The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Cazenovia, Oneida fight for title
The last time Cazenovia and Oneida met in the Class B playoffs, the Laker defense pitched a 14-0 shutout in the Carrier Dome to secure a 2013 Section III title.
Friday, the two programs met in the playoffs for the first time since the title game five years ago, this time in the semifinals with an opportunity to compete for a section title at stake.
Once again, the Laker defense had all the answers, posting a 40-0 shutout over Oneida to advance to the Class B final and a showdown with No. 1 seed Skaneateles.
“My defensive coaches are a million percent responsible for the plan. Mark [Evans] and Kyle [Martin] do it all, and they did an outstanding job this week. All credit goes to them,” Cazenovia coach Jay Steinhorst said of his team’ defensive effort.
Offensively for Cazenovia, junior tailback Ryan Romagnoli had another big night for the Lakers, accounting for a pair of rushing scores and also passing for another touchdown. Laker senior quarterback Drew Johnson threw for one score and rushed for another.
Despite the final score, Oneida hung tough with Cazenovia in the first half, limiting a volatile Laker offense to 12 points.
Romagnoli and the Lakers changed things up for their first strike of the contest. The junior back took an option toss from Johnson before dealing downfield to an open Ian Fos-
tveit for a 6-0 lead.
“My coach has told me before I’m an okay passer but a great runner,” Romagnoli said with a grin. “He trusts me throwing the ball sometimes though when we need it, and the play looked open to him. I trust Coach Steinhorst’s play calling with my life.”
Later in the first, Romagnoli busted a 78-yard touchdown scamper for a 12-0 Laker lead.
The Oneida defense tightened in the second quarter however, keeping the Lakers off the board to remain within striking distance, 12-0, at the half.
Out of the half, Shawn Slamzynski forced an Oneida fumble as the No. 6 seed’s offense was driving down the field to keep momentum in Cazenovia’s favor. It was a tough break for Oneida as it appeared the ball carrier was down before the ball came out, drawing strong objections from the Oneida sideline, but the play stood.
Cazenovia cashed in on their senior linebacker’s forced fumble when senior Tony Heaney ripped off a 43-yard touchdown run and a 19-0 Laker lead. Following an Oneida 3-and-out on the No. 6 seed’s next possession, the Lakers needed just three plays to add to their total. Facing 3rd- and- 8 from their own 23-yard line, Johnson hit Pavelchak on a deep route for a 77yard score and a 26-0 lead with 7:32 left in the third to take a commanding lead, one that would hold heading into the final quarter of play.
Romagnoli and Johnson added two more big scoring plays for Cazenovia in the fourth quarter to close out the 40-0 win.
“We were finishing drives. We moved the ball pretty well the whole first half. I thought we were dominating in a lot of ways, we just weren’t dominating on the scoreboard,” Steinhorst said of the 28-point second half. “We just stayed the course, and with few adjustments, not many, and we kind of finished the drives that we didn’t before.”
In addition to a tenacious Cazenovia defense, Oneida also had to deal with a rash of injuries to key figures on both sides of the ball. Already without quarterback and defensive end Ryan Chevier, the No. 6 seed also lost running back Steven Barrett and doit-all threat Lucas Albro to injury in the first half of Friday’s semifinal. Bruce Joslyn, another one of Oneida’s talented runners, was also forced from the game due to injury.
“Kids played hard. Even at the end, we didn’t give up. We’ve taken a lot of injuries. Part of football is not getting injuries, and we took a lot of injuries this year. We weren’t the big- gest team out there, but we scrapped and played hard,” Oneida coach Jason Fuller said. Oneida, after missing out on the playoffs a year ago, had a turnaround season that included a winning record, a legitimate shot at winning the Class B East, and a road playoff win. “Playoffs is great, and I’m not going to downplay it, but I think we want something more.”
Cazenovia improves to 8-1 on the year and will head to the Carrier Dome next week for a clash with No. 1 seed and 2017 Class C state champ Skaneateles.
“They are obviously a powerhouse team, the defending [state] champs. That’s just more for us to put on the line. We’ve got nothing to lose. If we take down the defending champs, that’s great. We just have to keep grinding all week and come together as a team,” Romagnoli said of the loom- ing showdown.
“Our defense has been pretty good this year. It will be a fun challenge,” Steinhorst said. “We need to figure out a way to keep them under 28 points or 21 points or something like that. Nobody has really been able to do that because they are a pretty explosive team. They are well coached and have really good players. So, our defensive coaches will have their hands full, as will I as the offensive coach, but it will be all good stuff. We are really looking forward to this week and next weekend.”
Following the defeat, Oneida closes its season with a 6-3 mark and bids farewell to a strong senior class.
“The seniors have been amazing,” Fuller said. “They made every day worth it. It’s been an honor, and every day has been a lot of fun. I’m going to miss them.”