championship heartbreaker

Adam Samrov
Bennington Banner

SYRACUSE, N.Y. >> All season long, the Hoosick Falls football team took advantage of other teams' mistakes — a formula that had the Panthers at 12-0 heading into Saturday's Class C state championship against Section IV's Chenango Forks.

Against the Blue Devils, Hoosick Falls recovered four fumbles but could only score on one of them as the Panthers fell 20-14 in the title game.

"We got them to turn the ball over, but they stopped the run and we couldn't capitalize," said junior wide receiver Connor McCart. "We've run the ball great this season and they keyed on that, so we went to passing. We had a couple big passing plays, but they capitalized on good field position."

The game-winning drive for Chenango Forks came early in the fourth quarter. Down by two and starting from its 19, Forks only took five plays to reach midfield, then Ryan Bronson, who ran for 192 yards and a touchdown, broke a pair of tackles and went 43 yards to paydirt. L.J. Watson's added the two-pointer.

"We had openings all game long, the line was doing a great job getting them," said Bronson, who led the Blue Devils (12-1) to its second straight Class C title and fourth in program history. "It was holding on to the football, we were pounding the ball [and] we knew they would break eventually."

Overall, Forks outran Hoosick Falls, 326-63, but the game remained close because of the uncharacteristic mistakes.

"It was a mixture of exchanges and fumbles, but our defense battled through that and showed how tough we really are," Bronson said. "It was a championship drive by a championship team, a full team effort."

After the score, Hoosick punted on its next series, but the Panther defense came up big when they stopped Bronson short on a 4th-and-3 play to get the ball back.

But the Forks defense was equally up to the task and on 4th-and-2 with the season hanging in the balance, linebacker Tony Silvanic sniffed out a jet sweep and took down Connor McCart in the backfield to seal Chenango Forks' second straight title.

Early on, Chenango Forks ran the ball effectively, but put the ball on the ground twice. On the first, Dylan Studer fumbled, with Mark Hackett recovering, then on the first play of the next series at its own 23, quarterback Jack Sherwood fumbled on an exchange to give the Panthers superb field position.

After the second fumble, Hoosick capitalized to take the early lead. Quarterback Garrett Wright hit passes of 12 yards to Remington Hickey and 11 to McCart to make it first-and-goal at the 1. On the second play, Austin Pitt punched in from a yard out to take the lead.

Wright was 16-of-34 for 152 yards.

Forks came back with a vintage drive on the next possession, going 80 yards on 15 plays between the first and second quarter. They converted a third-and-5 and a fourth-and-1 on the drive and Ryan Bronson finished it off with a 4-yard touchdown blast to make it 7-6. Tony Silvanic missed the extra point when Evan Hand tipped the ball to keep the Panthers in the lead.

"It was a big boost to score first, but we knew that a team with championship pedigree wouldn't fold just because we were ahead," said Hoosick Falls coach Ron Jones. "To get the extra point [on our touchdown] and stop there's was big. You never know if it [will make] a difference."

Forks took the lead with 3:55 left in the first half, as the Blue Devils drove 64 yards in eight plays, the final play a 24-yard touchdown run from reserve Tim McDonald to make it 12-7. The two-point try was intercepted by Alex Mendez to keep it a one-possession game.

Special teams made the difference in the first half. Hoosick Falls made both of its extra points with Damon Dubois kicks, while Forks missed its first, then failed to convert on a two-pointer after McDonald's score with 4 minutes left in the first half.

The Panthers finally got going offensively on its last drive of the first half behind the arm of Wright. After a handful of short passes got the Panthers to its 48, Wright aired it out and found McCart for 36 yards and a first down.

McCart caught four passes for 53 yards in the game.

After running for two yards, Wright hit Colby Davendonis for a 10-yard screen pass, setting up Hoosick at the 4. On the next play, Wright plowed toward the end zone, stretching over the plane to give Hoosick Falls the lead, 14-12, with 55 seconds left in the half.

"We had a difficult time running the ball, we knew at some point someone would take the run game away," Jones said. "I didn't think they'd stop it that much. But I was confident in the passing game."

Forks dominated the first half on the stat sheet, doubling up Hoosick on time of possession, but the Panthers had the lead on the scoreboard.

The Panthers had two major chances to up its lead, when Forks fumbled on the first two possessions of the second half, each in Blue Devil territory. Davendonis recovered both, the first at Forks' 33. But on fourth-and-7 from the 30, Wright found Hackett, but only for six and Hoosick turned the ball over on downs.

Then, on the first play of the next series, Cody Lamond got the ball stripped, giving Hoosick yet another chance to extend the lead. On third-and-3 from the 30, Wright went left and threw back right, finding Mendez for 28 to the two-yard line.

A false start knocked Hoosick back to the seven, and on third-and-goal from the 5, Silvanic sacked Wright on a linebacker blitz, forcing the Panthers into a 32-yard field goal try that Dubois missed right, keeping it 14-12 with seven minutes left in the third.

"[Those two stops] spoke for themselves, they were huge," Bronson said. "If you don't get the stops, you have to air it out more, so it was just huge."

On the next offensive series, the Panthers got its best run of the afternoon, a 22-yard jaunt from Davendonis, and after a 15-yard horse collar foul, Hoosick was in business at the Forks' 34. The Blue Devil defense stiffened, so on fourth down from the 32, Jones sent out Dubois for a 48-yard field goal attempt that was short.

That set up the final 12 minutes and Forks' winning drive.

"My hat's off to the competitive spirit of my guys," Jones said. "This is a very good team, excellent up front, and my guys kept going at them."

Jones said he hopes the Carrier Dome experience will pay dividends down the road for some of the younger players.

"They have a lot to be proud of. These are great guys and I'm very proud of them. The seniors will move on to the next phase and I'm excited to see what next year brings," Jones said.