Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017: Skaneateles wins Class C shootout with Cleveland Hill

   Leading off today: Patrick Hackler had a hand in nine touchdowns Saturday as Skaneateles outlasted Cleveland Hill 63-56 in the NYSPHSAA Class C football semifinals.

   The quarterback rushed for five TDs and threw for four more, finished 15-for-30 with 312 yards through the air and 384 rushing yards. Nate Wellington caught five passes for 134 yards and Cross Bianchi posted 99 yards and a touchdown on four receptions.

   Hackler extended his state record of passing touchdowns in a season to 50.

   Javon Thomas of Cleveland Hill ran for 353 of his 418 yards on 18 carries in the first half. Four of his five TDs came in the second quarter on runs of 60, 78, 74 and 55 yards as the teams combined for 10 TDs and 70 points. The combined 119 points in the game set a New York State Public High School Athletic Association playoff record.

   Cleveland Hill led 50-35 at halftime. The Eagles' lone points of the second half came on an interception return by Aaron Wahler late in the third quarter.

   "It's definitely a crazy swing of emotions," Hackler said. "We kind of came out a little flat, but we still scored. We knew we were in a ballgame after (Thomas) broke three runs in a row and scored back-to-back-to-back. Halftime is the best thing in football. It's really beneficial, and that really helped us a lot."

   Bianchi's fumble recovery midway through the fourth quarter with his team trailing 56-55 set the stage for a 54-yard TD run by Hackler to close out the scoring.

    • In the other semifinal, Holy Trinity edged Burke Catholic 28-23. Cam Kiser scored on a 2-yard run, Noah Foster turned a screen pass into a 27-yard touchdown, and Nacier Hundley turned a short crossing pass into a 58-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to build a 28-17 advantage.

   More NYSPHSAA semifinals: Pleasantville ended Glens Falls' 24- game winning streak with a 20-7 win in Class B, avenging a 49-14 loss in the 2016 semifinals.

   Charlie McPhee carried 29 times for 197 yards and scored the only points of the first half on an 8-yard fumble return. Quarterback Jack Howe rushed 15 times for 113 yards and a touchdown and also threw for a score.

   Also in Class B, Chenango Forks booked its fifth straight trip to the final by defeating Cheektowaga 48-28. Kris Borelli threw for two TDs, ran for one, intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble. Jeremiah Allen chipped in with 161 yards on the ground.

    • Defending Class AA champion Troy kept hopes of repeating alive with a 20-13 win over Newburgh Free Academy. Facing third-and-3 at the NFA 11 with 2:01 to go, Joe Casale handed the ball off to running back Joey Ward going right. Ward then handed to Dev Holmes on a reverse and the senior wideout bullied his way into the end zone for the go-ahead points.

   "We're nothing but lucky going back (to the Dome) for another time," senior Matt Ashley said. "They came out and smacked us right in the mouth. At halftime we decided to amp it up a bit."

   Troy's opponent in the title game will be Lancaster, a 35-21 winner over Cicero-North Syracuse as Wildcat-formation QB Joe Andreessen rushed for touchdowns of 43 and 2 yards and also passed for a 20-yard TD to wipe out a 14-6 deficit.

ADVERTISEMENT

   CHSFL finals: Kellenberg QB Matt Sluka had touchdown runs of 64, 11, 16, 32 and 52 yards to go with one score threw the air to beat Fordham Prep 54-19 in the Class AA championship -- Kellenberg's first crown since 1999.

   Sluka finished with 227 rushing yards on 17 carries and also went 6-for-8 on extra points. Frankie Roder added 154 yards and a TD on the ground, and Jordan DeLucia added 114 rushing yards as Kellenberg churned out 506 yards rushing.

   Fordham Prep QB Matt Valecce finished 27-for-46 for 375 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He concluded his career No. 2 to Jack Coan of Sayville on the Long Island list for career passing yards.

    • Trill Williams dazzled again in Class AAA, accounting for 183 yards of total offense and four touchdowns as Archbishop Stepinac defeated St. Anthony's 47-22.

2017 NYSPHSAA football brackets 2017 Long Island football brackets Football weekly schedules 2017 NYSPHSAA boys soccer brackets 2017 NYSPHSAA girls soccer brackets 2017 NYSPHSAA field hockey brackets

   St. Anthony's jumped to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter with the help of a 75-yard punt return by Makhai Murphy, but Stepinac rallied with a 19-point second quarter highlighted by a 56-yard scoring run by Williams.

   A 73-yard punt return by Williams midway through the third quarter extended the Stepinac lead to 25-14. Williams later returned an interception 39 yards for another touchdown and capped off his night with a 7-yard TD reception.

   "He's a heckuva player; you just can't deny it," said St. A's quarterback Greg Campisi. "I threw two picks to him. He's going to tear it up at Syracuse because he's some athlete."

    • Senior Michael Booth scored on a 1-yard run with :25 to go as Cardinal Spellman earned a 20-18 victory over Xaverian in the Class A championship game.

   Spellman had fallen in defeat in the previous two championship game appearances to Xaverian and 32-22 last year to Moore Catholic. The Pilots also lost twice to Xaverian in the regular season.

   Monsignor Martin final: Canisius advanced to next Saturday's CHSAA championship game vs. Stepinac with a 22-14 win over St. Joe's, defending three pass plays from inside its 22 in the closing moments to wrap up the win.

   Junior linebacker Joe Jamison finished with 10 tackles, a sack and a 26-yard strip-and-score that gave the Crusaders their first lead with 11:12 left. Quarterback Jayce Johnson scored a pair of rushing touchdowns.

   Long Island playoffs: Oceanside will face Lindenhurst in the Long Island Class I championship game next Sunday.

   Oceanside blanked Freeport 17-0, scoring on its first two drives -- a 10-yard pass from Tommy Heuer to Dylan Judd and a 24-yard field goal by Francesco Ancona -- and then turning the game over to its defense to throttle an opponent averaging 38 points a game.

   Heuer finished 15 of 20 for 150 yards. His 36 TD passes this fall put him within two of the Nassau County record of 38 by Lawrence's Joe Capobianco in 2012. He has thrown for 2,661 yards with only two interceptions.

   Lindenhurst won the Suffolk championship with a 35-12 win over William Floyd. Nick Anzalone completed 12 of 17 passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns. He was 5-for-5 on Lindenhurst's first possession, including a 53-yard scoring pass to Justin Zotto for a lead the Bulldogs never surrendered.

    • Westhampton defeated Half Hollow Hills West 28-14 in the Suffolk III championship game and will meet Lawrence for the Long Island Championship.

   Westhampton halfback Dylan Laube's 2-yard TD run on a fourth-down sweep regained the lead midway through the second quarter. Laube finished with 185 yards and four TDs on 29 carries.

   Laube has 39 touchdowns for the season.

   Lawrence downed Wantagh 21-10 for the Nassau County championship with the help of a heady defensive play by cornerback Jordan Alexander. Anticipating a lateral by Ryan Murphy after a reception, Alexander snatched the pitched ball out of the air and rambled 31 yards for a touchdown.

   The touchdown and extra point gave the Golden Tornadoes a 14-10 lead with 1:56 left in the third quarter.

   "We watched a lot of film," Alexander said. "I was thinking hook-and-ladder. I was just in the right place at the right time. I couldn't believe that all I had to do was run into the end zone."