Tyson Totten scored five times on the ground and racked up 400 rushing yards, leading Pembroke to a 36-0 win over Moravia (IV) in the NYSPHSAA 8-Man championship on Friday at Cicero-North Syracuse High School.
The Dragons jumped out to an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter and never looked back. With Totten’s five scores, he finished the 2023 season with 70 rushing touchdowns and amassed over 4,000 yards on the ground.
Pembroke finished 13-0 for the first time in program history and finished the postseason outscoring their opponents 328-134, including a 107-64 win over Frankfurt-Schuyler (III) in the state semifinals.
“It’s rewarding, exciting and special,” head coach Brandon Ricci said. “It doesn’t happen often and it’s really awesome to see the community come out and rally around the team.”
Pembroke totaled 500 yards of offense and did not punt once. Ben Steinberg, Jayden Mast, Madden Perry, JJ Gabbey, Octavius Martin and Hayden Williams provided the blocking. Caleb Felski made 16 tackles on defense and also had an interception. Ricci felt the fast start was important for his squad.
“I never would’ve expected a zero for them with their excellent offense. I was very pleased to be up 14-0.”
The win also extends Pembroke’s win streak to 24 straight, dating back to the 2022 campaign. At least a two-possession margin has decided each win during the streak.
“Last year’s title run was new and exciting,” Ricci said. “This year to go from hunter to hunted was much more challenging. Much more focus on the mental aspects.”
Felski racked up 102 rushing yards and converted three two-point conversions to round out the Pembroke offense. Totten, Sean Pustulka, Mast, Jayden Bridge, Octavius Martin, Hayden Williams and Vijay Dhanda each made at least five tackles. Bridge also blocked a punt and recorded a sack.
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