The Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake football team showed how dangerously efficient its offense can be at Scotia-Glenville’s expense.
The Spartans scored touchdowns on three consecutive plays from scrimmage in the first quarter on their way to a 46-14 victory over the Tartans in last Friday’s season opener in Burnt Hills.
They’re very good, they’re very disciplined and I think they’re just a well-oiled machine, said Scotia-Glenville coach Mike Turgeon.
`It’s always nice to get a win, but there’s always things you can improve on,` said BH-BL coach Matt Shell. `The kids gave a great effort.`
The Spartans received the opening kickoff, and it didn’t take them long to get on the scoreboard. On their third play from scrimmage, quarterback Phillip Neumann connected with wide receiver Keaton Flint on a 51-yard touchdown pass to make the score 7-0.
In what would become a recurring theme in the first quarter, BH-BL’s defense denied Scotia-Glenville a first down on the Tartans’ ensuing offensive series. That was quickly followed by another Spartan touchdown ` this time, it was a 43-yard scoring run by Evan Nusbaum that put BH-BL ahead 13-0.
Things got worse for Scotia-Glenville on its next offensive series. The BH-BL pass rush knocked the ball out of quarterback Cody Rumney’s hands on third down, and Jacob Meyers recovered the loose ball at the Tartans’ 15-yard line. On the next play from scrimmage, Jahi Owens found a seam on the left side of Scotia-Glenville’s defensive front and ran untouched into the end zone to give the Spartans a 20-0 lead.
Neumann concluded the scoring in the first quarter with a 16-yard touchdown strike to Tyler Paluba ` the second of only three passes the senior quarterback attempted. Nusbaum capped BH-BL’s first drive of the second quarter with a five-yard scoring run, and fullback Brandon Beatty added a 32-yard touchdown scamper to give the Spartans a 39-0 halftime lead.
Beatty led a balanced BH-BL offense with 113 yards on 10 carries. Nusbaum gained 48 yards and kicked four extra points to go along with his two touchdown runs.
Rumney redeemed himself in the fourth quarter by scoring on a 1-yard touchdown plunge for Scotia-Glenville. Paul Lasher added a 38-yard scoring run for the Tartans.
`What was nice about our guys was they didn’t stop playing,` said Turgeon. `They were able to put a couple of touchdowns in.`
Both teams face challenges from our-of-division foes this weekend. BH-BL travels to Niskayuna Friday, while Scotia-Glenville hosts Glens Falls.
`Their offense presents some problems,` Shell said of Niskayuna, which defeated Glens Falls 22-14 last Saturday. `They run the spread [formation], which we haven’t seen much of over the years.`
`I think our kids are excited about playing at home and playing a team they feel they match up well against,` Turgeon said of Glens Falls.“
