Kicking off: Senior wingback Tyrone Nichols ran for 256 yards and scored two touchdowns to rally top-ranked Lansingburgh to a 42-32 victory over No. 8 Albany Academy in Section 2 Class B action Saturday.
"He is not the fastest guy we've had here -- by far. He doesn't have the best moves -- by far. But what he does have is heart and determination," Lansingburgh coach Al McNall told The Times Union. "Those are things you can't coach."
Lansingburgh took the lead for good at 35-32 on a 53-yard TD pass from senior T.J. McLaughlin to wingback Terrance Kemp with 11:14 left.
Junior Zay Richardson ran back a kickoff 91 yards for a TD and added a 41-yard scoring catch on a screen pass as Albany Academy opened a 26-14 lead shortly before halftime. But Nichols countered with a bullying 67-yard touchdown run to roach 204 yards for the half and cut the lead to 26-20.
First down: Saturday was a big day for confrontations between contenders in Section 1, and Harrison picked up a big 24-23 victory over No. 10 Eastchester in Class A to remain in contention for a sectional berth.
Jack Molloy's 38-yard field goal in the fourth quarter proved to be the margin.
"We had the stands going, the atmosphere was like a playoff game," Harrison's Robbie Carducci told The Journal News after the Huskies rallied from a 21-7 deficit. "This was do-or-die. We knew that if we lost, we were done."
A bad punt snap set up Joey Loreti's 27-yard TD catch from Dan Formisano, cutting it to 21-14 midway through the third quarter, and Harrison's Alex Acompora ripped off a 55-yard sideline run with 8:01 to play to tie.
Meanwhile, No. 6 Bronxville picked up 352 rushing yards and knocked off No. 4 Croton-Harmon 30-14 in a Class C contest. Brian Murray, a fill-in QB for two weeks, paced the winners with 196 yards and four touchdowns on 24 carries.
"I was at quarterback up until practice on Thursday," said Murray, who also ran in two two-point conversions. "I was happy to go back to tailback."
Murray had been taking the snaps since QB Jack Near was injured Sept. 17.
Second down: Defending NYSPHSAA Class C champion Jamestown Southwestern maintained its No. 1 status with a 31-13 victory over No. 17 Cassadaga Valley.
Levi Bursch (seven carries, 114 yards) put up TD runs of 51 and 52 yards and caught a 56-yard pass from Zack Sopak, who also connected with Nick Austin on a 72-yard scoring pass.
Southwestern's 21-game winning streak is the longest in the state.
Third down: Dan Gehl's two touchdown passes in the second half lift Walton past No. 15 Greene 30-20 in a Section 4 Class C game. Gehl threw five yards to Steve Keminsky in the third quarter 21 yards to Justin Gardepe in the fourth quarter.
Fourth down: St. Francis Prep took the field without iconic coach Vin O'Connor, serving a one-week suspension, and dropped a 9-6 decision to Monsignor Farrell. O'Connor, the state's second-winningest coach ever (317 wins in 56 years), was suspended for the Terriers' game after being ejected for arguing a call against
