By JOHN LIKANJE
Victor scored six of its seven touchdowns on the ground and burst out to a commanding 42-0 advantage en route to a 49-6 victory at Rush-Henrietta, Saturday afternoon.
“We haven’t had an easy one all year and wasn’t expecting this one to be,” Victor head coach Geoffrey Mandile said after the game. “We had two weeks to practice for this one with the forfeit we got last week. We challenged our kids to come out with a lot of emotion and they did.”
Sam Gotham led with a pair of rushing touchdowns. The junior running back accounted for the lone score of the opening period with a 25-yard gallop to the house a minute and a half into the contest. Then Gotham found paydirt from seven yards out near the end of the second quarter in which the Blue Devils exploded for 21 points. The 5-foot-11 junior commanded the ground game with 81 rushing yards on 12 carries.
The Blue Devils’ other four scrimmage scores came courtesy of Terreque Davis, Lukas Holbrook, Brady Robinson and Adam Ruffalo. Davis produced the team’s longest scoring run with a 36-yard rush at the start of the third quarter. Ruffalo scored from 21 yards out. Holbrook broke the plane with a seven-yard score. Then Robinson capped off the game’s scoring with a three-yard quarterback keeper.
.@SecVFootball Regular Season Week 8 – @VictorFootballB vs. @RushAthletics: Brady Robinson 3-yard TD run. PAT good. 4:57 4Q: Victor 49 Rush-Henrietta 6. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/AJnDpDojB2
— John Mitchell Likanje Junior (@jml5798) October 23, 2021
Davis led the quartet with four carries and 40 rushing yards. Ruffalo gained 25 yards on his two handoffs. Holbrook’s and Robinson’s touchdowns were their only carries.
Despite the Blue Devils inflicting the majority of their damage from the trenches, Matthew Brady led the offense with 120 passing yards on 7-of-9 from the pocket and a 26-yard touchdown to Ryan Militello right after halftime.
The Blue Devils’ defense locked in and accumulated 33 tackles, including four resulting in lost yardage and one sack, and three interceptions. Holbrook led with four and a half tackles. Junior defensive end Quin Babcock followed up with three and a half, including two for loss. Senior cornerback Israel Kamara had two tackles, including one for negative yardage. Sean Bonhag, Alan Miller and Owen Stone all reeled in an interception. Sam Ricci recovered a fumble.
“I think the turnover difference was pretty big,” Mandile said when commenting on his biggest takeaway from his team’s victory.
.@SecVFootball Regular Season Week 8 – @VictorFootballB vs. @RushAthletics: Sean Bonhag interception to end the game. Final score: Victor 49 Rush-Henrietta 6. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/KVNfQHllzv
— John Mitchell Likanje Junior (@jml5798) October 23, 2021
For Rush-Henrietta, junior quarterback Evan Brock took off for a 34-yard touchdown near the end of the third quarter.
With the win, Victor clinches the No. 5 seed in Class AA and will face No. 4 seed Hilton in the sectional quarterfinals next Friday. The Blue Devils defeated the Cadets, 26-0, in Week Two on September 10th.
“We played them real early and they’ve improved so much,” Mandile said when evaluating the upcoming matchup. “They played outstanding last night. We know them well. They know us well. It’s going to be a battle. Two good football teams. They’re very well-coached. I have a ton of respect for Rich (Hilton head coach Richard Lipani) and his staff. Anyone could beat anyone. We’re going to go out there and give it our best shot.”
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