‘Dogs Paw Their Way to Finals!
Delhi put 3 very
nice scoring drives together, and the defense came through with some key stops
as the Bulldogs rose victorious in the Section IV Class D Semifinal, winning
20-13 over Candor.
Walton was a 16-6 winner
over Tioga in the other semifinal, and the Bulldogs and Warriors will meet once
more for the sectional title, this time at Union Endicott next Saturday at 4
pm. This marks the 5th time since 1999 that Walton and Delhi have
played for the title.
Delhi’s drives
covered 80, 78, and 67 yards, and used 13, 14, and 12 plays. Each drive took
more than 6 minutes off the clock, with the total of the 3 taking up nearly
half the game. Delhi converted 18 first downs on the day (to 9 for Candor),
including some on the scoring drives that were by a razor thin margin.
Following a long
pass to open the game, Delhi’s defense settled in and forced a Candor punt, and
Delhi took over at the 20. A key pass from Anthony Salerno to Jake Sackett gave the Bulldogs one 1st down. Fullback
Jack Fletcher, much as he did throughout the game, did a tremendous job on
several carries, turning seeming 0-1 yard gains into 4-6 yards. This included a
run down near the goal line where he drove several Candor defenders with him
down to the 1 yard line. Fletcher would score on the next play. The 2 point
pass was no good, but Delhi had looked good on the drive to give the 6-0 lead.
Candor would find
some ways to move the ball, however. Delhi stopped the Indians on several
plays, but a 36 yard pass from Harry Hartmann to Jordan Sears brought Candor to
the Delhi 20, and a couple plays later the 2 would hook up again, this time for
a 18 yard scoring strike following some missed
tackles. The PAT kick was good, and Delhi was facing a 7-6 deficit late in the
1st quarter.
Following a punt by
each team, Delhi got the ball at their 22 to start the 2nd scoring
drive. Fletcher and Tom Telian both produced some
good running as the ‘Dogs came back down the field once more. Fletcher
appropriately finished this drive as well, with a great surge into the end zone
after bouncing off a few Candor defenders. Colin Ellis did an admirable job in
fighting through the Candor defense to come up with 2 more points, giving Delhi
a 14-7 lead late in the 2nd quarter.
Candor came out
firing, and was able to threaten somewhat as they moved the ball well into
Delhi territory, but Delhi stiffened just enough, and the lead held for
halftime.
While the Bulldogs
had the reputation this season of coming out of the locker room strongly, it
didn’t happen that way this time. The Bulldogs did a 3 and out, and disaster
nearly struck from there. Telian launched a beauty of
a punt, and Candor’s Cody Harris caught the ball on a run toward his own end
zone. Harris got turned back around, and after breaking a few tackles, took off
on an apparent 89 yard TD return. A flag brought everyone back to the other end
of the field, however, as a block in the back penalty gave Candor the ball on
their own 6. It started to look like Delhi might even have a shot at a safety,
as the defense brought the Indians backward on a couple plays. A long run gave
Candor some breathing room, however, and the Indians were able to start moving
the ball again, this time with a rejuvenated running game. A couple first downs later, and Candor faced
a 4th and 1 from Delhi’s 33 yard line. The Delhi defense
stepped up to the task, stuffing the inside run for no gain.
Delhi’s clawing
offense was at work once again. Yet more great running
by Fletcher, Telian, and Ellis was coupled with a
timely 1st down completion to Kevin O’Connell. Salerno provided a
gritty carry on a 4th and long, with the defender providing a great
effort as well as both fought over the final millimeters needed for the 1st
down. Salerno ended up getting the best of it, however, as the nose of the
football was right at the marker, the smallest possible margin. The 3rd
quarter expired, and on the 1st play of the 4th quarter,
Ellis broke a few tackles near the line of scrimmage and sped the rest of the
way to the end zone for a 14 yard TD. The 2 point pass was off the mark, but
Delhi was feeling a bit more comfortable with a 20-7 lead.
Candor fought back
admirably, however. The Indians came right back down the field, including a key
4th down run by QB Hartmann. Hartmann would finish it as well, this
time with a 2 yard run. Just 2 ½ minutes after Delhi’s score, Candor had
answered. The key PAT kick was missed, and Delhi now held a 20-13 lead with
9:17 to play.
The Indians would
get another golden opportunity. Following a great effort to work for a 1st
down, Candor popped the ball loose from Ellis, and recovered on the Delhi 31.
The defense stepped up at this very key point, however, and held Candor on 4
plays, and got the ball back once again. O’Connell had a very key pass
deflection on the series to take away a potential TD from a seemingly open
Candor receiver.
