You had to believe LaSalle football coach Gary Lauver had the date circled on his calendar when the schedule came out six months ago. The second year coach had lost the Collar City Cup to city rival Troy last year in an embarrassing 54-0 rout, and it was hoped the Cadets would be a little more competitive this season.
Entering tonight's game, the Cadets were 1-1 after dropping a 21-20 decision to the same Columbia team that had themselves been crushed by Troy in their opener. A quick check of the program shows 26 players on the active roster. Could Section 2's "little engine that could" slow down the runaway train that the state champions have become?
In a word, no.
If there was one imperative for LaSalle when this game began, it was to either win the coin toss, or hope that Troy would defer to the 2nd half. They got the latter, then squandered the opportunity. Junior QB Christian Luizzi served up a pick-six to his opposite number, Joe Casale, and just like that, Troy was up, 7-0, before they took an offensive snap.
However, the Flying Horses were also in a giving mood early on, as the Cadets cashed in a Troy turnover with Luizzi punching it in himself from a couple of yards out to tie the score heading into the 2nd quarter.
Then, Joey Ward took over.
The senior tailback scored three touchdowns on Troy's next four possessions, the other being a TD toss from Casale to Dev Holmes. Holmes also caught a 2 point conversion, as Troy entered the break with a comfortable 35-7 lead. It wasn't quite so comfortable for LaSalle, however, as Luizzi was knocked out of the game with a knee injury late in the 2nd quarter. Sophomore Dermot McDonough took over, but could not get the Cadets back into the end zone.
It seemed as though the officials were being charitable with the hosts, as Troy was hit with an inordinate amount of penalties in the 1st & 4th quarters, which led to much griping in the visitors' bleachers. Funny thing. This was the first road game I've covered, and, as was the case when LaSalle visited Picken Field last year, Troy's supporters outnumbered Lasalle's by a wide margin. I just don't get the lack of support for LaSalle, even with a city rival.
Undaunted, Troy added two more scores in the 2nd half. Holmes scored his 2nd rushing touchdown of the season in the 3rd quarter, and freshman Xavier Leigh put the exclamation point on the proceedings with a late 4th quarter touchdown. Leigh would've scored sooner, except that it was called back by a penalty. Troy goes to 3-0 with a 55-7 verdict. LaSalle falls to 1-2.
It won't get any easier for LaSalle, as Homecoming marks the end of their 3 game homestand next week, with Shaker coming to town. The Blue Bison blew away Schenectady, 51-0, and bear in mind, LaSalle beat Schenectady two weeks ago. Troy also has Homecoming next week, entertaining Bethlehem, and will travel to Latham to play Shaker two weeks later, with a stop in Schenectady before that.
======================================
Other Troy High news: The boys' soccer team has suddenly caught fire, having won three in a row after beating Bethlehem, 3-2, on Thursday afternoon. Credit the surge to the team's new playmaker and leading scorer, Kevin Vargas, who has tallied 12 goals in the three games, including all three vs. Bethlehem. Coach Mike Murnane's club, now 4-3 overall, will host Niskayuna on Saturday night.
Meanwhile, the girls' soccer team is still looking for their first win after dropping a 2-1 decision to Bethlehem Thursday night. They've been competitive and in every game so far (0-5), but as was the case last year, the first win has been elusive. They're on the road at Nisky Saturday morning, then have back-to-back home games on Tuesday & Wednesday vs. Shaker and, in a non-league game, Broadalbin-Perth. That game was moved up a day, as it was originally scheduled for Sept. 21, but that's Jewish New Year, and schools will be closed on Thursday, something that didn't happen when I was a student at Troy back in the day.
Unfortunately, the volleyball, golf, cross country, and women's tennis teams are also winless. The golf team's short season is already over, it seems, as the league championships took place on Thursday, with Troy finishing last. It's not like it was back in the day, when Troy fielded competitive teams in every sport. With Troy promoting football, basketball, and, to a lesser extent, soccer, softball, & baseball, ahead of the other sports, it's getting harder to field a quality team these days. Just sayin'.
No comments:
Post a Comment