LATHAM — Shaker withstood a fourth quarter surge by the Dutchmen of Guilderland to win an exciting, Class AA matchup 35-25 and move to 2-0 in the abbreviated Fall 11 season.
As things slowly get back to normal, Friday night’s game under the lights had fans in the stands — albeit fewer than a typical night — cheerleaders on the sideline and even the school band belting out tunes.
And there was some good football.
After a field goal and a shot slant over the middle from Guilderland quarterback to Logan Broomhall to Caleb Jacobsen, the Bison were down 10-7 in the second quarter when Dwayne Newkirk took the following kickoff 90 yards for a score, giving Shaker a 14-10 lead.
Shaker went up 21-10 after quarterback Joe Mirabile hit a wide open Connor Strand for a touchdown. Later in the third, Strand scored again to give Shaker a 28-10 lead.
But, Guilderland scored 15 unanswered in the fourth quarter on a long touchdown run by Broomhall and then a pass from Broomhall to Jaxson Wicks. A two-point conversion later and the lead was three, 28-25, late in the game.
Strand got the call on a third and long with under three minutes to plan and broke it for his third touchdown of the day and with the extra point gave Shaker a 35-25 lead.
Guilderland, who beat Bethlehem in Week 1, will host Colonie on Thursday April 1, while Shaker, who opened the season by shutting out Shen, will play at Saratoga on Saturday, April 3.
Click on a photo below to view a slideshow of the rest.