Leading off today: Patrick Hackler scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak at the final horn to lift
Skaneateles over Chenango Forks 27-26 in an instant classic of a NYSPHSAA Class B football quarterfinal on Saturday.
Chenango Forks came in ranked No. 1 in the state while Skaneateles was No. 2 after having won the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class C championship last fall.
Skaneateles advanced to next weekend's semifinals by scoring the contest's final 13 points. Skaneateles defensive lineman Josh McIntyre recovered a fumble at midfield off a Chenango Forks pitch and returned it for a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 26-21. Skaneateles turned the ball over on downs with 3:00 to go to give Skaneateles the opportunity to win.
Hackler was stopped on third-and-goal, and the record-setting quarterback quickly lined up his team before driving off the right side of the line and into the end zone as the clock hit zero.
"It felt like we were getting knocked around the whole game," Skaneateles coach Joe Sindoni said. "It just felt like they were beating us up and we were just hanging around. We had that big defensive play with the scoop and score. We made a couple of stops when we needed them and then Hackler made some plays at the end with his feet and his head."
• According to research by Mike Connell of Section4Football.com, the game marked just the second time dating back to 1953 that Chenango Forks has lost when scoring 23 or more points in a game. Their record in that scenario now stands at 300-2.
More No. 1 vs. No. 2: In a battle between the top-two-ranked teams in Class D, No. 1 Clymer/Sherman/Panama ran over Alexander 29-6, holding the Section 5 champions scoreless until the final final of the game.
Derek Ecklund rushed 26 times for 186 yards and CSP's first touchdown.
CSP held the Trojans to 189 yards, 86 of which came on Ty Woods' touchdown scamper. Chris McClinic, who came into the game with 1,088 rushing yards on the season, was held to 11 yards on 10 carries.
"Where we made a living on speed and strength overcoming size and bulk, today we met a team that was our equal or better in the trenches and in the box," Alexander coach Tim Sawyer said.
Huge night for Leach, Batavia: Ray Leach ran over and through the Cheektowaga defense, rushing for 417 yards and scoring eight touchdowns in Batavia's 56-28 win in the Class B quarterfinals.
Leach broke NYSPHSAA tournament records for rushing TDs, total TDs and rushing yards. For good measure, he also recorded a safety.
Leach, who rushed for 344 yards and six TDs against Wayne in the Section 5 title game a week earlier, booked four touchdowns in the first 13 minutes against Cheektowaga. His scoring runs covered 34, 11, 50, 3, 33, 1, 31 and 23 yards.
"This kid plays defense, offense, he doesn't leave the football field. Eight touchdowns, I don't care what classification it is, if this kid is playing AA football this kid is going to go out there and he's going to perform," Batavia coach Brennan Briggs said.
Aquinas turns the tables: Avenging a 9-0 whitewash against the Legends a year earlier, Aquinas rode a potent running game to a 39-7 rout of Lancaster in the Class AA quarterfinals.
Senior Caron Robinson rushed 11 times for 250 yards and a pair of touchdowns and junior Ruben Torres (19 carries, 100 yards) chipped in with three TDs as the Little Irish