ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Sam Gotham rushed for 130 yards and three touchdowns while Brady Robinson completed 21 passes as the Victor Blue Devils (4-1) rolled to their fourth straight win with a 29-0 triumph over host Rush-Henrietta, Saturday afternoon.
Gotham capped an 83-yard drive early in the second quarter with his first touchdown on the day to give Victor, what proved to be, all the offense it needed.
“Feeling it out,” Victor head coach Geoff Mandile said of the scoreless first quarter.
By halftime, the Blue Devils had the game well in hand with a 22-0 advantage.
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM DENNIS JOYCE HERE.
“We got the ball on the edge a little bit,” Mandile added. “A couple of penalties stalled us early.”
Following a Casey Keohane interception on the first play from scrimmage on the ensuing possession, the Blue Devils needed six plays to find the end zone again.
Mandile’s squad capped the second quarter with a nine-play, 55-yard possession over three-plus minutes.
The Royal Comets threatened to score before halftime, but Braeden McConville intercepted a pass in the end zone in closing seconds of the quarter.
Braeden McConville interception in the end zone closes the first half. @VictorFootballB 22 Rush-Henrietta 0 pic.twitter.com/c50JGZbayR
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 2, 2022
“We thought it was going to be a four-quarter, down-to-the-end game. We didn’t get a lot of huge easy plays like we’ve had the past couple weeks. I’m proud of kids. We won the turnover battle.”
Rush-Henrietta (3-2) came into the game averaging 32 points per contest in its previous four outings. The Blue Devils limited the Royal Comets to 120 yards of offense including 52 yards on the ground. Mandile said his squad focused on R-H running back Evan Brock.
“He’s had a great season so far, but we did a nice job containing him. The wind helped a little bit in their throwing game. We were able to shut them down and get something going offensively.
“We talked about it all week. It wasn’t going to be easy. They’re so physical. There’s things to clean up but I’m really proud. We challenge them to win every snap, and they really did.”
R-H took the second-half kickoff at its own 36-yard line and 11 plays later had the ball at Victor’s three-yard line. A fumbled snap forced a fourth down play. Cam Ryan came off the edge and sacked Jackson Koppers. Victor took over on downs and marched 85 yards on 14 plays to set up its final touchdown of the day.
15 plays, 85 yards a smattering of penalties and Sam Gotham punches it in from one yard for his third touchdown of the game. @VictorBLDevils 29-0 pic.twitter.com/avxsghbRas
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 1, 2022
“These guys have really been able to handle everything,” Mandile said. “We coach great kids and smart kids, so it’s been a joy. This year has really been a joy with these kids.”
Gotham rushed the ball 28 times on the day. Robinson finished 21-of-23 through the air for 190 yards. Adam Ruffalo made 12 receptions for 190 yards. Liam Wheeler had one catch for an 11-yard touchdown.
Late in the fourth quarter, Noah Ruffalo suffered an apparent shoulder injury and had to be taken from the field by ambulance.
R-H’s Koppers completed 7-of-14 passes for 68 yards. Brock rushed for 57 yards on 18 carries and had one catch for 11 yards. Isaiah Santiago-Washington made two receptions for 31 yards.
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