This time the Delhi
offense came very close to completely putting the game away. More
great running by the 3 backs took the ball down the field once more, and
burned some more crucial time off the clock. The Bulldogs came all the way down
to Candor’s 5 yard line, but could not convert a 4th and 1, and
Candor took over.
With time winding
down, Candor went to the air. Following another great defensive play by O’Connell,
the defensive back was then able to step in front of a 3rd down
bomb, catching the ball over his head and coming down with it near midfield.
With time winding down under a minute, the Bulldogs again had a chance to
finish the game off. Candor’s defense stepped up once again, however. Delhi
faced a 4th and 1, and again was not able to convert.
Candor took over
from inside their 40 with 44 seconds (and no timeouts) for one last gasp. The
Indians would pick up a first down with some good use of the sidelines, but
time expired before they were able to get any further.
Fletcher would
finish with 171 yards on 30 carries, and it was the toughness of the running of
him, Telian, and Ellis, as well as the commanding lineplay of tackles Micah Scobie
and Mike Thomas, guards Ben Cairns and Brendon Snyder, tight ends Sackett and Tyler Hymers, and
center Will Effner that was the real difference in
the game.
Click here to see Fletcher’s first TD…
Click here to see Fletcher’s second TD…
Delhi 20, Candor 13
First Quarter:
Delhi – Jack
Fletcher 1 run (pass failed)
Candor – Jordan
Sears 18 pass from Harry Hartmann (Sawyer Wood kick)
Second Quarter:
Delhi – Fletcher 3
run (Colin Ellis run)
Fourth Quarter:
Delhi – Ellis 14
run (pass failed)
Candor – Hartmann 1 run (kick failed)
|
DELHI |
Candor |
|||||||||||
|
Rushing |
Att |
Yards |
Ave |
TD |
|
|
Rushing |
Att |
Yards |
Ave |
TD |
|
|
Jack Fletcher |
30 |
171 |
5.7 |
2 |
|
|
Chad Rose |
8 |
59 |
7.4 |
0 |
|
|
Tom Telian |
16 |
74 |
4.6 |
0 |
|
|
Clifford Switzer |
12 |
58 |
4.8 |
0 |
|
|
Anthony Salerno |
6 |
29 |
4.8 |
0 |
|
|
Harry Hartmann |
8 |
22 |
2.8 |
1 |
|
|
Colin Ellis |
3 |
17 |
5.7 |
1 |
|
|
Dillon Shaw |
1 |
3 |
3.0 |
0 |
|
|
Kevin O'Connell |
1 |
-6 |
-6.0 |
0 |
|
|
Cody Harris |
1 |
2 |
2.0 |
0 |
|
|
Totals |
56 |
285 |
5.1 |
3 |
|
|
Totals |
30 |
144 |
4.8 |
1 |
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
Passing |
Comp |
Att |
Yards |
TD |
INT |
Comp % |
Passing |
Comp |
Att |
Yards |
TD |
INT |
|
Anthony Salerno |
2 |
5 |
16 |
0 |
0 |
0.400 |
Harry Hartmann |
6 |
18 |
101 |
1 |
1 |
|
Totals |
2 |
5 |
16 |
0 |
0 |
0.400 |
Totals |
6 |
18 |
101 |
1 |
1 |
|
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|
Scoring |
Rush TD's |
Rec TD's |
Def TD's |
2 Pt |
PAT |
Points |
Receiving |
Number |
Yards |
Ave |
TD |
|
|
Jack Fletcher |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
12 |
Jordan Sears |
3 |
58 |
19.3 |
1 |
|
|
Colin Ellis |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
8 |
Cody Harris |
2 |
31 |
15.5 |
0 |
|
|
Totals |
3 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
20 |
Chad Rose |
1 |
12 |
12.0 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Totals |
6 |
101 |
16.8 |
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
|
Receiving |
Number |
Yards |
Ave |
TD's |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Kevin O'Connell |
1 |
11 |
11.0 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jacob Sackett |
1 |
5 |
5.0 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Totals |
2 |
16 |
8.0 |
0 |
|
|
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|
Defense |
Tackles |
Assists |
INT |
Fumb Rec |
TD |
|
||||||
|
Kevin O'Connell |
6 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Jacob Sackett |
5 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Jack Fletcher |
4 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Brian Ingram |
4 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Tom Telian |
3 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Michael Thomas |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
John MacNaught |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Micah Scobie |
1 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
James Ingram, Jr. |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Eli Wright |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Brandon Snyder |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Colin Ellis |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
||||||
|
Totals |
32 |
24 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|